StableManners, LLC

09/21/2025

I swear she makes these great visuals at the absolute right timing, and so thankful she shares them!

09/19/2025

I love neck straps!

09/19/2025

The pitfalls of learning from books and videos, is that you don't have a trained eye on you to support your understanding of concepts.

Doing exercises incorrectly for too long, can deeply engrain incorrect movement. It's always a good idea to get an experienced eye on you sooner, rather than later. This support can help you steer clear of teaching poor movement patterns that are later hard to redirect because they are so deeply engrained in the nervous system.

Time and money are always in short supply, so make sure you are spending both wisely!

09/19/2025

Forward is first because it starts with an “F”!
~ Jim Graham

09/18/2025

I am thankful for the careful guidance of my mentor, and those before her.

We need guidance, but we also have to learn to trust ourselves -

I think one of the greatest risks as a young professional, which obviously can carry on into older age, is to go unchecked in your career by a wiser, more experienced teacher. Without a mentor to support us we can get lost - without a mentor to remind us through example we are not “there yet,” we can easily fall into the trap of believing our own press. We begin riding far above our skill set and begin producing shaky work - the biggest risk here is the higher we climb, the farther we have to fall and we know it, so we begin defensiveness and strong protection of our work and ego - we lose humility, lose the desire to work on foundational skills we may be missing and perceive all critique as a threat to our developed persona.

Developing a career without a mentor can be extremely dangerous - we run the risk of leading the public off a cliff like lemmings who trust us- it is our duty to provide good information to the public and so we must be frequently checked and cross checked.

However -

We also have to be careful to not fall into the trap of dependence. We have to learn to think and try for ourselves, even at the risk of failure. We have to learn to see outside our teachers eyes and develop our own compass. We have to practice straying a little to developing a unique voice, instead of being a copy of our teachers.

A well schooled teacher who practices independent thinking can promote this in their students - creating a love for theory and dedication to basics without faltering from the path, but also independent thinking and ability -
To become an educated person who can manage and think for themselves.

09/18/2025

09/17/2025

Close your FINGERS/ NOT your hands!!!!
If you just close your fingers on the reins, it limits the tension to your forearm, but if you close your entire hand, it braces your biceps and triceps- which pretty much locks your whole arm!
It’s hard to have soft supple connection if your arms are locked, but you also do need some grip on the reins.  Closing your fingers while keeping the rest of the hand soft is how you achieve both.

09/08/2025

09/08/2025

🏇 That shoulder that drops or is it the one that rises? uneven hands, one leg that draws up or a pelvis that drifts off to one side, a subtle head tilt. All of these, as this brush beautifully shows, are part of a pattern, no part of the body works on its own.

As the body works in patterns, not parts, and the key is to find the root cause to restore this whole pattern of change.

A riding problem you notice the most when riding is often the domino effect from elsewhere.

Holding your body in a traditional visual riding correction. By moving and holding a body part where you believe it should be, in an attempt to fill in a postural gaps.

Which makes it really hard to move with the horse and is not maintainable

It’s not visual perfection; it’s connection through your body that matters. A body that can work with the horse, not against it.

Riders come in all shapes and sizes. I’ve worked with many who felt defeated because they didn’t fit the stereotypical rider’s conformation.I’ve also worked with many injured riders and the problems that they brought to their riding and life.

Over 25 years, I’ve helped thousands of riders and horses. One thing I do know is the body is always capable of change.

And working on yourself through your daily movement not only makes you more saddle ready. It really helps your body in your everyday life.

That’s why I created my online course “Screen Time to Saddle Time”. I see more and more how computer work affects riders’ bodies. This course will help you:

✨Ride and move better

✨Live and work happier

✨And even supercharge your sense of feel.

Comment SCREEN for details👇

Drawing credit: Sandy Rabinowitz / Dressage Today

09/08/2025

Needs a deeper discussion for most, but I like his explanations.

09/08/2025