Horses Naturally - Home > Jay O'Jay > Horse Training Articles > Vertical Inflexion
Vertical Flexion
Vertical flexion simply means your horse has the ability to bend, soften or flex "longitudinally" from head to tail. I would like to introduce the "basic" concept of combining vertical flexion along with forward movement and how they can compliment each other.
A horse's forward movement or impulsion starts in the hindquarters. The energy that is created here travels forward through his body and we receive that energy in our hands. Vertical flexion starts here!
Image Vertical flexion is an essential part of good horsemanship; it is through vertical flexion that you encourage your horse to flex at the poll, lower his head and neck and soften or get round through the back. As we receive the energy from his hindquarters into our hands, this energy should be traveling through a relaxed body that has controlled forward impulsion along with straightness and rhythm. Vertical flexion will help teach your horse to carry himself in a correct, balanced frame, enhancing both his forward movement and performance. Your horse will not be avoiding bit contact and you will be in control.
When a horse gets stiff, quick and resistant or throws his head and neck
in the air you have lost control. He will be avoiding bit contact, getting
hollow through his back and his hindquarters will be lost somewhere out
behind him. Emotionally, this horse is leaving his comfort zone.
Lateral flexion is one of the first steps that I use in preparing
my horses for vertical flexion. Lateral flexion teaches our horse
to be soft, light and responsive to our leg and rein cues. The
more we can bend or flex our horses to the inside, the easier
it is to gain control of the poll, soften the head and neck and
get him to relax. Lateral flexion exercises are also very beneficial
for controlled forward impulsion with horses that are quick and
ready to run.
Whether you are training, working, teaching or playing, there are two important
things you can offer your horse: consistent repetition and the ability to
trust you. A horse cannot trust you if you are not consistent with your
actions. A horse learns to trust you when you are consistent with your attitude,
legs, hands, body rhythm and cues. Once trust is established, your horse
begins to understand where he stands in his relationship with you. No mental
surprises! His confidence grows and his performance gains power and finesse.
Step #1: Softening the poll
We start by squeezing the horse with our legs before we ask for a bend or softening of the poll with our reins. If I ask with four ounces of rein pressure, I will equal or better that pressure with my legs. Being successful with vertical flexion takes patience, rhythm, timing and feel. It also takes hands that are not demanding or quick. Our job is to give immediate relief of leg and rein pressure, once our horse offers us the slightest try. With consistency you can get your horse so light, that he will soften and flex at the poll long before you ever get the slack out of your reins.
Step #2: Maintaining flexion
Our next goal is to ask for, and then maintain, flexion of the poll for a second or two before we give relief of leg and rein pressure. Continue until you can maintain flexion for three or four seconds or longer, without the horse trying to root the reins out of your hands. You need your horse to become very comfortable and relaxed with this step before continuing any further.
Step #3: Walking forward into your hands
While maintaining flexion, ask your horse to walk forward and step up into your hands without rooting on the reins or throwing his head and neck into the air. Never accept this behavior. If he resists, forget about going forward and work on getting him soft and supple before trying again. We want the horse to walk forward and get the energy from his hindquarter in front of our legs, but we also want him to stay relaxed and soft as we squeeze his body up and forward into our hands.
Step #4: Walk, Trot and Lope
Establish a relaxed, forward, four-beat walk - then ask for flexion of
the poll using the above steps. Start by rewarding the slightest try – continue
until you can maintain flexion for several strides while keeping your horse
soft and relaxed. As you add speed you add difficulty, so get everything
solid at the walk before trying it at the trot and finally at the lope.
In summary, everything starts with our legs. We cause forward
impulsion that has both rhythm and purpose. We maintain the energy
in front of our legs and accept it into our hands. Think of driving
the body up and into our hands, not pulling the face to the body.
The one thing to remember here is: if we are asking the horse
to go forward with our legs, then we must be sure were not restricting
his forward motion by pulling on his face. Our hands are very
important. They should be soft and supple, but also slow and
rhythmic. Don’t forget - use your reins to ask– not
demand!
Complementing your horse’s forward impulsion with vertical flexion and softness of the poll will encourage him to relax through his jaw and soften through his back. Once he can do this, his head and neck will lower, his hindquarters will come underneath his body, and his forward impulsion will gain balance. He will be truly working off his hindquarters while staying soft in your hands and free flowing through the shoulders. You will have “horse power” in your fingertips! You are now in control.
Remember – “Success with horses, starts with us”!