Training Tip Tuesday:
Flexibility Is Freedom
Okay, yes—this one’s coming in under the wire. But if you’re anything like us, training doesn’t always happen on schedule either. So here’s a late-night reminder that progress doesn’t care what time it is.
Teach the Bend, Not the Battle
When you’re retraining a Standardbred under saddle, one of the biggest hurdles is… well, getting them to curve at all. These horses were bred and built to go in a set of cart shafts at high speeds. Flexion? A foreign concept.
Instead of forcing a frame or muscling through stiffness, teach them how to bend—gently, consistently, and without the fight. Start at the walk. Use big, loopy serpentines, and oversized circles. You want to think fluid, not forced flexion.
This isn’t about “contact” or “collection” right now. It’s about showing them that there’s a whole world of movement outside the racetrack pylons.
The goal is to teach their body to listen differently—and their brain to trust you in the process.
Flexibility is freedom.
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