Dressage Training: Inside Leg to Outside Rein-- Unpopular Opinion 😱

Ok, I’m going to jump on my soap box for a hot minute.

Unpopular opinion here:  inside leg to outside rein is not the gospel, magic solution to riding dressage.

There, I said it.

Before you come at me with your torches and pitchforks though, hear me out.

Inside leg to outside rein is super important, but your horse’s development matters; and so does which is their stiff and hollow side.

Let me explain.  

Chances are good that while tracking left your horse leaks out the right shoulder, is heavier on the left rein, and haunches fall a little left.

Tracking right, they don’t bend as easily, you’re always trying to get the horse to stand up off the right leg and bend.

Some of you will have horses that follow this pattern but on opposite sides, so just reverse everything I just said!

Inside leg to outside rein is the antidote, when you are tracking left.

Your inside leg can address the left hind that wants to fall in and the outside rein addresses the right shoulder that wants to fall out and you can connect the horse diagonally and it’s all good.

Now let’s go tracking right.

You’re on a 10 meter circle right and you’re riding inside leg (to get them to stand up and bend) to outside rein (because that’s just how you do it).

But that dang horse still won’t bend right no matter how hard you kick him.

So thinking something could be wrong, you call the bodyworker, the chiro, the saddle fitter…

Now, let’s flip all of this on its head…

Consider the two sides to the horse.

If one side needs to shorten (the bending/concave side), the other side needs to lengthen (the convex side). 😮

When you’re tracking left, you already have the short/bending (left) and longer/convex (right) side of the horse doing what they want to do naturally, we just need to direct and contain it (inside leg to outside rein).

While you’re tracking right, some riders go so hardcore with the outside rein, there is actually no room for the horse to bend right, because you have blocked their ability to lengthen the outside of their body on the side that didn’t want to lengthen from the beginning.

Additionally, a horse that is shorter backed or shorter necked needs even more room to invite the reach from the outside of the body.

If you have a hard time bending right, consider the outside of the horse, give them some room, play with it, let me know how it goes.

Remember these things:

• Everything in moderation

• Consider both sides of the horse

• Challenge or understand the principles that have been handed down to you, don’t just accept it because someone told you (i.e. do your own research)

• Consider what the horse might be trying to tell you

• Always ask why

If this resonates with you, make sure to check out Dressage To Go, we have many lessons on bend and straightness!