Who can benefit from a Virtual Riding Consultation?
Virtual consultations make Lynne’s deep knowledge of the practical mechanics of riding & equitation available to riders anywhere on the globe. The insights provided by her Postural and Alignment Analyses are invaluable no matter how far—or near—you are to her home base in Williamsburg, Pennsylvania.
The longer we live, the more our bodies take on habitual postures that reflect what we do most of the time. If your primary occupation encourages less-than-ideal posture (signaled by things like neck or shoulder soreness, rounded shoulders, sitting with your weight more on one side than the other for long stretches), if you’ve noticed imbalances or asymmetries in the horse you regularly ride, or even idiosyncrasies in your horse’s responses, then a virtual consultation will benefit you.
What is Postural and Alignment Analysis?
To ride well, we need to be balanced from front to back and from side to side and to be symmetrically aligned from left to right.
Deviations in balance will cause our horses to respond to even subtle asymmetries in the distribution of our weight and the application of our aids, while gross imbalances and asymmetries can actively prevent a horse from performing some of the tasks we ask of it.
At the very least, a horse regularly ridden by such a rider will compensate by developing its own imbalances and asymmetries.
The problem is that our brains get used to the posture that we use most of the time, and don’t automatically adjust to a different posture for the very limited time we spend in the saddle. So we may feel balanced, straight, and even despite the fact that we are imbalanced, crooked, and asymmetrical.
Lynne’s postural and alignment analysis looks at:
- Your posture – how you normally stand when you are dismounted and not thinking about how you are walking or standing
- Your alignment – how your body compares to an ideal alignment, where all is perfectly balanced and symmetrical
- Your symmetry – how one side of your body compares to the other side
- Your flexibility – spinal flexibility is one key to good riding, especially in the area of the sacrum, where your spine attaches to your pelvis. The flexibility of your hips (or, more correctly, of the top of your thighbone [femur] inside the hip socket) is another key aspect.
How Virtual Consultations work
- Download the Virtual Consultation Checklist.
- Dressed in close-fitting, comfortable clothing, have someone film or photograph you (or use a tripod if you have one) completing the activities in the checklist.
- Send the video or still shots to Lynne along with payment or proof of payment.
When all of your materials and payment have been received, Lynne will let you know when you can expect your formal analysis. Generally, Lynne can complete a virtual consultation within 1-2 weeks of receipt.
Incorporate what you’ve learned into practice
- Study the alignment diagrams you will receive to see exactly where your body’s posture, alignment and balance/symmetry deviates from the ideal.
- Practice the simple prescribed exercises at home, preferably daily, to change what needs changing, with equipment you probably already have on hand.
- Refer often to the written documentation of these exercises that you will receive. Look at the diagrams and read the descriptions carefully to ensure that you are performing them correctly.
Video requirements
Please contact Lynne for video specs.
Still photography requirements
- JPG or PNG image files
- Minimum 2000 pixels on shortest side
- Please send as email attachment