How to Avoid Tipping Forwards

So, I was finally able to use my Pivo outside last week and surprise surprise I am back to tipping slightly forward again.  The good news is that it is very slight and Jet was in pretty good horizontal balance.  He was soft and willing and poll high.  Still though, this habit persists through every correction, yoga, and etc.  Every time I think I have vanquished it, it comes back even if it is diminished.

I was trolling around on YouTube, as one will when stuck with a riding problem, and found this video from dressagetraining.tv that has rocked my world.  Using RWYM or Mary Wanless’ biomechanics theory it finally explains why I lean forward, how to fix it and also fixed my posting dynamic.  I shortened my stirrups one hole to get my thigh at a 45 degree angle, did the “slingshot described in the video, changed my posting, and the difference in my posture and position was astounding.  I was able to Pivo myself on day two to confirm that what I felt was accurate and the video looked great.

Basically, I’ve needed to have my thigh more out in front of me(think knee pushing slightly out against a hand in front of it) with a concurrent slight backward pull of my hips to form a “slingshot”.  Combined with a bit of “bear down” of activating my core and managing my angles, stacking my vertebrae or opening my hip angle is much easier.  I’ve been struggling to fix the tipped forward without fixing the underlying support and that’s why I’ve always had limited success. I’ve been pivoting around my thigh and putting my thigh out in front of me makes stacking my vertebrae easy.

It’s amazing too, how much more stable I feel and how good Jet looks.  I went through a phase of really being into Mary Wanless years ago but got stuck without the ability to easily video or take lessons.  I’ve always thought her principles were good, I just got discouraged in the implementation of how much and when with the biomechanics principles.  Now that I have the Pivo I think it is going to be the summer of experimenting with MW principles and using the Pivo for immediate feedback.  Exciting!