Transitions: A Good Way to Get Your Horse More Reactive

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How many transitions do you do in a 30-minute ride? I bet you whatever the number, it’s not enough. I literally cannot emphasize enough how important transitions are to improving your ride. If Dressage is Haute Couture, then transitions are the threads in the seams. They’re that fundamental!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Check out our workshop on transitions: courses.ameliasdressageacademy.com/p/transitions?coupon_code=FEBSALE

[@nataliepalacz5732]

ohhh thank you!!!!! We are very very happy here in True Rider that you liked our apparel so much! What a lovely surprise with the video

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes!! I love your shirts!!

[@rubenjacobo-rubio3702]

So cool you also did western events!

[@luciemarinov9909]

Thank you for this video, it really helps me to remember as my horse doesn't want to move forward!

[@mariesantos6041]

Thank you kindly🌹I enjoy watching you and your horses in a beautiful flowing work of art💕

[@jeniferrinehart1107]

I’ve been doing this a lot recently. Riding a Friesian who needs a fair amount of encouragement. Very helpful exercise. I’d love to be able to see more of your outside leg in the trot to canter transition. I feel like my position isn’t quite right, and I’d love to see yours. Really enjoy your vids!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Ah yes, Friesians ❤️. The less you have to move your leg back for the canter transition the better 🏇🏇

[@itsnina7989]

This really does work, I tried your advice with my mare and I could see her start paying more attention. Really excited to keep going. Thank you! Couldnt have made these videos at a better time for me :)

[@darlenekuzek]

Thankyou Amelia, I am riding a very laid back 4 yr old friesian mare, i understand that with her breeding the canter is a more difficult gait, and she just doesn’t have the strength and stamina to go round and round and round. Getting one good circle in canter is a triumph, but doing lots of transitions does make her a little more hot,,so I don’t have to work as hard, and I can actually get a trot that goes somewhere.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Great! Sounds like you are on the right track.

[@NoMonetArt]

If you need a lazy horse to use as an exhibit, come over to Newbury Park and ride my guy who is half draft. He's a sweet boy, but I have to really push him at home. He's more reactive when I take him off site, but at home he's asleep. I play music to keep him more engaged and that has helped him pay attention better, but to get him going at working gaits I need a little whip. I do a lot of circles, transitions and squares too, but he is very low key and his preferred trot is more like a jog. He's very comfortable to sit, but there is a constant need to push push push to keep him going at a canter.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

😂😂

[@minderellafox7906]

Thanks Amelia 😊 I’m about to compete in our first elementary test this weekend, I’m going to warmup exactly like that 🙌🏽

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Sweet! Good luck!

[@minderellafox7906]

Amelia Newcomb Dressage please keep your videos coming, I had a wonderful Comp on the weekend,💖💕

[@danielablettner7158]

Thank you! Very nice!

[@karenb9359]

Great video! Could you please talk a little bit about your downward transitions aids to keep the horse thinking forward into the trot with hind legs engaged and not getting stuck in a mincing little trot? Thanks!

[@hossammosbah5295]

This is a very good video, excellent. Thank you Amelia. 🎩👑🎩

[@robynewachter4323]

Thank you for the riding cloths suggestions :) Would you show us some tack preferences as well ?

[@leealexander3507]

My horse is naturally hot. There are times when I'd like to calm down a bit. Finally I got a canter without his getting too excitable and play race horse. This required frequent reminders to remain in canter, but it was still a huge improvement. He's very green so I kind of have to expect this.

[@daniwaters3687]

Hi Amelia, huge fan of your channel. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge :) However, I'm having trouble with my horse understanding between trot and canter transitions. I can get a really nice forward trot going in the warm up, then when I ask for canter, he pops into it nicely, then when I ask to go back to trot, he comes back but he's looking to fall back into canter without me asking. I push forward but he breaks into canter. Any ideas how to break this habit? It gets to the point where he's almost cantering on the spot and pig rooting because we're both so frustrated. I want forward and active trot, he just wants to canter...? Any ideas?

[@n.m.9381]

My issues is I get the reaction...for two strides. Then I get an evasion. I really don't want to be nagging the entire ride, but how else can you correct the evasions?

[@l317537w]

Thank you for another great and helpful video! This is exactly what my horse needs (and lots of it!) Also, thank you for recommending the True Rider apparel. I wondered if you felt the sizing is pretty true or if you felt the shirts run a little small or large? I noticed for someone who typically chooses a “medium” here in the US (which is typically 6-8) the size chart shows medium as a 6 and large as an 8. Thanks again!!!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

I found the sizing pretty average. I was wearing a small in this video. In the Kastel shirts I wear a medium... Hope that helps

[@l317537w]

Amelia Newcomb Dressage Yes! That does help. Thank you so much!

[@lej6550]

What if u have a “hot” horse who is not very good with reactions off the leg? As I’m takes him a bit to come off the leg but then gets upset and either inverts or gets tight and ducks behind the bit?

[@debistevens3238]

If he is not reactive to your aid for trot to canter, is the correct from the outside leg behind the girth?

[@hannahd5207]

My horse is heavy and super downhill leaning on me, epecially to a jump which is not a great feeling be dragged down into it. He almost pulls me down and forward. Im used to a rescue OTTB i was training i was teaching half halts there and then i got this horse thats a OTTB, uphill and really nice but with my lack of the knowledge i cant fix it on my own and i dont have the confidence in my training to fix it. I usually get lessons but i got this gelding ottb during covid and havent been able to. Ive been told he is capable of heaps in every way but with me its gone a bit down hill as i havent learn how to correct and make this and train him further. Ive sorta turned to your videos and a few western style videos as a hand to get me going as im sick of it and want to fix my problems. Im also a minor so i cant do tons. So my horse is really downhill and heavy in the bridle, his transitions suck. Ive been working a little bit on them, holding a whip and voice commands as we do them and they are slightly better, not neat like yours but at this stage i dont care how they look till i get them going but even then he doesnt have the snappy transitions he used to have and in the canter he just pulllllls me downward. He is lazy but isnt lazy at the same time and when i canter with spurs, he bucks but hes okay walk/trot with spurs. I had him in a loose ring lozenge which he just walked all over me in. Im experiementing with a few different bits ive got round or am borrowing to see if i can tune him in them and then convert him back. ive gone soft and harsh ( not to harsh tho ). Im capable and confident i just dont want to mess up up further with my lack of cofidence in my training.. any suggestions

[@worththewait8349]

Hi Amelia I did this with my gelding and really got him more reactive but now he seems really cranky about transitioning to canter? Maybe it's something else, or maybe it's because I am bouncing too much on his back.

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Could be the bouncing. Or maybe just that you're expecting a bit more from him and he's not happy with the new expectations for reactions.

[@sharmane2000]

I heard your brother teasing you about Custom Saddlery, what saddle are you riding in? ps thansk for this channel!

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

I ride in an N2 saddle.

[@KimH11]

So Amelia when you take legs off do you still keep outside leg behind the girth in canter

[@AmeliaNewcombDressage]

Yes!

[@jcarroccio7844]

I have a super resistant horse, will doing lots of transitions when lunging (sp) have the same effect as in the saddle? He had hock issues which caused him to buck (had to have his hocks injected) and so I am retraining. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

[@lunarcyclesystem7749]

My horse is hot and can be pretty reactive but sometimes she's super behind the leg so this definitely helps, even though she isn't lazy

[@Wissy68]

Any tips on stopping my horse ‘jogging’ when I just want walk. I constantly have to check him, but he just keeps on breaking into a trot 🙄