{"id":9769,"date":"2020-11-04T10:12:16","date_gmt":"2020-11-04T14:12:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/equestrianbootsandbridles.com\/?p=9769"},"modified":"2020-12-18T17:41:59","modified_gmt":"2020-12-18T21:41:59","slug":"how-to-ride-without-stirrups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/equestrianbootsandbridles.com\/how-to-ride-without-stirrups\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Ride Without Stirrups"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When I first started riding, my coach would very often make me practice how to ride without stirrups, or ride bareback, or play around the world<\/a> with the horse moving. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I was about 8-9 years old, I was able to do all flat work without a saddle or a bridle. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, as I got older and started to do more “advanced” things in another sense – aka jumping – I didn’t practice those stirrup-less, saddle-less and bridle-less skills nearly as much. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"riding<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

I just assumed I could always go back to it. Kind of like the expression, it’s like riding a bike. The problem with that is: fear.<\/em> <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fear is something that is harder and harder to get over as we get older. Adults have a lot more fear typically on horseback than kids do. We think of all the things that can go wrong. We have all the memories of the bad falls over the years that kids haven’t had the chance to accumulate yet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And as time goes on, you start preparing for competitions, and your priorities change – and next thing you know, you forget how to ride without stirrups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No Stirrups as an Adult is Scary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

About 5 years ago, I decided to regain my ability to ride bareback and bride-less again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, the first step was re-learning how to ride without stirrups. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remember the first time I dropped my stirrups again at a trot. My body reacted really badly. My body reacted out of fear. It did all of the things it was conditioned not to do from all my long years of riding:<\/p>\n\n\n\n