Ride Plan Evaluation Time
“We want to understand the nature of the horse, respect his personality, and not suppress it throughout his training. Then we are on the right way.” -Dedication of Basic Training of the Young Horse
According to Ingrid and Reiner Klimke’s Basic Training of the Young Horse, suppling exercises in the first year include:
1) 10 minutes of walk on a loose rein (or a long rein for horses with poll problems).
2) Rising trot on a circle.
3) Changes of rein in trot: out of a circle, across short and long diagonals.
4) Frequent walk/trot transitions.
5) Trot/canter transitions on a circle (approx. one of every two circles).
6) On the long side, lengthen the stride, maintaining the tempo.
7) The “stretchy circle” (or straightaway), allowing the horse to chew the reins out of the rider’s hands in rising trot.
8.) One shallow loop on the long side.
9) Three-loop serpentines in rising trot with loops instead of straight changes of direction.
10) Leg-yield to the outside (head to wall).
11) Turn on the forehand.
Now it’s time for me to incorporate more of these exercises into my rides. The transitions have been highly successful but I need to do more than my cone-circle.
Riders who may be reading this blog: would you care to share some of your favorite suppling exercises as well as how you design your ride plans?
Rock and Racehorses: The Blog 
One of my favorite exercises: Trot down quarter line, leg yield over to the rail, then canter when you get to the rail. Makes for great canter transitions because the horse will be well connected to the outside rein from the leg yield. Also, on a 20 meter circle, spiral in and out – leg yielding back out on the circle.
I can see how the connection would greatly help the canter transition. Thanks so much for the idea! It will come in handy :^)