How to Post While Trotting in an English Saddle

A movement where you rise up and sit down to the rhythm of your horse's trot, posting or rising, to the trot is an integral part of learning to ride in an English saddle. If you are going to compete, it is expected that you be able to post the trot in both the lower-level dressage and hunt seat disciplines. On the trails, trotting can become uncomfortable if you try to sit the trot for long periods of time. Posting is your best choice if you're trotting fast.

Instructions

  1. Preparation

    • 1

      Practice standing up and sitting down in succession, making sure you don't hurt your horse's back by falling backward. You don't have to move very fast at first; you just want to get used to the feeling of moving up and down. Don't stand up all of the way, otherwise you will end up rising too high when you do start trotting.

    • 2

      Walk your horse and practice the same up-and-down motion, again trying to avoid falling onto your horse's back.

    • 3

      Walk your horse without rising and sitting, and try to feel your horse's hoof beats. Your ultimate goal will be to pick up the posting trot without having to look down to check your diagonal (more on that in a moment), so you want to be able to tell which legs are moving. Riding with an observer or in an arena with a mirror can be helpful in this step.

    Posting to the Trot

    • 4

      Pick up a slow trot by nudging your horse's sides with your heels. When you're comfortable, practice rising up and sitting down like you were at the halt and walk. You will probably not rise and sit fast enough for your horse's rhythm at first; continue practicing until your movements feel smooth.

    • 5

      Look for your diagonal by glancing, not staring, down at your horse's outside shoulder (the shoulder closest to the arena wall or fence). Glance by looking down with your eyes only, or you will become unbalanced. You want to be standing up off the saddle when the outside foreleg is stepping forward. Because horses move diagonal pairs of legs at the trot (meaning the left hindleg and right foreleg work together, and the right hindleg and left foreleg work together), the set of legs the rider moves with is termed the "posting diagonal." Practice this until you are posting in rhythm with your horse's legs.

    • 6

      Change your diagonal with the rhythm sit-sit-post-sit (your normal posting rhythm is sit-post-sit-post). Riding instructors will tell you to sit two beats or sit an extra beat. You want to change your diagonal any time you notice that you are rising with the inside leg instead of the outside leg. You will notice this by glancing down regularly as you ride.

    • 7

      Learn to feel your diagonal after you are consistently riding on the correct diagonal by glancing down. Do this by sitting when you first start trotting your horse. When you think you can feel the outside foreleg or inside hindleg stepping forward, rise. Post for a couple of steps and glance down to see if you're right. If you are, congratulations! Trot on to cement the feeling of the correct diagonal, then walk and try again. If not, walk immediately and repeat until you get it right.