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QUESTION & ANSWER FORUM: Developing Impulsion
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QUESTION:
I have a "perplexing" problem. My instructor has always told me "forward & straight", up until this last lesson I had NO idea how much more forward and straight my horse needed to be. For some reason, it didn't register until this last "bad" lesson. When we first start asking for more forward we get a very "bone jarring" ride. My instructor said that she's pushing her croup up against me, and that's why this feels like this. After a few minutes she smoothes out and her back feels looser and it feels like it's "swinging", she's also reaching into the contact. Since my instructor has mirrors, I'm always looking into them. Even though this all feels very nice, she still isn't reaching her hind legs underneath and tracking up enough. How do I encourage more reaching with her hind legs???
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ANSWER:
There are two main aspects to this: Impulsion and Suppleness/Relaxation. If
a horse does not step enough underneath himself, it could be that the back
is not swinging enough yet, i.e. the abdominal and back muscles are not yet
contracting and releasing properly in alternation, due to tension. The other
possible reason is that the horse is not putting enough effort into his
work, although he is relatively relaxed. Impulsion and Suppleness are
related, as true Impulsion is the product of Balance, Relaxation, and
Straightness.
- Balance, because only when all four legs carry the same amount of weight
can the rider regulate the horse's carrying and thrusting forces as well as
their ratio to one another with the necessary precision. Balance is a
synonym for self carriage. It is inseparably linked to a regular rhythm and
stride length.
- Relaxation, because only a relaxed body and mind allow the energy created
by the hind legs to sweep through the entire horse from the hind hooves to
the mouth and back. Tensions, on the other hand, act as road blocks that
swallow most of that energy and allow only a tiny fraction to pass through,
which leads most riders to intensify their aids instead of removing the
block. Relaxation and suppleness are very closely related as well. One is
hardly possible without the other.
- Straightness, because only when the forces of the hind legs are directed
immediately towards the center of gravity is there no loss of energy, and
they can act as true springs that are compressed and released in a regular
rhythm, in which the release itself provides the necessary momentum to flex
the spring again in the next stride: the horse becomes a perpetuum mobile.
Straightness could be called lateral balance, which brings us full circle
back to the first element.
When you foster these three elements, you should see an increase in
impulsion over time. There are, of course, other factors as well. They
concern the rider. The first things that come to mind are restrictive, dead
hands as well as stiff hip joints. Dead hands (even if the contact is
"light") do not allow enough room for the hind legs to reach forward. Stiff
hip joints do not allow the horse's back to swing with its full amplitude,
which in turn suppresses the hind legs, as the abdominal muscles cannot work
effectively in pulling the hind legs forward. The elastic, powerful swinging
of the back is therefore the crucial ingredient of "Schwung". You could say
that: "Schwung kommt von Schwingen" = Impulsion comes from Swinging (of the
back).
Another rider-related factor is the tuning. Teach the horse to respond
instantaneously and whole-heartedly to the smallest of aids, and impulsion
will develop in proportion to the horse's increasing strength, if the above
prerequisites are in place.
- Thomas Ritter
Question & Answer Forum
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Last Update: January 13, 2007