Human Skills- Tips for Releasing Tension (Mounted or Unmounted)

When learning horse skills, many people focus on the mechanics to get the horse’s obedience or compliance, with little to no self-awareness of how their mindset and behaviors will influence the equine's responses. Anticipative, hopeful, or distracted thoughts decrease the ability to reset breathing and release tension in real-time, limiting one's adaptability to help the horse. 

Learning Horse Skills- Unasked for Opinions Dear Sam: Horse Help

 

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Human Mental Distractions & Anticipations Sabotaging the Equine Interactions

Many people get triggered by distractions and mentally go far away from where they are with their horse as they get lost in their "stories" of what ifs, history of previous experiences, or anticipation of what might potentially happen.

Catching the Horse- Considerations

 Dear Sam: Horse Help Horsemanship Series discussing Catching the Horse Considerations

Watch now HERE

Fear Limiting our Horsemanship

The fear of "getting it wrong" can overwhelm people into doing nothing. Avoidance is a common "tactic" with both people and horses. The mental anticipation by the human can interfere with their ability to be present for their horse, having thoughts such as:

"Last time I tried to ___________ my horse __________ and I don't want that to happen again."

"What if my horse _______, then we won't be able to _______, so I better not ________ to cause an issue."

Horse Communication- Keeping it Simple

I had some upper level Dressage horses in one of my clinic sessions yesterday. Riders were talking about how they felt they kept having to "do more" and yet were getting less response from their horses.

Evolving Journey of our Horsemanship

Some days everything may go as planned and then there are days where nothing seems to be able to be accomplished. My personality is to "will" things to happen, but it has taken a lot of years and intention to realize that wasn't going to work when it came to the horses.

Developing a Fulfilling Equine Experience

 Mindset Motivation

I often share this quote as I work to help educate folks to be more supportive of their horses.

Horse Training Help- What is Missing?

 Dear Sam: Horse Help Horsemanship Series

Horse Training : What is Missing?

Alternative Horsemanship Remote Horse Coach discusses common overlooked basics in the horse's and human's equine-related learning, leading to unwanted horse behaviors. 

Click the link in the comments to watch on the Alternative Horsemanship YouTube Channel.

New videos are posted every Friday.

 #alternativehorsemanship #RemoteHorseCoach #dearsamhorseseries #horsetraining #horse 

Improving your Horse Sense- Understanding Equine Behavior

The Three A's

Assess(ment)- Of the horse to evaluate the mental availability, emotional state, and physical softness. Assessing is a foundational key to building a partnership with your horse because it gives the human a "starting point" of what needs to be addressed to help the horse.

Improving Horse Skills & Changing Sabotaging Interaction Patterns

Proactive Horse Skills & Communication

Do you work with your horse at the same time of day?
Catch him in the same manner?
Enter/exit the gate the same way?
Is your groundwork a routine or a pattern?
Tie/groom/tack up in the same place?
Mount from the same side, in the same location?
Begin always tracking in one direction?

Unwanted Horse Behavior: Horse Trainer Thoughts

 

Dear Sam: Horse Help Horsemanship Series

Chaos, Anticipation, and Unwanted Horse Behavior
Alternative Horsemanship The Remote Horse Coach discusses chaos, anticipation, and unwanted equine behaviors and tips for recognizing human behaviors creating fearful horses.
Subscribe to the YouTube Channel for new videos every Friday. 

Horse Trainer Tips

 

Horse Rider Intentions and Goals

"You become what you want to be, by consistently being what you want to become each day." Richard G Scott

I think the above quote is so true regarding our own journey of Horsemanship.
I've been working on putting together projects and have been including interviews from students past and present.

Horse Trainer Tips by Alternative Horsemanship the Remote Horse Coach

Today's Horse Tips

 

Photo of a very dedicated student who wore this shirt she made to an Alternative Horsemanship clinic...

1. Many people focus (and worry) about doing things "right" and don't realize they have quit consistent, regular breathing.
This causes:
* rigid and delayed communication offered to the horse
*mental & physical fatigue
* limits their physical adaptability in the present moment

 
2. Many people offer constant negative criticism towards the horse (often after he has offered an unwanted response,) rather than communicating what I call Positive Alternatives- continuously communicating proactively something that the horse CAN do.

Helping the Horse: Equine Training Tips

 Empathy + Horses 🚫= Weakness

Improving the Human and Horse Partnership

 

There comes a point... 

You can double down increasing pressure, severity of tack, and demanding obedience, all the while hoping "it" works...

Or, you choose to change. 

It really is that simple.

Horse Rider Help- Breathing

 Tips for Resetting your Breathing and Releasing Tension at the Halt

Without realizing it, many riders hold their breath quite frequently when interacting with or riding the horse.