Putting it all together...lightness, impulsion, lateral movement...

Rarely does a horse's training progress without having to go back occasionally to re-train or reinforce things that the horse had already successfully mastered. Usually it happens right when you have a breakthrough...you work and work and work to get a better bend to the right, and suddenly the bend to the left that was the GOOD side is gone. Two strides forward, one stride back. Is this the natural progression, or have we missed something?

Sometimes it is difficult to focus on a specific behavior or element of a behavior without letting something "slide". I don't believe that is a flaw...in fact I think it is frequently absolutely necessary for the horse to learn, and can be used as a tool for refinement. As long as you are aware, and promptly bring the issue into focus as soon as the breakthrough occurs.

I think a key to bringing a horse to his highest potential steadily is interspersing intense, focused work with relaxation. That means dropping contact. LOTS of breaks between concentration on a loose rein. I mean seriously loose. On the buckle. Get around the end of the arena with a beautiful bend, soft and supple, and drop the reins. Walk, trot or canter. I don't care. Drop them and let the horse go for a few strides. Then gather him back up. The softest, roundest, most beautiful collection comes right after those breaks. Continuous work demanding a frame is HARD. This is a workout. Treat it like one. If you go to the gym, you take breaks between strenuous sets, right? Same idea applies. Nothing makes me sadder than a good ride that ends with a heavy horse. And a tired horse is a heavy horse.

The one thing we DON'T want to strengthen or make dull are the bars where the bit lies; the quickest way to do that is to allow the horse to be heavy. It is a trick not to fall into the trap of allowing the horse to be heavier than you would like and continuing to work for the sake of achieving some small thing. It requires excellent finesse and, above all, restraint. NO goal is more important than preserving lightness. Lightness is the hardest thing to come by, the easiest thing to destroy, and the very basis for everything that is harmonious and exquisite about horsemanship. From lightness, that sensitive, soft responsiveness to the hands, the legs, the seat, comes impulsion, comes lateral work, comes refinement. Lightness is refinement. Let that be your mantra.