Yeay! Glad the first ride went well and that you have been bitten by the bug - told you
Trotting is all to do with balance and rhythm.... the trot pace is two-time and we rise and fall (or "up, down" as it would be called out to you in a lesson
) basically because it is an easier way of riding the pace. Sitting trot to a new rider will have you pinging around all over the place until you learn balance and control. What we do in effect is stand in the stirrups briefly before sitting again.
It can be quite a fast thing to do as you have to do it in rhythm with your horse's trot: in time with the one-two of the horses legs movement you do the up-down.
The best way to learn the balance is to start standing in your stirrups to get balanced up there! Starting on a stationary horse is good (it's really not as easy as it sounds
), then proceed to standing whilst walking and then when trotting.
And study what other people are doing (preferably from the ground, not whilst on horseback!) My OH thought it looked easy from watching me until he tried it! There is so much to think about, rising and falling, balancing AND steering a horse...
But like most things, practise makes perfect! Good luck
