Last updated: 20th May 2026
The Best Dressage Exercise: The Snowman
It’s getting to that wintery time of year, so it’s time to start building some snowmen in the sand school! This week’s video is another look at one of my all-time favorite dressage exercises, The Snowman, but this time with drone footage so you can clearly see the pattern from above.
What Is The Snowman Exercise?
The Snowman is a simple but powerful exercise that combines a small trot circle with a larger canter circle. You ride a small circle in trot, then change direction into a much larger circle in canter.
From above, the pattern looks like a lopsided figure eight, or a snowman. That is where the name comes from!
This is one of my favorite dressage exercises because it helps improve your trot-to-canter transitions, correct canter leads, bend, suppleness, and overall balance.
How To Ride The Snowman Exercise
Start by riding a small, round circle in trot. Focus on keeping your horse moving forward, bending around your inside leg, and staying balanced through the turn.
As you come back toward the centerline, prepare for your change of direction. Make sure you are perpendicular to the centerline when you ask for the change of bend and the canter transition. Then ride forward into a much larger canter circle in the new direction.
The goal is to keep both circles as round and accurate as possible while helping your horse stay supple through the body.
Why This Exercise Works
The beauty of The Snowman is that even if it feels messy at first, your horse will start to understand the pattern. As your horse begins to anticipate the canter transition, the quality of the transition often improves.
This makes it a great exercise for horses of all levels. It is especially helpful if your horse struggles to pick up the correct canter lead, loses balance in transitions, or gets stiff when changing direction.
Common Mistakes To Watch For
One thing to watch for is your horse anticipating the downward transition. If your horse starts to come back to trot before you ask, keep cantering around the larger circle and only allow the transition when you say so.
Also, be careful not to pull your horse around with the inside rein. Instead, use your inside leg to create bend and help your horse move off and around your leg. This will encourage better suppleness and a more balanced connection.
Try This Dressage Exercise With Your Horse
The Snowman is genuinely one of my favorite dressage exercises because it works on so many important pieces at once. It improves trot-canter transitions, suppleness, balance, and accuracy, while giving both horse and rider a clear pattern to follow.
Take a look at this video of me riding The Snowman with Mercurio. It’s not always perfect, but it always improves! Let me know in the comments if you find the video helpful.
Thanks so much for watching!
Happy Riding,
Amelia
