need a consistent, well-schooled horse that is tacked up with a saddle, bridle, and leg protection. To give you and your horse more security, practice these exercises in a large enclosed area like a paddock, corral, or arena.

or singing to encourage regular breathing.

As you do theses exercises, I want you to think CENTER-SQUARE-BALANCED. Continually analyze your position using these three key words to maintain proper rider position while you are working to improve your flexibility.

Head and Neck Stretch
Remember to do all these exercises very slowly. The purpose of this exercise is to stretch your neck and should muscles and to relieve tension. Breathing correctly is an important part of any exercise so make sure you follow the breathing instructions. To begin the exercise, look straight ahead, and lower your chin to your chest as far as you can. You should exhale through your mouth while you lower your chin, and hold the exhale as long as you can. Hold this position for a few seconds. Inhale through your nose for as long as you can as you bring your head back to the straight ahead position. Next, drop your head backward as far as you can as you exhale, hold, and then return to straight ahead position as you inhale. Gently drop your right ear towards your right shoulder, as you exhale, keeping the left shoulder down and relaxed. Hold this for a few seconds, and then return to the straight ahead position as you inhale. Repeat the same stretch with the opposite shoulder. Continue these stretches until your neck and shoulders feel relaxed. I like to close my eyes when doing this exercise because it helps me to relax and move slowly.

Shoulder Shrugs
With the reins in either or both hands, inhale and bring both shoulders straight up as if you are trying to touch your earlobes. Hold for a few seconds, and then exhale and relax the shoulders down. Do several repetitions.

Upper Body Exercises at the Trot

Arm Rotations or "One Arm Backstrokes":
With your horse at the trot, put the reins in your left hand. Extend your right arm in front of you with the palm down. While keeping your eyes on your hand, rotate the arm in a full 360-degree arc - up overhead, behind you, down alongside your leg, and then back to the starting position. Always face the palm towards the ground. The challenge with this exercise is to maintain proper lower body position and not twist your body as the arm is rotated. Do several repetitions, change the reins to the right hand, and repeat with the left arm.

You can do a variation of this exercise by bending the elbow at a 90-degree angle and closing the hand. Now, the elbow and not the palm will be "drawing" the arc. Bring the elbow up in front of you, rotating it overhead, back behind you, and returning to the starting position. Instead of looking at your hand, look at your elbow while doing this exercise. Repeat using the other arm.

Arm to the Side:
Holding the reins in your left hand, bring the right arm straight in front of you with the palm down. Keeping your eyes on this hand and the arm straight, rotate it out to your side, and then extend it behind you. Slowly bring it back to the starting position. Do several repetitions and switch arms. The challenge is to keep your lower body from twisting out of proper position as you follow the motion of your hand with your eyes. Try the same exercise without looking at your hand. Switch between looking at your hand and not looking.

Shoulder Rotations:
With the reins in your left hand, place the fingertips of your right hand on top of your right shoulder, keeping your elbow at shoulder height. Rotate your shoulder in a 360-degree arc from front to back and vice versa. Imagine drawing a circle in the air with your elbow!

Overhead Single Arm Stretch:
With the reins in your left hand, extend the right arm straight overhead, palm facing forward. Next, bring you arm back into your body and extend it straight down to your side, palm facing backwards. Concentrate on stretching the shoulder joint up and down. Keep looking straight ahead during this exercise. Do several repetitions and then change sides.

These exercises are great to use in your warm-up to loosen up your muscles and ligaments and relieve tension. They also are very good to use when you take a break after doing something difficult with your horse like canter work. Do a few tension relievers and then go back to work.

Remember, your upper body must be relaxed to keep your body balanced. Stiffness will compromise your balance. Even if you begin your riding session balanced, stiffness will make it easy for you to lose your balance by tilting you forwards or, more commonly, sideways. Have someone video you to make sure you are not tilting from stiffness.

In the next article, I will give you some lower body exercises to help you achieve the goal of being a balanced rider and a good partner with your horse. In the meantime, my book, Head to Toe Horsemanship, and my visual series, Exercises for Equestrians, Parts 1-3 (available in VHS and DVD), will give you many more exercises to help you reach the goal of being a balanced rider. You can order them along with other fine training products and learn about our courses at www.lynnpalm.com or by calling 800-503-2824.