Oh leg yield, oh leg yield

[mydogs]

I’m struggling with the leg yield for some reason. I know my horse can do it, he’s shown 4th level this year! But I cannot figure out how to get my horse to leg yield without his shoulders leading and speeding up. I’ve figured it once or twice in a few rides but am trying to remember what I did. I’m sure I’m doing something with my body to block my horse’s movement.

In my adventure to figure out the feeling of it all, I would love to hear your experience. What aids do you use? What were you doing in the past that you realized was “wrong” (ie: collapsing to one side, not enough outside leg, etc…)? What helped you get the aids and feeling of the leg yield?

[pluvinel]

You are over thinking/over complicating this.

A “Leg Yield” = horse travels sideways parallel to long side.

QUESTION: How you would move your own body to traverse sideways?
ANSWER: One moves ones center of balance sideways and forwards.

So the answer is to ask the horse to move its center of balance sideways and forwards…which means that the shoulders and haunches have to move sideways and forwards.

So:
Can you move the shoulders around the haunches? — aka Turn on the Haunches…aka Pirouette
Can you memo the haunches around the shoulders? — aka Turn on the Forehand…aka Counter Pirouette.

If you can do both, then you can control the haunches and the shoulders. You put the two together with forward motion to get a leg yield.

[joiedevie99]

First, keep in mind that your horse may know both the correct leg yield (parallel to wall), and a bent, shoulders-leading leg yield, which can be an incredibly useful suppling exercise in warm-up for some upper level horses that tend to be tight in the back.

If you’re asking for the first and getting the second, think about stopping the shoulder for a stride while the hind leg catches up. First, make sure you’re keeping your shoulders square. If you’re moving towards the right, away from the left leg, bring the left shoulder back, and use the right knee, thigh, and rein to slow the shoulders. It will feel a lot like riding one step of turn on the forehand in the middle of your leg yield.

[halt]

Make sure you 100% know exactly when the inside hind is lifting, pushing, and landing. Without that knowledge, you can’t really make a good leg yield. Lots of people go to leg yield and they don’t get the timing right and wonder why the horse is crooked and leading with his shoulder.

What are you doing with your seat? Are you sinking to one side, leaning in a certain direction, collapsing or twisting?

What are you doing to signal the leg yield?

I like to ask when the horse’s inside leg is on the ground. I ask by pressing my (inside) calf against the horse’s flank just as his inside hind is about to be brought forward, I maintain a consistent outside rein especially if he is the type to lead with shoulder, and I keep weight on my inside seatbone to push him outwards and over, one step at a time.

If the horse starts leading with the shoulder, don’t keep pushing with your inside leg. Correct with the outside rein and seat (and outside leg if needed), get the horse walking straight again, and try again. Don’t commit to a faulty movement.

Also make sure that when you ask, your horse is 100% straight. Get him walking on the quarterline and don’t ask until well after your turn onto the quarter line. if he is still bent around the turn, he’ll be crooked leg-yielding out.

It helps to have a groundsperson help you a few times first, and then see if you can duplicate it by yourself.

[mydogs]

@halt

I like to ask when the horse’s inside leg is on the ground. I ask by pressing my calf against the horse’s flank just as his inside hind is about to be brought forward

Is it your inside calf or outside calf that is by the flank?

[cheylo28]

Think “One step forward, one step over”

[mydogs]

@joiedevie99

It will feel a lot like riding one step of turn on the forehand in the middle of your leg yield.

That’s a good visual for me to think of. I’ll have to give that a try.

[halt]

@mydogs

Is it your inside calf or outside calf that is by the flank?

Inside, sorry. I’ll edit my post above as well.

I don’t slide my (inside) leg back for leg yield since I have been told it interferes later on with higher school movements. I like to use calf pressure just a bit behind the girth.

[alibi_18]

Slow down the front legs
Straigthen the shoulders (and the neck)
Activate the hind legs
Go sideways more
Feel free to counter bend as needed.

I always check, here and there, my ability to go straight and forward at any moment during a leg yield.

[Dressage_Strider]

I agree with alibi_18

I often find changing how you think about works on some horses - I ride one that is more eager to yield the fore hand, so I mentally think about having the haunches leading on our leg yield. It ends up evening the horse out without frustrating the horse

[Pico_Banana]

As someone who is still learning how to feel where my horse’s legs are at any given time when I’m sitting, a trainer once gave me the tip to switch your post before you start to leg yield, because you’ll end up in the down part of your post at the time you want to apply your inside leg, which of course is when it’s easier to apply.

[Gloria]

Are you leading with your own shoulder in the effort to produce leg yield? If you are crooked, your horses will mimic you, so sit square in your saddle, with your chest facing forward.

Once your position is correct, watch your outside rein. Leg yield is one of the first exercises to learn to balance between inside leg and outside rein. You need to “catch” that outside shoulder with your outside rein so that shoulder does not “escape.” If you can time it, close your outside hand at the time when that outside leg plants down the ground (down phase.)

[mydogs]

@Gloria

If you can time it, close your outside hand at the time when that outside leg plants down the ground (down phase.)

Outside hind leg?

[Gloria]

@mydogs

Outside hind leg?

Oh, sorry. Outside “front” leg. That is the shoulder your outside rein controls.

[mydogs]

@Gloria

Oh, sorry. Outside “front” leg. That is the shoulder your outside rein controls.

Oh, okay, that makes more sense now.