How is 'Yoga for Every Equestrian' different from your usual class at the gym?
First, let's start with the definition of yoga; in Sanskrit, it means to "join" or "unite". Interpreted as joining the mind and body. As a rider, we know that having strong body awareness is crucial to being effective in the saddle.
Yoga covers an array of different styles, breathing techniques, and meditations. The most important part is the connection between breath and being present.
'Yoga for Every Equestrian' gives us the techniques to stay present in the saddle, adapting common yoga practices to the needs of every rider. Using our strong sense of anatomy in relation to the horse's anatomy we help riders create a whole new sense of body awareness, connecting to the core, learning how to control our aids and feel our horse. We speak through the ground sequences and connect those ideas as if we were riding so that we then take those practices into the saddle.
'Yoga for Every Equestrian' teaches us how to physically ride, how to learn, how to slow down our ride all allowing the rider to make adjustments without throwing the horses off balance with moves that are physical and mental. We learn how to carry our eyes up and keep our "concentration forward". According to the Harvard Business Review, "People who cultivate a positive mind-set perform better in the face of challenge. I call this the “happiness advantage”—every business outcome shows improvement when the brain is positive"
As riders, we get caught up in the competition, the feeling of needing to progress quickly and many other subgoals that can discourage us. 'Yoga for Every Equestrian' takes us away from that, away from the constant self-judgment and puts us back in the saddle. Connects us back with the horse, the whole reason we started in the first place, which in the end ironically creates a better performing and more confident rider.
This is not only a way to make ourselves healthier, but it also will help improve our horses' balance and happiness under saddle, when we expect drastic improvement from ourselves we don't realize the physical demands we are asking of our equine partner. 'Yoga for Every Equestrian' is adapted for every level of rider and horse, every-BODY can do yoga, it is not "as seen on TV".
We cultivate our program so that you can take as little or as much as you like.
We start on the ground with yoga in a classroom style, then move it into body alignment sessions in the saddle, next to a riding lesson. Keeping this constant flow of connection, always continuing our practice.
As riders, we expect to get in the saddle and not have the day follow us, but the way we carry ourselves will not disappear. We are constantly hunched over looking at phones, computers, etc... as a society our bodies are slowly evolving to round through the shoulders, but we do not want our horses to have to shift to carry us so it is very important as riders that we fix our postures.
We know there is a wide array of benefits to yoga and one can find more in this post: https://www.gmdtraining.com/blog/powerful-benefits-of-yoga.