The 10 second exercise

Elsa taking a 10 second break in the hay pile...

I wanted to share an exercise I came up with which helps you learn to slow down your responses, be clearer in your communication and thinking, relax you and you horse and ride better.
All you have to do is do all the same things you usually practice with the simple addition of a 10 second moment between each request you make. It doesn't matter if you are doing Liberty, Ground Work or Riding. It will be hard for some but what it will do is help you stay focused, clear, and relaxed and in turn this will mirror to your horse.
So for example if you make a request for your horse to do something like move or walk, you count to 10 before you request anything else. Whatever it may be. If you canter, wait 10 seconds before you make a change. If you horse does something, I want you to wait 10 seconds before you do something with it UNLESS there is a safety issue. I'd like to hear what people find leave me a comment on your experiences when you try it out!
FDT

Focus

I am frequently asked to address Focus issues in horses my own included. The funny part is often the people state they too have trouble focusing...Interesting. I often am asked to deal with Fear issues in horses and surprise! The owners are fearful too!. So what's the point here? Well if our goal is to be a good leader to our horse and garner our horses respect and bond to us, The work starts with us. The reason the horses improve when I work with them is because I give them 100% focus and I am generally not afraid because I don't put myself in positions which scare me. People say to me "Farah you never seem afraid even working with so called "dangerous" horses" And that's because I know what steps or exercises I need to do for myself to feel safe, Then as a natural result I am not afraid. You notice how I said I do things with the horse to help me feel not afraid not the horse feel not afraid because as a result the horse gets more focused and less afraid.
Your horse requires 100% of your attention if you expect his. Some methods rely on the horse having to pay attention, regardless of if we are or not. This doesn't seem fair to me. If a student is in a class room and the teacher is off in La La land. That class is going to find other ways to entertain themselves good or bad. They are also going to resent and not respect that teacher too much.
If you and your horse are completely focused on each other as much of the time as possible, the communication should be more effortless and as a result you should pick up on subtle cues that your horse may be getting nervous about something. Then you can take measures to prevent a spook or redirect your horses energy somewhere else.
I feel that a lot of accidents are a result of lack of focus and awareness in the horse and rider.
So try this exercise if you feel you have an unfocused or spooky horse. Take measure to make yourself feel safe, and spend a whole session completely focused on what your are doing and who you are doing it with. Let me know how it goes in the comments section!

Dressage as meditation

What if when we rode it was a meditation practice as well as a ride. Meditation by it's definition is the clear focus on one particular thing. It is the absence of cluttered thought and detachment from the moment. It is total present mindedness and total awareness and respect for the connection between you and the horse the entire time you are together. This is easier said then done for a lot of us so it should be part of a practice for us as much as we practice other things.
Ask yourself if you are with your horse when working together or in your head. Are you obsessing about meaningless perfection details or staying in a slow calm flow even when doing faster exercises. Slowing down is an excellent way to stay in an aware and present state with your horse. Doing relaxing interesting patterns with a focus on the exercises and it end results not the "issues" you feel as you do it. Focusing on your BREATH and keeping it regular and calm is an excellent way not only to meditate in an aware state with you horse but also to connect, relax and calm both of you. Any adjustments you want to make in the horse should be done peacefully, calmly and quietly with a feel for not disturbing the connection. This doesn't mean you can't be firm it just means it's slow, calm and patient with a pause for you both to contemplate afterward for a moment before moving on. When working with a particular Method or school of thought, do not get caught up in the technique above your meditation and connection with your horse. Staying in the moment and flow with your horse will allow you to have great moments together. As a competitive rider, it is important to keep this practice at the top of your priorities if you are going to keep yourself and your horse in a state of happiness in your work together. So take breath and relax the next time you ride and just "be" together whatever you do....Namaste