How NOT to Ride a Half-Halt

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It is not hard to mess up a half halt. So much can go wrong in that split second when you think of gathering up the energy of the horse with a half halt for the next movement. The half halt is a very important moment of communication between the horse and rider and it is important that it is ridden correctly and has the correct effect on the horse.
Some of the most common mistakes that riders make when riding a half halt are:
Too much rein, not enough leg - when most riders think of a half-halt, they think of slowing down or stopping and will go first to the rein to stop the horse. This is incorrect as a half halt should be a gathering of the energy.
Incorrect timing of the half-halt and not releasing the half halt. The half-halt should be done in the rhythm of the gait. Often riders half halt at the wrong time or hold the half halt for way to long without getting an effect.
Incorrect rider position - in order to make an effective half- halt, the rider must maintain the correct position and alignment. The shoulder-hip-heel must stay in a line and the rider’s seat must stay connected in the saddle.
Beware of the common mistakes as you are riding this week. If your half half are ineffective or they are not having the desired effect, it could be that you are making one of these common mistakes!
In dressage and with dressage horses, half-halts are so important. This video goes over what is a half-halt, how to ride a half halt, the importance of the half halt in dressage riding and dressage training. The video also includes common mistakes in half halts including rider position flaws, the chair seat and incorrect timing of the aids.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

What is you most common half halt pit fall?!

[@shirleybroady]

Feel and timing and the habit of using my aids impulsively and carelessly instead of using clear aids that make sense to the horse. Example: overuse of the spur or whip, coordinating seat, leg and hand, etc. Nothing serious, LOL. I've been riding for 60 years and sometimes I'm good at it. LOL Made it to a mediocore PSG with current trainer and previously worked with a trainer who gave me a lot of experience in piaffe, passage, canter pirouette and in hand work specifically but little to no work on seat or use of the aids. These were not "tricks". The horses were connected and through during the time they were under the influence of the trainer. PS: I'm in a slump and riding has been interrupted by domestic matters needing my attention. I have a good Stedinger/Sandro Hit gelding.

[@lizwillett3303]

too much hand! and poor timing

[@falizianme5846]

@@shirleybroady Omgosh! i know exactly how you feel! Thanks for sharing!

[@shirleybroady]

@@falizianme5846 I think we both have a lot of company. LOL It won't stop us though. After fear, hope is the second most powerful human emotion. A toast to hope. Cheers!

[@danielabackstrom]

I struggle with the timing of the halfhalt 😤 so annoying 😂

[@EvBurkeHorsemanship]

I like to think of putting the horse in a box, with my legs, seat and hands being the 4 sides of the box. I think of a half-halt as making the space inside the box smaller for a second.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes! This is a great one! Thank you for sharing it with us!!

[@pennyallen7637]

Great tutorial..again! I love that each video you put out I ALWAYS glean at least one golden nugget of information from it. This time it was when the mane flys up it means the the hind legs are off the ground..so simple but I have never realised this before.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes! It is very helpful for the timing of the half halts!!

[@TeriFelixREBroker]

Penny Allen my thoughts exactly (about the “when the mane flys up, the back legs are down and front legs are up) comment. This will stick with me forever and such a valuable nugget!

[@glenyslambe2691]

@@AmeliaNewcombDressage yes... I also loved that tip.. I can only tell the basic which front leg are they on and I even have to look at their shoulders for that... I can't tell anything by just feeling .... thick!!! .......

[@nipperaj64]

Thank you for saying the half-halt is different all the time and ever-evolving. I had the impression it should be the same all the time. very helpful, Thanks !!!

[@TeriFelixREBroker]

I’m so glad you continue to educate the half halt. You are right about it being so misunderstood. I am a new rider at the age of 57, have a highly trained eventing horse whose education level I am trying to chase. I take lessons every week and I work on the “half halt” every single time I ride him. Thank you tackling this hard issue .. keep on it, maybe the world will come to understand it better. Great job Amelia!

[@teresawort9124]

I am a new rider at 53 yrs. Lucky you has a trained horse. Let the horse teach you how to ride him.

[@dawnmcmenamin6192]

64 here, 30 yr hiatus

[@shirleybroady]

Great reminders! Also combine imagery with feel. (Advice from my trainer.) I know the feel I want but I can't remember how I got it, which may only be yesterday, on my green horse. I'm told "ride for what you want to feel". To do that, I think you have to take down the scaffolding (the verbal left brain) and engage the right side of your brain where feel lives. When the problems get too complicated and the horse is giving you more than you can handle, you lose the feel, you get sensory overload and the horse escapes your influence. In essence, he's training you. That's one of the ways "bad days" are fueled. Maybe not helpful but definitely a "reality check." LOL

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Love this! Thanks for sharing and good luck with your youngster!

[@higginsba]

I have a very hard time getting out of my head and learning to/getting the "feel" (in all aspects of life). My Trainer has called me too cerebral 😬

[@glenyslambe2691]

Thankyou so much for explaining the half halt so thoroughly. I'm basically self taught due to tight financial lifetime and never really understood

[@animallover4101]

May I just say Harvey is looking fabulous in the small clips of him. Love to see more of that boy. Great video. My mare likes to lean on my hands in half halts so I bring her to a halt and then back up a few steps and then she’s a lot lighter and good for a while.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes!! Thank you for sharing!!

