Western Lesson: Sit Straight

When you try this for the first time, Beth says to do it at a standstill. Then work up to being able to stand in the stirrups evenly at a walk and trot.

“You can warm up with the horse walking around while standing up,” she says. “It’s a good way to prepare for the ride and find your center of balance.”

If you fall back, you need to push your legs further behind you; if you fall forward, you need to bring your legs forward. Your leg position shouldn’t change when you sit back down in the saddle.

2. Lifting Knees

The second exercise to do during a western riding lesson that can help a rider sit in their seat straight is lifting their knees. Riders sometimes have a hard time understanding what it means when a coach that tells them to sit on their seat bones. This exercise will help you find and feel your seat bones so that you can better utilize that pressure.

“By lifting one knee, Claire can feel the seat bone push down against the saddle seat,” Beth says. “Start with both legs in the normal position and lift one knee. Your weight shifts back a little bit and onto the seat bone of the lower leg.”

Before trying the exercise for the first time, Beth says to have a handler hold the horse. This helps in case the horse moves off or you lose your balance. To advance the exercise, try it at a walk.

3. One-Stirrup Balancing

The final exercise to do during a western riding lesson that can help a rider sit in their seat straight is trying to find balance with one stirrup. This exercise strengthens your legs and core muscles. Beth says that riding with one stirrup is more difficult than riding without both stirrups.

“You can see that Claire is working to balance, and when she strains to balance, her leg kicks away from the horse,” Beth says. “My riders do this at the walk, trot and lope, and even the posting trot. Claire has a problem with her right side, so we mainly work to drop that stirrup. But riders can do the exercise by alternately dropping either stirrup.”

Starting out, you may fall forward or to the side without the stirrup. Eventually you will ride centered when your balance improves.

Beth warns that these exercises should be practiced on a horse that understands what the rider is doing and not a young horse that can be spooky. Most of your concentration is on your position, not your horse, and some horses can take advantage of that. She says that doing the exercises on a longeline and allowing someone else to control the horse can be helpful.

These exercises are a fun way to improve your balance and become a better rider. When you can find your seat bones, all the bones that connect to it can be better used to communicate with your horse.