The Defensive Seat

In many places today, a riding position is often presented as correct in dressage:

Leaning the upper body backward.

Opening the chest.

Pushing the legs forward and down.

From the outside it may look elegant.

But biomechanically it creates a clear problem.

When the rider leans backward and loads weight into the lumbar area, the pelvis can no longer follow the natural oscillation of the horse’s back.

Something important then happens:

The rider’s weight no longer falls vertically.

Instead, it begins to push backwards against the horse’s back.

To maintain this position, many riders push the stirrups forward and brace with their legs.

This stabilises the rider.

But it restricts the horse.

The back loses freedom.

The oscillation becomes smaller.

And the horse often responds by:

Tightening the back.

Shortening the stride.

Or accelerating the rhythmInterestingly, this position can sometimes be seen even at very high levels.

But the horse does not understand equestrian fashions.

It only feels forces.

And when the rider’s back pushes backward instead of following the movement, the horse cannot easily lift its own back.

True horsemanship has never been about holding the horse from above.

Many of these problems appear simply because nobody ever explained how the rider’s seat actually works.

In my “Manual for the Young Rider” I explain in a simple way how to develop a seat that helps the horse instead of blocking it.

Isaac Ares