Free Guide to Build Chi Confidence and Connection with your horse before you ride!
Includes:- An Equestrian Tai Chi Exercise, A Foundation Taoist Breathing Exercise & 21 little known Tips and Insights about things to do before you ride to make you and your horse more Confident and Connected!
For riders who want to have a more confident connected partnership with their horse that is built on mutual trust and understanding.
Hi, I'm Jenny Pim!
I'm a Certified Tai Chi Instructor registered with the Tai Chi Union for Great Britain and a Certified Riding Coach registered with Horse Sport Ireland and the the founder and creator of Equestrian Tai Chi®.
Since 2012 I've been teaching riders to enhance their communication and partnership with their horse through the energy practices I've developed for riders and horses based on Taoist Methods.
I hope you enjoy practicing these exercises with your horse and that you'll both find the tips, thoughts and things to do useful and that they help to enhance and deepen your partnership together!
Quick Overview to get you started!
The two exercises are listed first, the Equestrian Tai Chi Exercise, then the Foundation Taoist Breathing Exercise.
Then the 21 Tips Insights and Things to do before you ride are listed after them.
The 21 Tips are done before you ride and more or less in order from the time of arriving at the stable to before mounting.
If you learn the Equestrian Tai Chi exercises you can practice this in the stable, and also the Foundation Taoist Breathing Exercise!
A word of caution, please only work with a horse that is well within your ability to ride and to manage. There are some horses that will need expert handling.
Please read our Safety Protocols published at the bottom of the page before you begin and the Terms of Use.
I hope you enjoy this Free Guide and will find it useful for you and your horse! If you've any questions or comments, I'd be glad to hear them!
Equestrian Tai Chi Exercise
1. Stand with your feet parallel, keep you feet hip width apart, have your knees very slightly bent, keep your shoulders relaxed and down. Have your hands hanging by your sides.
2. Turn your hands so they are palm up.
3. Then move them out to the sides, and extend them upwards in a big arc.
4. Bring them up to above head height being careful not to lift your shoulders.
5. Then turn your hands so the palms face downwards, with the fingertips pointing towards each other.
6. Bring them down the front of your body, either side of your centre line.
7. When you reach full extension at the bottom, turn your hands so the palms face up again.
8. Move them out to the sides and extend them upwards in a big arc.
9. Keep repeating, and continue your practice for a while, for at least 5-8 repetitions.
Foundation Taoist Breathing Exercise
1. Stand with your feet parallel, keep you feet hip width apart, have your knees very slightly bent, keep your shoulders relaxed and down. Have your hands hanging by your sides.
2. Let the tip of your tongue rest on the roof of your mouth just above where your gums join your teeth. This connects your rising yang energy with your falling yin energy.
3. Relax your tongue, relax the muscles in your face. Let all the tension of your body disappear.
4. Breathe naturally, without strain, in and out through your nostrils.
5. Put one hand on your chest and one hand on your abdomen, keeping your shoulders down.
6. As you inhale your lungs fill with air, your diaphragm lowers and your abdominal muscles expand.
7. Allow the movement of your abdomen move the hand that is resting on it. The hand on your chest is to just make sure that your chest stays relaxed.
8. As you exhale your abdomen returns to its starting position.
Continue to breathe quietly and naturally like this for a few minutes.
When you breathe like this, it has the effect of massaging and toning your organs, and giving them a workout, in the same way that exercise gives your body a workout.
Most of our organs are attached to our diaphragm, so its movement affects them directly.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine our organs are directly linked to our emotions and exercising them like this has the effect of balancing our emotions.
Practice breathing in this way for a little while until you feel calm and peaceful.
Now we begin with the 21 Tips, Insights, Things To Do before you get on your horse!
Firstly Before you even go near your horse!
1. Allow enough time so you are not rushed. Horses don't like people in a hurry.
If riding is not something you actually have to do, and if you're the sort of person who leaves things to the last minute, the danger is you're going to arrive at the stable feeling rushed and a bit hassled and your energy will not be conducive to allowing your horse to relax with you!
