Feature


outer track. Leg-yield is usually the first lateral movement to teach your horse; shoulder-in is often the next one.


When is it required? Shoulder-in is included in dressage tests from elementary level up to inter I.


The benefits:


Promotes suppleness, improves balance and strength in the horse’s hindquarters, keeps the horse’s attention away from a distraction.


How to ride it Nicola and Solo demonstrate leg-yielding to the left... ...and then leg-yielding to the right


1. At first, ride a 10-metre circle in the corner then ride as if you are about to start another circle and after the first step, continue down the long side.


2. Keep it simple at first by riding leg-yield from the three-quarter line to the long side. So, turn onto the three-quarter line and ride a few steps straight.


3. Half-halt with the outside rein to get your horse’s attention and help him maintain his balance.


4. Use your inside leg at the girth to ask the horse to move sideways. Your outside leg maintains forward momentum and prevents the horse falling sideways. The horse’s balance needs to be maintained evenly on all four legs and the rider must have a contact with both reins, with slight bend away from the direction of travel.


5. The inside rein asks for slight inside bend, while your outside rein guides the horse to the track and prevents falling through the outside shoulder.


6. Make sure the horse keeps moving forwards as his legs cross sideways and once you reach the track, straighten up and repeat, before trying the exercise the other way.


2. You should have a little more weight on your inside seat bone.


3. Use your inside leg on the girth to help with bend and keep the horse moving forward. Open the inside rein slightly to ask for inside flexion.


4. The outside rein keeps the horse on the right line, helps control speed and bend, and rebalances the horse via a half-halt. The outside leg stays slightly back to stop the quarters swinging out.


Shoulder-in right along the track


In leg-yield, watch out for: The horse falling through the outside shoulder or hindquarters (most often the shoulder), the horse going too much sideways and not maintaining forward energy.


Leg-yield exercise 1: Ride a large circle of around 20 metres then position the horse in slight outside bend and ask him to leg-yield down to a smaller circle of around 10 metres. Once you reach your 10-metre circle, position the horse into slight inside bend and leg-yield back out to the bigger circle again. Repeat and then do the same on the other rein.


Shoulder-in left


Leg-yield exercise 2: Turn onto the centre line from the right rein, ask your horse to leg-yield a few steps left, then ride straight with the horse going forward into both reins, leg-yield left again, then go straight again. This helps to keep the horse going forward and not falling through his outside shoulder.


Shoulder-in What is it?


Shoulder-in asks the horse to work on three tracks, where his inside foreleg is on an inner track, the outside foreleg and inside hind form a middle track and the outside hind leg is on an


5. Feel as though your horse is looking at A or C (depending which rein you are on) and continue on the long side with your horse’s body angled diagonally in this direction.


6. Turn your body to stay in balance with the horse, with your hips and shoulders turning towards the centre line and your head looking into the corner at the end of the long side. Eventually, the horse will go into a shoulder-in just by you turning your body. Keep the horse forward to both reins with a tiny amount of inside bend.


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