My AT mentioned tying her stirrups to her girth the other day to help strengthen her legs and said I should do it to. I have heard it is very bad for your knees and some people have had permanent knee damage from it. Anyone ever had that problem? It seems rather dangerous and I have bad knees as it is
At = ? Assistant trainer?
I am not sure how tying stirrups to the girth can ruin your knees since in theory you would be tying your stirrups in the spot where you want your leg to stay anyway.
Probably not the safest thing in the world, no. Have I done it? Yes. Used a small piece of bailing twine and did it once so I could get and keep the feel of having my leg in the right position.
I have a bad (and unfortunately recurrent) habit of sliding my legs back to use my spur instead of just turning my toes out. Every so often I will tie my stirrups to limit the amount of movement I have which then makes me aware that I am sliding instead of turning. I don’t have great knees and the key is to make sure that the string length gives you the amount of room needed to let your stirrup hang as it does when your foot is in it untied. If your horse is round, this will be surprisingly longer than you think. I always start too tight and have to get on and off a few times before I get it adjusted to a comfortable length. I am not sure, however, how tying your stirrups will make your legs stronger. I have always thought that it was a position exercise not a strength exercise.
If you are going to try it, use braiding yarn (maybe looped once or twice) instead of bailing twine. It will snap much more easily. I think a better way of thinking of tying feet is as an exercise to make you more aware of where your leg is, rather than using something strong enough to hold your leg in position.
Don’t let a Stewart at a horse show catch you doing that - ABSOLUTELY against the rules. Any other questions?
[QUOTE=STA;7185225]
Don’t let a Stewart at a horse show catch you doing that - ABSOLUTELY against the rules. Any other questions?[/QUOTE]
I assumed that the OP was talking about for riding at home not during a show.
Meh, I’ve tried it (not in the ring, not at a show, sit back down…). Didn’t find that it really did anything for me, as it wasn’t really teaching me to keep my leg in the correct place and strengthening my muscles, it was rather just forcing my leg to remain there by no will of its own (ie. not really utilizing the proper muscles). You’ll usually find that as soon as you take it off, your leg feels (more) unstable and swingy again.
Jumping with no stirrups does a way better job of correcting a leg-swinging habit, I find.
No Stirrups > tying Stirrups…at least for strengthening your leg position.
^Ah, but not as good for getting your leg in the correct position if you have a tendency to hold it in the wrong place.
I spent an entire winter with my stirrups tied (with baling twine) and came out of it no worse for wear, but with a very good leg position and strength. Tying my stirrups really helped build the muscle memory so it felt correct when it was supposed to. I think it can be a really beneficial tool when done properly.
With that being said, I suppose it could be bad if the tie were so short as to force the foot inward in a way that it wouldn’t naturally go, but you would have to tie it really short and tight to accomplish that.
[QUOTE=trubandloki;7185257]
I assumed that the OP was talking about for riding at home not during a show.[/QUOTE]
I assumed the same - at home. But if it is banned at horse shows I believe it is done for good reason - it is unsafe!!! Just because some have not had a problem in the past does not make the practice any safer. I know people for years have ridden without a hard hat. I do not think it is any safer.
[QUOTE=STA;7185433]
I assumed the same - at home. But if it is banned at horse shows I believe it is done for good reason - it is unsafe!!! Just because some have not had a problem in the past does not make the practice any safer. I know people for years have ridden without a hard hat. I do not think it is any safer.[/QUOTE]
Or they want someone to not get an advantage by tying their stirrups so their legs stay still. :winkgrin:
My experience was the same as Supershorty’s. I needed to learn the feel of having my leg in the right place.
My back issues make it difficult for me to hold my left leg in the correct position. At home I will sometimes tie my stirrups to the girth to reinforce the correct muscle memory. It is usually a rude awakening. 
I do use baling twine (I find braiding yarn snaps TOO easily.)
Fishing line also works good and will break if needed. My daughter used to tie her stirrup on her left side to fix a left toe that want to turn out too far. It really did help.
[QUOTE=supershorty628;7185423]
^Ah, but not as good for getting your leg in the correct position if you have a tendency to hold it in the wrong place.
I spent an entire winter with my stirrups tied (with baling twine) and came out of it no worse for wear, but with a very good leg position and strength. Tying my stirrups really helped build the muscle memory so it felt correct when it was supposed to. I think it can be a really beneficial tool when done properly.
With that being said, I suppose it could be bad if the tie were so short as to force the foot inward in a way that it wouldn’t naturally go, but you would have to tie it really short and tight to accomplish that.[/QUOTE]
Agree with supershorty! I did it for an entire summer and it really helped me.
Don’t tie them too tight to start. Also, using an old leather spur strap works well.
Be prepared for it to feel really weird. It will soon let you know how often you slide your leg back. 
Im now in dressage land where only para riders who need it do so, they use flash to loop the girth/stirrup, and generally there is so it doesnt go past a certain point not tied right on top of the girth
My trainer did this with me when I was young. We used hay bale twine and it worked really well.
My trainer would do it to try and force me to keep my toes in at no more than 45 degrees. It mostly just caused excruciating knee pain (by trying to force my feet to point forward and putting rotational pressure on the whole leg) and the minute they were untied my toes went right back out.
I don’t think the ban on tieing sturrips at shows has to do with unfair advantage since you may not do it anywhere on the show grounds at any time. If you are caught you are eliminated from the whole show, not just one class… it’s a big no no. Must be a reason?
if you already have the appropriate muscle development and your body just needs a reminder I think they can be helpful, but, as others have said, riding without stirrups does a much better job of developing a stronger leg position. For that matter, alot of two point and stretching down into your heal does wonders.
My last trainer tried this with me and it was worse than useless. In a very short period of time, my leg was in such an awkward, unnatural position that I’m glad I didn’t develop any muscle memory. I have a fairly good and steady leg and it is entirely from the alternatives I listed above.
