Just like us, horses are right or left “handed.” The horse often turns better in one direction and may have trouble learning to pick up the off-hand lead, or balances differently on his turns each way. While most horsemen are aware of this, and will adjust their training procedures accordingly (generally to strengthen the weak side), riders also need to be aware of their own weak side. You will not get your horse to balance evenly to both sides if the rider is not balanced too!

To become more aware of your own balance, become take an inventory of your body as you sit on the horse. With the horse standing square, or walking in a straight line, note each part of your position. Are your feet evenly in the stirrups with the same amount of weight on the ball of each foot? Does one ankle flex more than the other, or is one knee bent more? Are your seat bones distributing weight the same on each side? Is one shoulder higher than the other? Are you tilting your head to the side or forward? Do you lean into or away from sharp turns? Have a friend watch you ride the horse straight towards them, and then straight away. Often if a rider has been riding one-sided for a long time, it is hard to feel it, but it will be clear to a careful observer.

It is surprising how many riders ride one-sided with an arm or leg. They will do 90% of their cues with their right leg, for instance. Because horses adjust to their riders over time, this often isn’t apparent unless someone starts critically observing the rider, such as in a lesson, or when the riders tries to move up to a new level of performance and has trouble. Riding exact 10 meter circles in each direction for a dressage test, for example, is difficult if the rider is not balanced to each side. I’ve worked with riders who did most of their rein control with their right hand, even when riding two handed with a snaffle. The horse might learn to turn both ways from two different cues (direct rein to turn right, and a neck rein to turn left) but he is unlikely to be truly balanced in that left turn.

If you find that you are riding more strongly on one side than the other, consider some of the following exercises to even yourself out:

Ride without stirrups – If you tend to weight one foot in the stirrup, removing it will force you to sit down and balance.

Have someone longe your horse while you ride without the reins – Once you have the horse moving smoothly around the circle, extend your arms out to the sides, or over your head. Folding your arms behind your back will force your shoulders to be even, too. Try this at the walk, trot and lope. When you are comfortable, drop your stirrups.

Twist slowly in the saddle – turn your torso as far to the left as you can while the horse is moving forward. Try to look at the horse’s tail. Then slowly twist all the way around the other way, again looking for the horse’s tail. Notice which side is easier. Be aware of your seat bones in the saddle as you turn, as well as what happens to your legs..

Some riders are favoring a leg or hip due to in injury or physical limitation. Often there are exercises that can be done off the horse to help strengthen the weakened part. Changing saddles or equipment can help too. I do a few stretches, similar to the ones recommended for runners, before getting on my first horse of the day, and I’ve found that helps greatly. Most of the time, simply being aware of the habit of riding one-sided can improve the situation, and once the rider is even and more ambidextrous, the horse improves too.