[@kristinakandyba8252]

Love this video! It’s clarified many questions. Thanks Amelia!!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Glad it was helpful!

[@meretesrheim4867]

Great video, taking note of your point about keeping the rythm _ releasing

[@hannahhering655]

Love love love your videos! Thank you for explaining different things. Even though I am a western rider, your videos really help me. :)

[@TeriFelixREBroker]

I would looooooove love love an Amelia series on “collection vs connection”. I’ve searched many videos for this and found a couple but I’m certain it needs a mini series because it’s such an invisible thing. 🙏🏻 please consider it..I know I for one would be forever thankful. 🐴❤️ thanks..Teri the newbie.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Hmmm... interesting idea!!

[@michaelhoffmann2891]

Not meaning to preempt Amelia, but this is where it helps to go back to the good old Training Scale which those dead "boring" German (and French and Spanish) guys came up with centuries ago. It still works, it's still the steps to work your way through. "connection" (Anlehnung) is in the basic tier, without it and rhythm and looseness (Losgelassenheit) all the higher ones will never come. Collection (Versammlung) is the very, very top of the scale. it's the highest achievable goal. When your horse needs the balance and the strength(!) to get its hind legs under it. An amazing feeling, it's like your horse is rising up in front and going down in the back and you just feel that propulsion. If only I could maintain it for more than a round. ;)

[@豆柴コロ-f5k]

I‘be been watching your videos from Japan. It’s so useful, thank you !!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

wow! So cool that you are all the way across the world!

[@kmiklaszewski]

I’ve heard and read from some professionals that for the most part the rider should half halt to the inside hind leg (with inside hand) in the trot and in the canter half halt to the outside hind leg. At different times for different things, it can change depending on what is happening in the balance and other reasons. What are your thoughts on this?? I know that the canter tends to throw the rider’s seat to the outside. Also a ton of horses will try to evade or escape trying to use the inside hind correctly and not want to carry the weight on the inside hind and they tend to not step under with it.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Hi Kathy! Yes you are correct with all of this and yes the timing of the half halts are super important. But again, every half halt and every moment is different and the half halt must be ridden with feel. I try to keep things as simple as possible and not overthink too much 😂

[@kmiklaszewski]

Amelia, I totally get it and you are rocking it with the videos. Half halts are so misinterpreted by sooooo many instructors and riders. When you are taught by an instructor that is a bit undereducated on the subject, you basically learn to pull. They say half halt when your horse is running away with the rider and they tell riders to pull the reins back to slow down and then it starts an ugly incorrect cycle of poor riding. Instructors, sometimes when teaching the good old hunt seat lesson especially, end up missing some many important details of balance, position, and proper feelband action and use of the aids because they may be just teaching what they know and pumping out a lot of lessons with so many riders in lesson programs.

[@michelekanefsky7511]

Great topic! Really helped! OMG! Light bulb 💡 moment(s) with in the rhythm & seeing you add more leg & the horse respond to the HH!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yay!!! So important!

[@lizwillett3303]

This video and explanation is sooo helpful, especially where it fits into the stride. Do you use leg/seat/hand aids in the same moment of the half halt? Or do you start with leg/seat?

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Usually you start with the leg and seat. In an ideal world the horse will respond to this and you won't need your hands at all!

[@lizwillett3303]

@@AmeliaNewcombDressage thank you for taking the time to reply!

[@michaelhoffmann2891]

Overthinking it. It's so easy, as a level 2 instructor here once told the group: just pull on the outside rein! Gods, how I wish I was making that up. :( A. Level. 2. Instructor. No wonder Australian dressage is in the doldrums.

[@falizianme5846]

ok... im guilty of bad half halts one and 2 the video ! I think for me is that my horse is a bit lazy and i have a hard time keeping my hips moving with the horse! Yes i cantered today with my eyes closed to help ! i try to remember the release part for sure! Buuttt... someday it'll all be just automatic! As aleays great video, great topic and great examples and explanations! Love the mane flying up visual! Course im trying not to stare at his head, so maybe itll have to be sneak peeks! 🤣😊

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes!! Haha good luck!

[@Pferdecoach]

Yes, well done half-halts are an advanced issue ! In my opinion its only the wrong timing of aids which depends on a not balanced seat on a horse; people think often mostly on reins in half-halts instead of daily working on their body first in every little detail ....for you asking for the pit fall I would repeat until the end of my days its the stiffness in riders ankles, only if ankles are supple but not flabby fearing to lose foot but training (stretching) the sinews by circling only the ankles in walk ( trot , canter) without stirrups and try to get stirrups by first attempt , then rider will get the taste of artistic balanced riding, will say nearly grows in it by himself, cause then later no clinging in upper legs or hands, arms and foot will be automatically looking quiet for the observer; but whole body gets into the move of the horse doing something without blockade in himself ..its the delicate tuning your riding body by training ankles, an adviser or the Mr. Karajan in a philharmonic orchestra .....so important and then the day comes one cant remember when it got better , its a smooth developing into it and the half-halt timing will get successful in that journey with the condition to ride half-halts straight with your then always present weight aid, cause the ankles feel like horses hind legs and support riders belly muscle essentially and riders focus has to be not stiff in hips but think like be a horse letting seat bones up and down so unremarkable without blockade only to follow the horses back ...but its so sensitive in tuning and all in the timing of Now ! so then there will be moments in riding life on doing nothing on a horse but only rebalancing yourself with half-halts to be with that horse .........so using halft-halts as riding skillful artist then one reached what Robert Dover said - half- halt is the end in itsself - to be ONE.......

