How to Train on the Trail

Back Up

Either before you mount up, or at some point during your ride, ask your horse to walk backwards at least 30 steps. Ideally, you want the horse in a lowered neck position (poll and withers at approximately the same height), and you want to make sure the horse steps backward an equal distance with each foreleg. If your horse tends to anticipate and rush backwards instead of calmly walking back step-by-step, you can repeat a sequence of backing up ten steps and then walking forwards ten steps. Repeat a few times

Arena riders like to wax poetic about the value of riding transitions between gaits. These simple maneuvers help balance the horse to carry more weight on his hindquarters, improve responsiveness, and stimulate fuller neuromuscular recruitment. But transitions are not just for arena riders. In fact, I like to head down a flat stretch of trail with the goal of riding at least three gait transitions. Every 20 meters or so, I’ll switch from walk to trot then back to walk and up to trot again. It keeps my horse listening to me and using his body more fully.

I also encourage trail riders to practice walking and trotting their horses at different speeds. Make transitions between a slow trot, a faster trot, and a medium-paced trot. Ride frequently between these different speeds. Doing so will keep your horse much looser in his back and haunches. Too often, people get stuck riding at one steady speed all the time on trails and, like any repetitive motion, this creates stiffness.

Similar to the advice given above, change your horse’s posture and body carriage frequently to encourage fuller recruitment of core muscles. When you are on a flatter section of trail, ride a half mile or less, depending on your terrain, in a shorter or more “collected” frame, followed by the next half-mile asking your horse to stretch his neck forward and downward towards the ground. This is an exercise that we arena riders do frequently to develop good flexibility and range of motion in the horse’s musculoskeletal system. This exercise can — and should — be done on the trail, too.

Don’t worry, as with any of these exercises, you do not need to spend your whole ride practicing. You can still relax and just enjoy the view for much of your outing, but do try to find five to ten minutes where you can ask your horse to change his frame a few times while cruising along.