So allow yourself plenty of time to enjoy being with your horse before the ride as well as during the ride and afterwards too of course!
2. If your horse has a close connection with you, he may even sense how you are before you arrive, so prepare yourself so that you are relaxed before you get to the stables.
It's not impossible that your horse may be able to sense how you are when the usual time is coming for you to arrive. Try to let thoughts about other things you have to do go. If you've been having conflict with someone and you're thinking about it, try to let this go too. Clear your mind so you can spend time thinking about what you're going to do and how pleased your horse will be to see you! If you feel nervous about riding or leading your horse, you can practice the Foundation Taoist Breathing Exercise and this will help!
When you arrive at the yard/go out to the stable/bring him in from the field, whichever it is that you do...
3. Go and check your horse out first and talk to him!
Spend a little time with your horse first before you go and get the tack. You can chat to him and ask him how he is. You can practice your Foundation Breathing exercise when you're with him. When you get used to practicing this exercise, you don't need to put your hand on your abdomen and your chest. Groom him if you wish, but if you do, also allow a little time just to connect.
4. Communicate to him that you're planning to go riding.
Taoists believe that our thoughts form pictures that other beings may be able to interpret. You can tell your horse you'd like to go riding and hope that is ok with him and you can also have a picture of this idea in your mind.
When you're ready to Tack Up
5. I like to bring my saddle and bridle and put them on the stable door.
Then I go into the stable and stand and see how my horse feels about me, does he mind me being in his space, does he go to the back of the stable or does he just move away a little bit to let me in, or somewhere in between? Whatever, I stand and practice my Equestrian Tai Chi exercise and feel nice and calm. I notice this normally relaxes my horse too and he might lower his head a little, rest a hind leg, visibly relax in some way, have a softer eye.
6. Then I take the bridle and bring it near him and see how he reacts.
Does he move away, does he stand still and turn his head away, does he come towards it a little with his head, or somewhere in between? If he indicates it's not for him yet, I continue to practice my Equestrian Tai Chi exercise and I wait till my horse is more accepting. Then I try with the bridle again and see how he reacts, if he is accepting of it by moving towards me and it a little and lowering his head a little, I will put it on.
7. Then I take the numnah and bring it near him.
If I go and get the numnah and he moves away, walks around goes to the back of the stable, I wait again, I practice my breathing exercise, still holding the numnah, then when he's ready to accept, I put it on his back.
8. Then I take the saddle and bring it near him.
As with the numnah, I do the same thing, I go and get the saddle from the door and wait till he's accepting before I put it on. I don't do the girth up too tightly, just so the saddle won't move. I can tighten it later.
9. I use the time in the stable with him to watch how he is and watch his breathing and check for tension.
If he is tense I check for tension in me and relax myself, normally just practicing breathing will be fine to do that. Then when he's all tacked up I know he has consented to being tacked up in cooperation with me. So I feel happy about that and glad I took the time.
Walking Out To The The Arena
10. Almost from the moment I step out the door I walk consciously
Every step I take I am aware of it, as I place my foot on the ground I am aware of it connecting with the Earth. I put my focus in my walk and in my body as I lead my horse. This helps to ground me and to keep my focus in myself and not what my horse could be worried about. I also become a source of grounding for him.
11. I walk with purpose looking straight ahead.
If there are things my horse could be distracted about on the way into the Arena, I don't look around to see what they are, or worry about them myself, I have my intent and purpose focussed on walking calmly into the arena. My horse will then be naturally inclined to follow the energy of my intent.
Before Mounting in the Arena
12. I like to walk around the Arena once in both directions
I do this to walk my horse out before I sit on his back, but as well to let him have a look at what is around him. I walk on both reins, to be balanced and as well because horses see things differently from both eyes.
