“Heavy in The Hands” = Underlying Issues?
Over the years, I’ve had my fair share of sitting on horses... in fact, I’ve had the opportunity to sit on hundreds of horses.
When you are able to do something of this nature, patterns begin to become more noticeable. One of those patterns has to do with horses that are often classified as “heavy in the hands,” and the one thousand dollar question I always find myself asking is, “What makes them that way?”
First, let’s define what is commonly meant by the phrase “heavy in the hands.” A horse that is heavy in the hands has a tendency to pull themselves around on the forehand when a rider is on their back, and this commonly shows up as amplified weight in the rider’s contact.
I suspect there are two main reasons why a horse is heavy on the forehand:
1) The horse is uneducated and unaware of how to find his or her balance with a rider on its back.
2) The horse is predisposed to leaning on the forehand to find balance because of an underlying lameness, weakness, lack of mobility, or restriction.
In the case of an uneducated or young horse, it is common for some to lean in to the bridle as they navigate carrying themselves with a rider on their back. The most important thing you can do in this instance is to remove the pressure.Horses will, more often than not, lean in to steady pressure as opposed to yielding against it. When a horse tries leaning in to the bridle and we hold the pressure steady, or worse, add more pressure, the cycle is then perpetuated. On the flip side, once the horse leans in to the bridle, if we remove the pressure, they have no where to go and eventually realize that they can carry themselves around just like they would were we not on their backs.
When it comes to these horses, here are some exercises you can do to encourage the horse to rely more on finding his own balance as opposed to leaning in to the reins, and subsequently, your hands, to find balance:
Frequent transitions between the gaits and within the gaits. It is important that these transitions are done primarily out of the seat versus the hand. The horse has to be in a correct weight-carrying posture in order to respond well when the rider asks the horse to transition down or up.
Shoulder- in. This movement alone will encourage the horse to shift some weight off of his shoulders and to load the hindquarters.
Reverse half circle in balance. Reverse half circle in counter bend, maintaining fluidity of the movement. The turn in this exercise influences the horse’s posture by encouraging it to lighten the forehand and load the hindquarters, as the shoulders yield around the front.
A horse that is heavy in the bridle because of an underlying issue can be a little trickier to properly educate. Above all else, it takes infinite time and patience.
When a horse comes in that is heavy in the bridle and I suspect there is an underlying issue, this is usually where I start:
Poll flexions to the left and right. Peggy Cummings (the creator of Connected Groundwork and Riding), has a wonderful exercise on this. Stand directly in front of your horse. In the sand, draw an arch about two feet out in front of them, that extends from one shoulder to the other. Gently hold both sides of the bit in each of your hands, and start by standing on one side of your arch. Slowly side step along the arch, flexing your horse’s head in whichever direction you are heading. When you reach the end of your arch, go back the other way. (Keep your face out of the way incase the horse has a strong reaction to this exercise). A horse that understands and is sound in body and mind should do this exercise quite easily. If a horse overreacts, plows through you, or darts backwards and possibly rears, it’s a good clue that maybe there is an underlying issue present.
Have an osteopath, craniosacral therapist or bodywork practitioner come to check the horse’s mobility. The horse may need an adjustment or maintenance until it can sustain on its own.
Once you check the horse’s flexion, move on to work in hand. Teach the horse how to soften the jaw and properly move forward in to the bridle.
It is important to note here that some horse’s display what is commonly know as “bridle lameness.” This term means that the presence of the bridle has created resistance and holding patterns in the horse that are otherwise unseen without the bridle on, i.e., the lunge. Work in hand will allow you to further assess whether or not the horse just has a skewed understanding of how they should respond when they have a bridle on, versus when they are actually unsound, lame, or have past trauma. The latter will show up on the lunge and when the horse has a bridle and/or tack on.
Reteach the conversation between the hand and the bit under saddle. When you take a little pressure or gently slide the bit in the horse’s mouth, as soon as they yield, you should release the pressure. This small aid will teach the horse to respond to a light aid, and that as soon as they do respond, you will be sure to release. It creates reliability in the conversation between horse and rider.
Ride around on the buckle and teach the horse to respond to your leg and seat aids. Stay out of his mouth! The best thing you can do for a horse that is heavy in the hands, is to get him thinking about your center and leg aids instead of your reins!
Once you’ve successfully completed these exercises, try the ones in the first list above. If your horse is having a hard time completely these, collaborate with your vet and other professionals to explore what could be causing him pain or emotional imbalance that is preventing him from feeling relaxed under saddle. Most horses would rather go around with a light contact then have twenty pounds of pressure in their mouth.
Happy Riding!
