# Leg aids to turn



## horsegirl (14 June 2011)

I have always understood that when turning right you would use your right leg on the girth but my partner had a lesson at the weekend and he was told to use his left leg to get the horse to turn right.  

Which is correct? Have I explained it clearly?


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## BorgRae (14 June 2011)

I was always taught to use your "Outside Aides" to turn.

So for example, if turning left you would push the horse round using your right leg. The left leg is used to get the horse to bend round your body, with the right leg determining how large the circle should be.

Hope that makes sense


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## Cadfael&Coffee (14 June 2011)

I agree with BR- I was taught to use both legs to turn, and your bodyweight too


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## horsegirl (14 June 2011)

hmmm interesting, my horses bend round my leg and I use the other leg to control the back end


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## horsegirl (14 June 2011)

Cadfael&Coffee said:



			I agree with BR- I was taught to use both legs to turn, and your bodyweight too 

Click to expand...

Yes both legs but the other way round as far as I can tell


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## LouS (14 June 2011)

I use my leg to control their shoulders, so whichever way I want to push their shoulders I would use that leg accordingly. e.g. turn right, use left leg. It becomes very subtle once schooled but when schooling babies I will exaggerate and push the leg forwards to move shoulders over, or really far back to move quarters over.


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## BorgRae (14 June 2011)

horsegirl said:



			Yes both legs but the other way round as far as I can tell
		
Click to expand...

I imagine a steering wheel of a car... Instead of pulling the wheel with your left hand to turn left, you push the wheel with your right hand, therefore keeping the hindquartees where you need them.

I agree with LouS. I think it's about control of the shoulders and hind quarters, and by using outside aides, it's more controlled.

I use the outside aides as this determines exactly how much i want my lad to turn. If I used more of the the inside leg, he would drift right (leg yielding). So i therefore turn with the right leg, and ask for a slight bend with the left leg... if that makes sense lol!


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## Damnation (14 June 2011)

I turn my head and my body and I find that for turning right my right leg will go forward slightly and the left leg will come back.
My right leg stops the shoulders from falling in and to maintain the bend and the left leg stopped any drifting outwards,


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## Megibo (14 June 2011)

i've always thought it's:
left turn=left leg on the girth and right leg moves back

and vice versa for a right turn


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## horsegirl (14 June 2011)

Tazhazzamoose said:



			i've always thought it's:
left turn=left leg on the girth and right leg moves back

and vice versa for a right turn
		
Click to expand...

that's exactly what I mean.


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## BorgRae (14 June 2011)

Tazhazzamoose said:



			i've always thought it's:
left turn=left leg on the girth and right leg moves back

and vice versa for a right turn
		
Click to expand...

You may be right, but that's the aide I give for canter. Outside leg back, while inside leg stays on the girth.

When i'm turning, I also use the outside reign aide, not just the leg. I guess kind of like blocking the outside like a wall if you like. I think we are all probably doing the same thing but to a slightly different degree. They all sound pretty much the same to me!!

If I was going to turn down the centre line, I would use the outside leg (and reign) to turn him, not the inside leg, as i get more of a precise turn with the outside. However, the inside leg is used to obtain the bend round my body.

Maybe there is no hard and fast rule... perhaps?! Be interesting to see if there are any instructors that post... We could all be wrong! lol!  Inetresting thread!


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## oldvic (14 June 2011)

Sit to the inside, inside leg on the girth to keep the energy/engagement/bend, outside leg behind the girth to stop the hind quarters falling out, inside rein gives the direction but doesn't pull the horse round and the outside rein is close to the neck to control the amount of bend/stop the outside shoulder falling out and turn the shoulders/control the balance/speed/outline etc. Also turn your shoulders to keep them parallel to the horse's shoulders.
The aid to canter differs from this as to go to canter the outside leg should brush the horse's side rather than have inward pressure like you would to control the quarters or ask for half pass.


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## claireandnadia (15 June 2011)

If for example I'm just turning left I just put my right leg on and if I'm doing a circle on the left rein then I keep my left leg on the girth so that she bends round my leg and also keep my right leg on to tell her we are going on the left rein.


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