What is flexion in horse riding?

What is flexion in horse riding?

Flexion is to prepare your horse before you ride on a circle or corner and is used to supple your horse before asking for a bend. There should be a straight line from your horse’s mouth, along the rein through your hands to your elbows.

What is difference between flexion and bending?

As nouns the difference between flexion and bending is that flexion is the act of bending a joint, especially a bone joint the counteraction of extension while bending is a motion or action that bends.

What is bend in a horse?

Correct bending of a horse refers to the lateral curvature of the horse’s body from poll to tail. In a correct bend, the horse should bend along his whole body with his rib cage swinging outward and his jaw flexed in the direction he is moving.

How do you make a horse bend?

Before you begin: Lead your horse to the work area, mount up, and walk him forward on a loose rein.

1. Slide your hand down the rein. You’ll first bend your horse to the left.
2. Cue with rein and leg pressure.
3. Release the pressure.
4. Maintain forward movement.
5. Perform circle work.
6. Bend to the right.

How do you teach a horse to bend?

How do you bend a stiff horse?

How To Help Your Stiff Horse Bend

1. Go on a large circle to the right.
2. Pick a point somewhere along the arc of the circle, and turn onto a 6-meter circle.
3. While on the small circle, think about your bending aids.
4. Ride the 6-meter circle a couple of times until your horse’s body conforms to its arc.

What is flexion movement?

Flexion – bending a joint. This occurs when the angle of a joint decreases. For example, the elbow flexes when performing a biceps curl. The knee flexes in preparation for kicking a ball. Extension – straightening a joint.

How does bending a horse work?

A: To bend well and be flexible, your horse must develop a great deal of strength in his back and hindquarters— in fact, in his entire body. To travel correctly around a turn or circle, your horse must bend his body through his rib cage, rather than simply turn his nose to the inside.

What is the difference between bending and flexing a horse?

There is a distinct difference in bending your horse to meet the demands of a circle or turn, and asking your horse for flexion – either left or right, or over his topline. Now when your trainer suggests you ask your horse for some ‘inside flexion’, you’ll know exactly what they mean.

What does correct bend mean on a horse?

Correct bend means that the horse is bent evenly through the neck and body around the circle, corner or turn he is negotiating. Flexion refers to the angle of the horse’s head from the poll. This means that you could ask your horse to move in a straight line, but with flexion to the right or left.

What does it mean when a horse flexes?

Flexion refers to the angle of the horse’s head from the poll. This means that you could ask your horse to move in a straight line, but with flexion to the right or left. If the horse is submissive to the contact, he will happily flex at the poll without resistance.

Which part of the horse’s spine can bend?

The cervical spine (the neck) This part of the horse has great flexibility and can easily be positioned to conform to the arc of any circle or turn. 2. Thoracic vertebrae (the middle section of the horse’s spine – the bit you sit on) This part of the horse is highly inflexible, and cannot in reality bend.