Harmony, Lightness and Horses

Harmony, Lightness and Horses is a collection of short articles about the use of the body and the mind for horse riders.

“This book presents you with some of my experience, hands-on exercises and tips on how to use your body and mind to find harmony and lightness with your horse. This book explains the essence, the ultimate goal of riding; the feeling of harmony, elegance and lightness all of us riders are looking for and sometimes find glimpses of. With a new perspective on the training of the horse, the seat and the relationship between human and horse, there is something in this training approach for everybody.” - Ylvie Fros

Acknowledgments 7

 Foreword by Bent Branderup 10
 Introduction 12
 The Rider’s Mind 14
 The Power of Samadhi: Ride in the Space between Your Thoughts 16
 It All Starts with Awareness 19
 Survival Responses 21
 Always Back to Basics! 23
 Empty Shells 24
 Now Is the Moment! 26
 Imagine... 28
 What Do You Fear? 29
 The Rider’s Body 32
 Who Needs Fixing? 34
 When Crooked Feels Straight… 35
 Healthy Body, Healthy Mind 37
 Defining ‘the Seat’ 38
 The Development of the Seat throughout History 39
 Four Cornerstones in Riding 41
 Seat Training? 42
 Comparable Parts 43
 Being Centered, also from the Ground 45
 The Spiraling Spine 48
 The Pelvis and the True Core 49
 Seat Bones for Him and Her 50
 Move to Sit Still! 51
 Breathing in All Directions 52
 Breathe into Your Half Halt 54
 Pushing Hands 56
 ‘The Swipe’ 58
 Wag Your Tail! 59
 The Making of a Good Rider 61
 The Inside Hand and Rein 63
 What to Do with That Outside Rein 65
 Trotting with Your Nose 66
 The Biomechanics and Training of the Horse 68
 Preconditions to Training 70
 The Development of Balance 72
 The Movement of Horse and Rider 74
 This Thing about Collection 77
 To Bit or Not to Bit 79
 Six Important Factors to be Effective in Your Communication with Your
 Horse 82
 Playing With Focus, Relaxation and Energy Using Materials 85