# Aids to leg yield



## applecart14 (22 December 2011)

Right - time to own up.  I am really confused about how to perform a leg yield.  Say facing c on the centre line at X would I use my inside leg on the girth and outside behind the girth (which is what I have been doing), or would by outside leg stay on the girth to support the shoulder and stop it straying too much?? Or would I bring my inside leg back and have my outside leg on the girth.  I know I have to move the outside rein slightly to the outside and the inside rein across slightly to follow (but not to cross the neck).  

My horse understands me and moves across quite willingly.  So does the horse I ride for a friend, but after a couple of conversations with people I'm not sure I've been doing what I've been doing for 20 odd years correctly?????

I also use my inside leg on the girth on a circle or if we are going round a corner, but I do this sub-conciously rather than have to remember every time.  When I ask for canter my horse understands outside leg behind girth nudge more than inside leg on girth nudge.

Thanks for your help x


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## kerilli (22 December 2011)

i use inside leg slightly behind the girth (and very behind it if the horse is green/clueless at first) to make it very clear that i am pushing the body across. the aids are pretty much the same as for half-pass, (but with the horse bent away from direction of travel instead of towards it in half-pass) and most riders put the (outside, acc to the bend) leg right back in half-pass.  it's important that you get your weight on the correct seat bone too, this helps a lot - 99% of horses automatically try to step under the more-weighted seat-bone. swinging the outside leg back should put a bit more weight on the inside seat bone (if i'm doing it right!)
where the other leg goes depends on the horse - if s/he stays straight, or tries to move weight across onto shoulder, or starts leading with the quarters, but generally i'd have it very slightly behind the girth, or a bit more if necessary. sorry, complicated and slightly vague answer!
don't even get me started on the canter aids, we had a thread about that a while ago and there was quite a lot of dissent! (fwiw i have found that using the outside leg actively can muck up trot half-pass later, so i use it passively -  but someone else said that wasn't true at all!)


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## B-B (22 December 2011)

Before you start make sure your horse is forward and giving you equal feel in both hands.

Decide the point where you will start yout LY and the line and point where it will end...and stick to it. 

 Ask for slight flexation away frm direction of movement keeping equal feel and staying in the middle of your horse.  The shoulder will need to lead but note so much the quarters are ledt behind.  

Put the shoulder on your line and ride it to your end point.

Inside leg creating activity outside supporting but passive.

If you need to make a correction use the outside rein not leg or you will have a zig zag.

Start with a long LY from quarter line to the track...then if keeping the quality of the trot, from the centre line.

Check your horse is ways working forwards into both reins.  If not, abandon, refresh and try again.

Hope that helps a bit.


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## domane (22 December 2011)

B-B said:



			If not, abandon, refresh and try again.
		
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Story of my life! 

('cept I usually stop after the "abandon" bit.....)


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## scheherazade (22 December 2011)

So, numpty question here, is a half pass the same as leg yield just bent the other way? Or is there more to it than that?


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## camilla4 (22 December 2011)

Not really  - the main differences are that, in half-pass, the horse is moving away from the outside leg and looking in the direction of the movement but in LY the horse is moving away from the inside leg and looking away from the direction of movement.


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## mik (22 December 2011)

kerilli said:



			i use inside leg slightly behind the girth (and very behind it if the horse is green/clueless at first) to make it very clear that i am pushing the body across. the aids are pretty much the same as for half-pass, (but with the horse bent away from direction of travel instead of towards it in half-pass)   Ditto this.

May I also add that putting slightly more weight in the stirrup helps with many horses.

"where the other leg goes depends on the horse - if s/he stays straight, or tries to move weight across onto shoulder, or starts leading with the quarters, but generally i'd have it very slightly behind the girth, or a bit more if necessary."
I think also that this is VERY  important, flexibility in you aids, position and activity is essential, try to ride 'dynamically' quiet but aware, and helping the horse, should it lose balance, rhythm, etc, through your aids.
 If riding in rising trot, may I add it is easier to be sitting when the inside (to the bend) hind is coming under the body. 
If in canter, the leg yield must be well established, and is best initially practiced on a circle. Weight changes and leg movement are kept to a minimum, (to avoid leg changes) and the movement is almost instinctively ridden.
		
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## B-B (22 December 2011)

scheherazade said:



			So, numpty question here, is a half pass the same as leg yield just bent the other way? Or is there more to it than that?
		
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Not Numpty at all!

Leg yeild is a suppling exercise and dis-engages.

Half Pass is a collected (engages) exercise so harder for the horse.


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## Polotash (22 December 2011)

When I teach LY from scratch I teach it in stages like this... you might find it helpful to try this too to get your head around it.

1. Turn down from C on the centre line, and do nothing except look at F - see if your horse drifts left.

2. Next do the same but as well as looking left, tread in the left stirrup - not so much you tip obviously, but enough to put some pressure down through the ball of your foot.

3. Now do the same again, but add in right leg aid just behind the girth.

4. Now the same again, but bend the horses head and neck to the right, and hold the contact with the left rein.

Now all your aids should be on and your horse should be moving beautifully over! More sensitive horses will move at stage 1, others at stage 2, and so on.

Finally, make sure you keep free forward movement throughout, better to go sideways less but keep them forward to start with.


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## BorgRae (22 December 2011)

Polotash said:



			When I teach LY from scratch I teach it in stages like this... you might find it helpful to try this too to get your head around it.

1. Turn down from C on the centre line, and do nothing except look at F - see if your horse drifts left.

2. Next do the same but as well as looking left, tread in the left stirrup - not so much you tip obviously, but enough to put some pressure down through the ball of your foot.

3. Now do the same again, but add in right leg aid just behind the girth.

4. Now the same again, but bend the horses head and neck to the right, and hold the contact with the left rein.

Now all your aids should be on and your horse should be moving beautifully over! More sensitive horses will move at stage 1, others at stage 2, and so on.

Finally, make sure you keep free forward movement throughout, better to go sideways less but keep them forward to start with.
		
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oooh, i'm going to have to try this with my lad!! Thanks!!


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## B-B (22 December 2011)

Keep contact with both reins. 

It will feel like the horse is filling the outside rein when the horse is working correctlty but he rider should keep contact on both sides or the horse will twist its head.


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## applecart14 (22 December 2011)

Polotash thank you will try those tips when I next ride.  Thank you for all your replies, very helpful.  I have obviously been doing it wrong all this time and I am lucky the horses I ride are intelligent enough to understand what I want!

They probably think 'silly moo, she hasn't got a clue so we will help her out'.  Or maybe its more like, 'hmmm I don't know that aid.  I think she must be drunk or something,  but I'll just try and move in this direction and see if I get praised'.


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