Ride your Bones
by Peggy Brown
(© 2000
Peggy S. Brown, all rights reserved)
Beneath your riding
clothes and skin lies your skeleton --that bony framework that
supports your entire body. Joints and ligaments allow these bones to
move, and muscles and tendons help create the movement.
The skeleton is one
common denominator of us all. Allowing for variations in bone size and
length, we all have the same skeletal make up. As riders and
instructors, we can use that skeleton to help us find correct body
alignment, balance and efficient movement, regardless of out student’s
size or build.
A basic
knowledge of human anatomy is of great importance to
instructors of all sports, if we are to understand the dynamics of
movement. We also need to be aware of what movement is safe in
allowing the body to move freely without putting undue stress on
joints, ligaments, or muscles. This is especially important in working
with children, as damage done to bodies in the name of sport can
follow them throughout their lives. So often, riding instructors know
all about the horse and the horse’s body, but know very little about
the how the human body works.
We all know that in a
correct riding position we look for a vertical; line through shoulder,
hip and heel. Of course there will be some slight variations based on
stirrup length and riding discipline, but not much. We also need to
recognize that when we ride, the body is in motion--constant motion as
it follows the movements of the horse and as it balances and
re-balances in combination with the horse’s balance. Riding is
dynamic, and to be our best, we must learn to move and flow with
the horse, allowing our joints to follow and absorb the impact of the
horse’s gaits and movements.
Let’s consider how the
skeleton needs to be aligned to allow this freedom of motion to
occur.
The foot
needs to find a spot in the stirrup where it can support the whole
weight of the body, if necessary, for posting, galloping, jumping and
work in half-seat. The toes do not have enough strength to carry the
weight of the body, so the stirrup must be positioned farther back, or
a little behind the ball of the foot for support. The toes must have
freedom to move and spread out in the boot, or tension and stiffness
will result.
The leg
has three major joints: the ankle,
knee and hip
joints. These joints are
the rider’s "springs." They support the body while allowing it to
move. Each of these
joints must be allowed to move freely, or the springs will not work
and tension or even soft-tissue damage will result.
Respect variations in the body
of the rider you are working with,
as well as allowing for the size and build of the horse.
A short rider on a big-barreled horse will usually carry her
leg rolled out and around that horse, as opposed to a long-legged
rider on a slab-sided horse who can more easily be "down against" that
particular animal. The
knee and foot angle of the rider should match up closely. When they do not, it causes torque and stress in the knee
joint, and knee damage can be the result.
How many riders do you know with bad knees?
Remember the instructor who shouted, "Keep your toes in
parallel to the horse"?
That instructor thought that the toes in looked pretty good,
but disregarded the fact that the knee cannot work properly if
the foot position is artificial.
A good instructor respects the build and ability of the rider
and exercises caution to prevent injury.
Sometimes what looks good does not work effectively.
The hip
joint
is often a problem area for riders.
Muscle tension often prevents the hip joint from being open and
moving freely. Many
people do not have a clear idea of exactly where this joint is.
Often helping the rider locate the joint will begin to allow
the freeing and mobility of the hip joint necessary for good riding.
The knee
joint
is a hinge joint that opens and closes while riding.
When a rider rolls her knees in or pinches with the knee,
this slight twisting action can result in progressive knee
damage. If the horse
moves suddenly or unexpectedly, a twist or torque in the joint can be
result in a nasty strain.
The ankle
is an incredibly complex set of bones that allows the foot to
function. Often, riders
will hold tension in the ankle joint by trying to hold their leg still
or trying to force their heel down. This tension is very hard on the ankle joint itself and locks
up one of the most important springs in the leg.
While the heel should be lower than the toe, forcing the heel
down to look good is very damaging to the ankle joint as well as to
the rest of the body The one time that the heel is carried well down,
but never locked, is over fences or when galloping.
The leg joints have to
work together in balance for the "springs" to work.
When the legs absorb most of the shock of impact, the stress on
the rider's back is greatly reduced.
The spine (the vertebrae) is the central core of the skeletal
system. It protects the
delicate spinal cord and connects the body The back was not designed
to take up a great deal of hard, repetitive impact. This is the job of the legs.
Correct alignment and use of the legs will greatly reduce the
strain on the back and help to eliminate the common riders' complaint
of low back pain
The pelvis
is the base of the trunk of the body . When we ride we sit on our two
seat bones, which are two large arched bones at the base of the
pelvis. After many hours
in the saddle, riders often feel as if those seat bones are two hard
little points when, in fact, the seat bones are larger than one would
think. One of the keys to
helping a rider get into a correct balanced position is to help them
balance their pelvis.
If we consider the pelvis as a great bowl (the word "pelvis" is a Greek word for a bowl or vessel), we would like to carefully balance that bowl so that the imaginary contents don't spill out. If the rider sits with a hollow back, the contents would spill out the front of the bowl. The rider with a roached back will lose everything out the back. Either extreme, a hollow or roached back, will put undue stress on the vertebrae and muscles in the back again leading to back, pain and progressive damage. We need to help our students find "neutral pelvis," where the pelvis is balanced with the seat bones helping the feet support the weight of the upper body.
The ribs
curve out from the back, forming the chest cavity and
protecting the heart and lungs.
