It's as easy as breathing...

Or, is it??
So, today I asked via Facebook for ideas on what I should write about next.  Like everyone I am prone to fall in to a rut and so thinking of the next topic usually presents it's self when a student has a question or a difficult lesson, or a training horse throws me a curve to work through.
Well, my dear readers, you threw so many ideas at me at once (all good ones by the way) I found myself overwhelmed trying to figure out how to decide which to write about first, how to explain that particular topic and whether I would even be coherent! ACCK!!

At that moment I realized I have yet to cover the most important of topics.  One I harp on be you doing ground work or in the saddle, even if you are just grooming.  I am so particular about it I will spend an entire lesson teaching you how to do it. BREATHING.

But, Miss Jessica, you are thinking to your self, I already know how to breath, or obviously I would not be reading this blog as I would be dead...
The truth is you know how to intake enough oxygen via mechanical reflex to supply your organs with the amount needed.  To truly breath involves your entire body, it is consciously using specific muscles, beyond the lungs, to send oxygen to each and every muscle helping it to have more stamina and yet remain supple at the same time...even, and most importantly, your brain.

So, HOW do you breath then?  It takes practice and being willing to feel a bit foolish (same as everything else in riding) until it becomes muscle memory.
Stand up, take a DEEP breath in for me and focus on where that air goes.  Did you feel your chest puff out and your lungs feel as if they want to burst? THAT is the incorrect way to breath.  Breathing this way, in fact, causes you to stiffen your back and shoulders (and that's just for starters) and you probably coughed as you let the air out.  Now, let's try this again.
This time, (while standing) I want you to take a deep breath slowly and let it fill your entire body with air, allow your stomach to puff out as you relax your deep muscles and allow your lungs to really fill to their capacity in a relaxed state, you should fill your spine lengthen, your shoulder will lift a bit and you will actually feel your pelvis tip backwards a bit (like you are sticking out your bum).  Practice this a few times and then move on to breathing out.
Now, fill your body with air and fill that sensation we talked about and instead of trying to breath out from your chest, use the small group of abdominal muscles just above the pelvic rim (technically this will be using the psoas major, but for now I want you to think of using your internal oblique), flex this muscle group while using the word "hoe" to blow the air from your body.  ALLOW your shoulders to drop, ALLOW your spine to flex, and do not fear the feeling of your pelvis tilting slightly forward towards your head (think a dog tucking his tail).  Do not force these things, just keep practicing until you feel them.  The more you practice the more you will feel your muscles relax, feel more supple, your rib cage will begin to expand more with each breath.  Your pelvis will begin to move on it's own and stretch and relax those pesky lumbar that like to inhibit your sitting trot.

We already know a supple body is important in the saddle, but let's start on the ground. We must remember we are dealing with a herd animal, an animal that looks to it's companions for clues on what kind of behavior is appropriate for the current situation.  So we will begin on the ground, during simple ground work to develop feel and timing of breathing as an aid.
1.  Take your horse for a walk and randomly ask for halts.  That moment before you want the whoa, take that body filling breath and let it out as you stop walking allowing your body to go through the full range of the exhale (don't forget to say "whoa" it helps to flex the muscle) and become soft and relaxed.  Pretty soon you are going to notice a softer horse on the lead rope, a horse that begins to slow and wait for a cue the moment you take in that initial breath.  And eventually, you can even use an over dramatic deliberate sigh to convey to an anxious horse "There is nothing to worry about here".
2.  Practice your "showmanship" (moving hips, shoulders, etc) and again, just as you reach the end of the movement BIG BREATH AND WHOA.

The more you practice, the less awkward and forced it will feel and the more natural it will feel when you are in the saddle.

But, my dear readers, THAT is a topic for my next blog.  After all we must walk before we can run, and we must be able to breath before we can ride.  So, practice these breaths, supple those bodies, and don't be afraid of looking or sounding foolish, hell you go to buy groceries in boots and breeches for crying out loud!!