13. However if he is anxious about going all the way round in the beginning, just keep him at one end.
You can gradually increase the distance, so you can include the whole arena. Test yourself as you do this, that you are also relaxed and confident where you are leading him, if you feel like this, he will take his cue from you. So feel your way together.
14. I walk beside the railings as I go in either direction.
In case my horse spooks and might knock me over, I walk on the side he would be likely to spook away from. In this case he would be more likely to spook at what is outside the arena, so I walk beside the railings, but not so close to them that I could get trapped or pushed against them.
15. If my horse begins to get fixated on something he's worried about, I validate it.
I talk to him and say, yes I know it's there, I do this to let him know I know it's there, but I'm not worried about it as I am focussed on the job in hand which is walking around the arena. I still keep walking consciously connecting each footstep to the ground.
16. I expand my vision.
I allow my vision to expand to take in more of my surroundings and also to soften my gaze, so I can include what he's looking at but also not pay attention to it. So my energy does not follow his and put even more focus on the thing he is worried about. I'm aware of it, but it does not draw me in to focus on it.
17. If he's really nervous sometimes I give him a small bit of carrot.
I do this because it brings him back into his body, if he is totally focussed on something bothering him outside of himself, he looses connection with inside of himself. Eating the bit of carrot gives his nervous system a break and then I can make him come back to me again. I don't let him eat bits of carrot the whole time though just the odd time, but I do find them handy to snap his attention away from something, but then I will make him just focus on me again. Giving carrots may not suit all horses, so perhaps try the other things first here without giving carrots. Some horses can get a bit bossy and pushy if they know you have carrots, but it can suit the more nervous type.
18. I like to walk at his shoulder.
I do this because it is the safest place to walk, not too close and not too far from him. I also have my heart centre beside his heart centre. In Taoism, the location of the HeartMind is in centre of the body fairly level with the heart. The horse's heart centre is in the centre of his body above his heart. It is to do with relationships of all kinds.
19. If he is anxious I emanate compassion from my Heart Centre.
I send compassion from my heart centre to him is he is anxious as I walk. Then I don't focus on walking consciously as I do this. These are different things to do that you can vary as you need.
20. I notice that there are certain places he is worried about and try to help him with these.
There are some places where my horse is more worried about than others, sometimes it's obvious the reason why, but sometimes not, he may be sensing something there I'm not aware of. But even though I know he might be worried as I come up to these places, I can hold that in my mind and think of resolutions to help him. These would be consciously walking, emanating compassion to him, but as well sometimes I emanate compassion when we come to the place he might be worried about, this will help to relieve tension in the space itself that he might be sensing.
21. As he becomes more relaxed I stop being so focussed.
When he's settled and walking in a relaxed way, with he head lower, and becoming more connected to me, I stop being so focussed on doing the things I was doing to kept him calm. He'll start to enjoy himself and enjoy being with me, I might give him a bit of carrot then too, and tell him he's a good boy etc. But I don't keep doling out the bits of carrot. I would just use one carrot cut up in little pieces, but not in rounds in case they get stuck in his throat. If there's a pony in the field beside he would get a bit of carrot too as it would be a bit mean to exclude him!
Only when I feel he is relaxed and connected to me do I get up!
I like to do it this way because when I feel him connected to me, I can more easily keep this connection and his attention on me when I ride. This stops him from being distracted and looking for things to be worried about and we can enjoy our ride together.
I hope you will find the Exercises and the Tips, Insights and Things to do useful for you and your horse.
Preparing for a ride like this, allows time to relax with your horse, to warm up his back, and to connect with him. It allows him to become more confident about their surroundings.
There are some horses that wouldn't be worried at all about what is around them, but I have found that this way is helpful for horses that are.
If you're interested in Learning More about managing yours and your horses emotions riding....
I have trainings inside The Equestrian Tai Chi Membership Group for Non-Professional Equestrians, where you can lean to develop your ability to manage emotions riding and develop your connection together through Taoist energy practices I developed for horses and riders!