He still has that last rib to cover, but he's looking good. His sides jiggle when I groom him--I've never been so excited to see fat on a horse before! I'm excited to get him back to work though--he's had three months off, and I've had a lot of time to think about how his training has gone so far. I've made a lot of mistakes, so this is my "second chance" to tune up/fix them. I will have rubber elbows. I will not perch like an equitation princess. I can relax my body to relax his.
We did a trail ride on New Years Day, and I discovered something. I feel like a derp for not realizing it earlier, but if I "talk him through" what I want him to do, HE DOES IT. Not because he understands what I'm saying or even really cares what I'm saying, but when I narrate our ride, I ride better. I'm consciously aware of what I should be doing. If I'm saying to him, "Okay buddy, it's time to sloooow those feet down, we're going to do a grandma crawl now, that's a boy, keep on crawling" he does it because I'm aware of what I'm asking and I'm better able to ask him to do it. I'm going to work on that more once we're back to riding.
I just have to remember: rubber elbows, rubber elbows, RUBBER ELBOWS! It's okay if we make mistakes. It's okay if he does the wrong thing--we will work through it and I will teach him the right way.
And I will not perch like this anymore. My pelvis is severely tipped (even when walking around in daily life), and it's exaggerated in the saddle. I'm working on strengthening everything that's stretched out and weak so that my pelvis can hold itself up without me forcing it. It's uncomfortable but has to be done. I want to be a better rider.
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