It's one of the prettier movements we do with horses. you may have seen it in a dressage demonstration or on a video. Both horse and rider are looking straight ahead, but they are somehow floating effortlessly in a diagonal direction.
Or perhaps you've seen pictures of this exercise from straight on. Both the horse's front and hind legs are crossing each other like "X's." Why the heck isn't the horse tripping himself at every stride?
In either case, you shake your head. It looks way too fancy and much too difficult to try. And why would you want to? Actually, there are many reasons to learn this particularly lovely training exercise.
Kelly Hall, of Hall's Performance Horses in Fort Collins, Colorado, uses leg yielding extensively to produce good riding horses and better riders. No matter what style or discipline you ride, leg yielding not only teaches your horse to respond better, it's also a powerful tool for strengthening his back and hindquarters.
Equipment
As you prepare for this lesson, here are some essential tools.
Arena Fence. An arena fence or wall is useful for the beginning of this training, but as you and your horse improve, it will be important to do the exercise away from the rail, out in a field or in the middle of the arena.
Saddle. "It doesn't matter what kind of saddle you have," Kelly says. "It's not whether you ride an English saddle or a western saddle. It's how you ride the saddle you have."
What Do We Want To Do With Leg Yields?
For the horse:
• It teaches him obedience.
• It teaches him to move away from leg pressure.
• It gives you control to keep him straight if he tends to drift.
• It helps teach him to shift over when you open gates from
the saddle.
• It gives you control over his shoulders and hips for
teaching lead changes.
• It makes him stronger, more supple and responsive-
lighter and softer in his face, jaw, and body.
• It's the first step in teaching "collection," strengthening his back and loin so he can step under his body more deeply.
• If a horse drops his shoulder when working a cow, this gives the rider a tool to square him up and makes him safer to ride.
For the rider:
• It teaches you how to teach your horse all the things above.
• It teaches you how to use different parts of your body at the same time so you can coordinate your aids.
• It teaches you how to use your leg effectively and not rely so much on the reins.
• It gives you the satisfaction of learning to do something really neat.
• It teaches you how to dance the ballet with your horse.
• It's just plain fun.
Bit. Kelly notes: "It's not the bit, it's the hands. You must give immediate release when the horse responds correctly." A snaffle bit is generally best to begin with, but remember that, "Even a basic snaffle bit can be severe if you're too quick and forceful with your hands."
Leg Protection. Bell boots and leg wraps will protect your horse's legs from possible over-reaches or bumps as he's learning.
An Observer. Until you get the feel of this movement, it helps to have a person on the ground watching so you'll know for sure if your horse is really stepping under with his hind legs, is straight, or is running through the shoulder. It's also useful to have an extra set of eyes observing your body position.
What Exactly Are We Trying To Do?
Kelly describes leg yielding like this: "Your horse moves briskly forward at whatever gait you choose. As you press your leg against his side, he keeps his body nearly straight, but shifts his direction of travel to 10 o'clock (if you're pressing with your right leg) or 2 o'clock (if you're pressing with your left leg)."
Easy Does It
This exercise can be absorbing, but Kelly cautions not to overdo it in any one session. "You don't want to spend your whole 30 minutes of riding doing nothing but leg yielding. Do 5 minutes and quit. Go do some other things and then come back to it. Do a little bit and go straight. Eventually, you'll get to where you can do big sections of leg yielding at a long trot, but it takes time to build the horse's strength and coordination to do that."
Kelly starts both colts and riders the same way, by getting all their ducks in a row. She wants riders to have their reins, body, and the horse's speed set before they start work. "Your contact with the bit is close, but not constant or heavy," she says. "Remember always to give an immediate release of any bit or leg pressure to let the horse know when he has done the right thing."