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Thank you for sharing!!

[@chuckdavis6344]

I’m a beginner and confused as to half halting and what I should be doing with my hands? My horse doesn’t cantor due to improper training so I’m half halting at the walk or trot.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Hi Chuck, Thanks for watching! These videos will help you with the half halt, but what you do with your hands depends on the type of half halt you're doing kzbin.info/www/bejne/o5fJZKBqpcelfNU&ab_channel=AmeliaNewcombDressage kzbin.info/www/bejne/b36TZIptgbtnZ7s With patience and consistent training you'll be able to retrain your horse so they can canter.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Also, if you want to really get clarity, understanding, and progress on your dressage journey, sign up to my FREE webinar on the Dressage Training Scale on March 13th. I’d love to see you there! www.ameliasdressageacademy.com/trainingscalewebinar I’m also on FB and IG (you might already know all this but I'm being super thorough today!) facebook.com/amelianewcombdressage & instagram.com/amelianewcombdressage/ Also, and this is super helpful too, join Amelia’s Dressage Club on Facebook, it’s a really active and engaged community of riders and no question goes unanswered! facebook.com/groups/ameliasdressageclub/ And finally, there’s my website! www.amelianewcombdressage.com/ And you can also sign up here for weekly dressage tips sent to your inbox www.ameliasdressageacademy.com/subscribe/ Ok that’s the lot I promise. Have an awesome day! 🐴

[@lifelover558]

thank u for every thing... really nice and usefull vedio💓🌹

[@annehorahan5428]

So helpful ! Thank you Amelia !!

[@HURCNchristine]

Very helpful!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

So glad it's helpful! Thanks for watching Christine!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Also, if you’d like me to send more dressage tips into your email inbox every Wednesday, you can sign up to my mailing list www.ameliasdressageacademy.com/subscribe/ (If you’re already familiar with all this and have received this before, apology for the unnecessary message, I’m being super thorough today!) I’m also on FB and IG facebook.com/amelianewcombdressage & instagram.com/amelianewcombdressage/ Also, and this is super helpful too, join Amelia’s Dressage Club on Facebook, it’s a really active and engaged community of riders and no question goes unanswered! facebook.com/groups/ameliasdressageclub/ And finally, there’s my website (for when all the social media goes down again 🤣) www.amelianewcombdressage.com/ Ok that’s the lot I promise. Have an awesome day! 🐴

[@michaelahoward724]

Which hand is used? Or is it both?

[@kristinemcclain9028]

The half halt is nothing more than to ask the horse to either rebalance or to stay balanced for the next movement or for whatever reason you feel you need it. Never understood why it's called a half halt.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes! So true. Thanks for sharing!!

[@CDN_Bookmouse]

I think the idea is that ideally the horse would collect and step under itself and halt in a balanced way. So the goal is to get that collection and balance that comes in the instant just before a nice halt, but release the aid before it actually happens. So, aids for a halt that are released halfway into an actual halt. At least that's my understand--I'm still learning so I could be completely wrong lol

[@N2Dressage001]

I think of it as a "half go".

[@rutamurphy7753]

Hi Amelia. I'm subscribed but never get your weekly emails. What do I need to do please.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Hmm.. you should get them. I'm not sure maybe they end up in your junk mail. Send me an e-mail and I can check on it for you! [e-mail]

[@pianocatkatarina3960]

I usually just "slow down my seat"...and then he would follow in his motion.

[@naunettemartin7450]

I like and I like you ride horse and you ride good

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Thank you!!

[@PannaJoannaR]

it's really hard to concentrate on what you're saying, because of this sound all the time. Could you please move the box (I don't know the proper name of this part microphone ;)) to the front?

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes, I apologize!

[@terriwallace5188]

Well I watched this video and still don’t understand exactly what is being accomplished in half halt I will go back and watch half halts in Strides. My Brain is not cooperating. Thanks.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Good idea! It's complicated

[@bettybeebe6785]

I think "wait" or "pause" when I ride a half-halt.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes, great image!

[@Pferdecoach]

yes it is ....in short form ...for the advanced

[@ramirorosiles7448]

Second one to comment. Maybe next time I will be first. By the way great video Amelia.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Thank you! I was not aware that it was a race!! 🐎🐎🐎

[@marcinejwood3434]

Dancing foal next to mommy

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

[@zulkiflijamaludin8066]

Hi Amelia have u got married?😁🏇🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