In order to breathe effectively, the ribs will move and
slightly separate with each breath.
When we ride, we don't really think much about the great rib
cage, but we should allow it to swing softly and help us breathe
deeply using our diaphragm.
The ribs are the frame work on which the shoulder girdle rests.
The shoulder girdle
is
comprised of the hands, arms, shoulder joints, shoulder blades and
collar bones. It may
surprise you to know that the bones of the entire shoulder only
connect bone-to-bone on the skeleton
In riding,
we all work to have good hands, the mark of all good riders.
But good hands have little to do with the hands themselves.
Good hands come from good arms and shoulders.
As the rest of the body moves in synchronization with the
horse, the arms and hands must be free to move independently and
communicate with the horse, and the joints of the shoulder girdle,
arms, and hands must take up any shock to keep it from being
transmitted to the horse’s mouth.
The hands
must hold the reins securely back where the fingers and palm join.
Many riders think that holding the reins lightly on their
fingertips means light hands, when actually this causes stiffness in
the fingers and hands,
resulting in intermittent contact which is very distressing to most
horses. The wrist joints
should be softly aligned with the rest of the forearm and should have
little motion, as they serve as a soft connection to the rest of the
arm. Floppy "puppy paws"
or tweaking wrists irritate the horse and are bad for the actual wrist
joint.
The elbows
are joints often forgotten.
The elbows must open and close as the horse moves to follow the
head and neck movement of the horse.
Even in trot, when the horse's head is relatively still, this
opening and closing of the elbows allows the rider’s body to post
without the motion passing down through the hands and reins to the
horse's mouth. When a
rider locks her elbows, all the motion must come from the shoulders;
stiff, bouncy hands and back and shoulder strain are the results.
The
shoulder joints
also follow and allow the horse to move, as the
shoulder blades slide across the back of the rider’s ribs.
What would happen to these soft, following arms if an
instructor told a student to "Throw your shoulders back!" or "Pinch
your shoulder blades together"? A student with rounded shoulders is
usually riding with a collapsed chest and hunching their shoulders up
around their neck like a turtle for protection.
Very often, humans unconsciously carry their shoulders with
muscle tension, rather than allowing the shoulder girdle to be
supported by the rib cage. Muscle tension, stiffness and even pain in
the neck and shoulders is the result.
Sound familiar? Freeing the shoulder girdle, correct breathing, and finding
how all the joints of the shoulder girdle move and work together will
go a long way to achieving a balanced, upright posture and quiet,
independent hands.
Then we
come to the head, with that big human brain that so often wants
to take over our lives and lead the body about.
The human skull weighs about 11-13 pounds -- the size of a
man's bowling ball! Think
about carrying a bowling ball around on top of you all day. When that
bowling ball or the skull is out of balance, the muscles and other
soft tissue must come into play to literally keep the head on.
This often results in muscle pain and tension in the back of
the neck and down between the shoulder blades.
Balancing the head on top of a lengthened,
flexible neck will help alleviate this tension and creates a
balanced and attractive posture in the saddle.
Often, what looks like hunched shoulders is actually an
unbalanced head and neck.
We have touched very
lightly here on the skeleton and how proper alignment of the skeleton
affects the rider's position and ability to move freely on the horse.
The best instructors and coaches of all sports study the human
body and how the body moves.
We owe it to our students to teach them how to use their bodies
efficiently and effectively without causing pain or damage.
We owe it to our horses to ride softly and in balance, allowing
them to do their jobs without undue interference from their riders.
Helping your students learn to ride their bones is a secret to
correct riding and a wonderful aid to effective teaching!
Additional sources of information on the body, skeletal alignment, and use of the body in riding are the books Centered Riding by Sally Swift, Balance in Movement: The Seat of the Rider, by Susanne von Dietze, and the video-tape, Anatomy in Motion II: The Visible Rider by Susan E. Harris and Peggy Brown.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Peggy Brown is a clinician and instructor of Centered Riding and Centered Driving from Maumee, Ohio (USA) She is a member of the American Driving Society and has trained, taught, and competed in driving for thirty years. She holds judges cards with the American Haflinger Registry and the ADS (L judge). She currently competes in the US and Canada in Pleasure driving, Combined Driving and under saddle events with her Haflingers, and was the Bronze Medal Winner in the 1997 American Pleasure Driving Championship. Peggy's Haflingers won the 1998 CDE Great Lakes Challenge Award, the North American Haflinger Registry Pleasure Driving Championship, and the Champion Versatility Award. Peggy Brown has studied Centered Riding for eight years, including working with Sally Swift, Susan Harris, and other Centered Riding instructors in dressage, jumping, and western riding, as well as driving. She has been a member of the Centered Riding Board of Trustees. Peggy has traveled extensively with Susan Harris to give Centered Riding and Centered Driving Clinics and demonstrations across the USA and England, and at major trade shows including Equitana USA. A qualified Centered Riding and Driving Clinician, she is available for clinics, lectures, and demonstrations.
More Articles
by Peggy Brown:
by Susan E. Harris:
• Good Movement: Getting the Best from Your Horse (Mar, 99)
• Everybody Has a Body: Understanding How the Rider's Body Works (Jul, 00)
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