keeping the energy when collecting

[heonk]

ive been riding for 6-7 years now id say im pretty adequate at a lot of things. i ride without a trainer most of the time now. im more like my own trainer now im aware of the mistakes i do and things i need to correct and so i base my lessons on that and also on what my pony needs to improve on.

i have an issue that when i collect the horse or get him on the bit his head down yk he slows down so basically the energy goes down and im not always sure how to keep on pushing him forward. i know its like u use ur legs to push his hind like using ur seat but he ignores my leg a lot. i think this is partly just due to him having been ridden with spurs. does anyone have any tips to keep the horse going forward even when collecting or such?

also i grip with my knees a lot unintentionally. i notice it and i stop but idk why my body does it how do i improve that

 

[carthorse]

Sorry but you need a trainer who can see what is happening and help you.

If you're losing energy when you ask him to come on the bit and collect then you're almost certainly using too much hand and too little leg, assuming you have a correct active pace to begin with - if you don't then you have no business asking him to come on the bit never mind collect yet. If you're gripping with your knees then you won't be using your legs or body effectively and are sending conflicting messages to him so work on that first and forget about the rest until you are correct. A few lunge lessons may help, you and your trainer can focus on you and then when you get the feel of how you should be you can then take it off the lunge and onto your general riding.

Remember that "on the bit" is a very misleading phrase since the very last thing involved in achieving it is the bit! "On the aids" is much more accurate as it should come from general responsiveness, suppleness, strength and discipline of both horse and rider. Get yourself sorted first so you are easy for your horse to carry and have enough control over your body to use it to influence his - then and only then do you stand a chance of asking him to come forward into a contact and then coming on the bit. Collection, done correctly, will take even longer as it's a very gymnastic exercise for a horse and needs a lot of strength.

 

[carthorse]

Don't play with the hands, just don't! You want him to accept the contact and take it forward, he's never going to do that if you fiddle away and give him nothing to accept. What will happen is he'll drop his nose and fall behind the contact - you may think you have roundness and acceptance at that point but all you really have is evasion and a lack of engagement, you'd be better off on a long rein going forwards.

For now my best advise would be concentrate on your position and on getting him going consistently forward off a light leg aid and staying there. Forget outline until you have forward and responsive to the leg. Then use lessons to start working on getting him on the bit.

 

[carthorse]

It's never been good riding, but for far too many years it's been seen as a way to get the nose to drop, it does do that but because the horse is evading the contact because it's not nice for it. I suppose it's marginally better than the riders who take a heavy set contact, but being better than something that's worse is a pretty poor recommendation. What you want is a soft, elastic, quiet hand that the horse feels confident picking up a contact with - sounds easy enough but it takes a lot for a rider to learn - and yes it should be the horse that picks up the contact and takes it forward (hence why you need to be able to ride forward from the leg supporting with your position) not the rider picking it up by taking a backward feel - do that and you probably will want to fiddle with the reins to stop the horse setting and leaning.

I'll admit I'm being a purist here. He's your horse and if you want quicker results that many people find are ok then that's your choice. I've never been competitive so never had the need to rush to tick boxes, instead being happy to take time and do things in a way I'm happy with.