body alignment

You may have heard about the ear, shoulder, hip, heel alignment that a rider is supposed to have. It’s interesting that we expect to do this on a horse, because most of us can’t do it on the ground!  Does that mean we are hopeless and should never even try? Heck no! It means we have to adapt our positions to fit the specific limitations of our body. A wonderful place to begin is just observing ourselves and/or our students in a standing position, from the side, the back, and the front, and also while walking. What does it take for us to be straight off a horse. Now, how do we get our bodies to cooperate while ON a horse!