Why heels down?
You've probably
heard it a hundred times "get your heels down". I
certainly did.
One of the first things my Grandpa,
and my mother, told me long ago, was “keep your heels
down”.
But, when I was a
young rider I used to stuff tissues in the bottom of my boots so
my instructor would thing my heels were down!
I also fell off a lot!
I didn't realise that having your
heels down is what keeps you on!
I've
heard eventers calling their heels being down and forward as their "seatbelts"
to keep them on.
I certainly know
NCAS
instructors are instructed not to let their riders jump without their heels
being down.
“Heels Down” is
not just unsightly in the show ring, but now, for dressage, the FEI have
now made the rules even clearer "the heels as the lowest
point"
If it's in the
rules
and the competitor is unable to do it
they must be marked down
And, there's no
controversy about this. It IS in the rules, and it
therefore must be taken into account when the judge gives the
rider mark.
But for SAFETY, coaches should
insist on it, parents should remind their children, and riders have to keep practicing
and reminding ourselves...heels down keeps you on!
They would not
have made it an Official FEI Rule if it wasn't so important.
Who stays on and who
falls off...
One thing I know
is this...stock riders & cowboys stay on! They have their
heels down, legs forward and the back of their belt on their
jeans a little lower than the front
Now,
often you hear this position being criticized and called a "chair seat",
and riders told to get their legs underneath them.
Now, that's all
very well, but the traditional
shoulder/hip/heel alignment is a "high performance position",
and for the beginner,
I always teach them to ride like a
stockman, and make it "city pretty" later.
Never be afraid of the chair
seat...
it could save your life!
I know full well
by testing rider's positions for many years that the stock
rider's position is safer than a more elite
shoulder/hip/heel alignment.
The leg out in
front of you keeps you on. What else explains eventers
using that position, and cowboys withstanding the leaping and
bucking that would get most high performance/shoulder help heel
alignment riders on the ground.
Remember the
cartoon character “Fred Flintstone”. I often say that to
riders just before
halt…a great reminder for the children to get their heels
out of the horse’s flanks!
Remember: There is no rule
about shoulder/hip/heel alignment,
but there is a rule about your heels being down
Check your leg position
If your heel is up, your leg could be too far back.
Often
riders are convinced their heels are "up", i.e., the
heel higher than
the stirrup bar, and yes, they probably are, but what is also
true is there is probably a big "gap" between the stirrup and
the girth, the rider's leg is probably too far back.
Simple! Push the stirrup
more FORWARD....
and your heels are down!
Have a look at
yourself in a video, or sideways in the mirror. Is there a
huge gap between the girth and your stirrup? Your legs are probably
too far back.
Check your
Stirrup Length
If your heels are
up, your stirrup could be too long.
It seems such a
pity that such a minor change, that can make all the difference
is so resisted in some sports.
Here is are
photos comparing the current top four dressage riders
in the world...have a look at their stirrup length...
I have put a red
dot on the rider's hip, then another dot on the knee, and then
another on the ankle, and "joined the dots".
That orange thing
in the photo is a protractor, and it shows a 120 degree angle.
The only way to get angle is to have the stirrup length sitting
just underneath the ankle knobble when you take both feet out of
the stirrups.
When your
stirrups are too long your heels will be up, it's the heel down
that keeps the cowboy on!
Shorten your stirrup and
the problem could be solved!
Check your
stirrup placement
You’ve only got
to look at the Leaning Tower of Pisa to see how important the
foundations are to a building!
You need to put
your foot in the stirrup like a bike rider on the Tour de
France.
You would have
read or heard your coach say “stirrups on the ball of your
foot”, however we actually
have 5 “balls” in our feet…and the most important one for the
rider is the one behind the little toe…the 5th
metartarsal phyalgial joint (circled red above)
When the stirrup
is correctly placed, with the 5th
“ball” supported, the rider has a much greater chance of getting
the knee and upper leg to be more in place on the horse.
This might seem
like a very simple thing, but if you want to really improve your
position you must start with the very best foundations. There’s
no use fixing the cracks in the walls of the penthouse when it’s
the foundation that needs fixing!
Supporting the 5th Ball of the foot
makes the knee "snug"
Learn to stand
The
faster you learn to stand, the faster you will improve your
heels, your balance in the stirrup, your co-ordination & your confidence.
Start with just
standing in halt, and then walk, and ultimately learn to
stand in trot, with the horse on the bit, straight, with light
contact and forward, and heels down while you stand!
It isn't easy in
trot, but it's
the fastest way I know to improve your riding. And, if
you're finding it easy, you're probably not standing up STRAIGHT
(have a photo taken side-on).
Your pubic bone
should just clear the saddle on most English saddle confirming
your correct stirrup length.
This is the ultimate "heel fix"
exercise!
Learn to
stand to fix your feet, ankles and balance.
Fixing pain in the ankle
Many years ago, I
taught a pupil at my local Pony Club grounds in Sydney. This
young girl had several physical problems including very twisted
ankles. And, she was
always in pain with her ankles. The inside of her foot and arch
was raised off the floor, carrying most of her weight on the
outside of the foot.
We tried many
techniques, bizarre equipment and elevated stirrups. Of
all the riders all over the world, her ankles were the worst I
have ever seen.
I often say what
can start out as our worst feature often ends up being
our best because that’s what we work on the hardest.
And, this poor lass certainly had the willpower to keep trying!
This is a common
problem, and ankle pain can be a nightmare. It's a dead
easy fix...shorten the stirrup and support the 5th ball.
And, in rising trot, rise more from your knee and less from a
heavy foot.
Easy Fix! Correct
stirrup length,
support the 5th ball of the foot, and keep your feet "light"
Riding
without stirrups
Often people ask
me if riding without stirrups is a good idea or not.
Well, it depends
how you do it. If you just flop all over the place,
yes I suppose it's improving your balance if you can stay on
like that, but it isn't really improving your position.
You must make
sure that if you're nervous, or a beginner, and you're holding
the front of the saddle for balance, that you don't pull
yourself heavier on the pubic bone than the tail bone.
And, it's
important to hold your leg in position, with the heels down, and
toes pointed forward.
It is a common
requirement in the finals of equitation classes to jump with no
stirrups and/or no reins, so practicing without
stirrups is obviously a requirement if you are going to win
jumping equitation, or hunter equitation or hunter jumper
classes.
Point your
toes down...How can that work?
There
are two sports that "stay on" better than most other sports, and
that is bronc riding in the rodeo and vaulting.
In bronc riding,
both bareback and saddle bronc riding you often see the cowboys
pointing their toes...and they sure stay on better than me at my
age!
And, in vaulting
it's a requirement to point your toes because it's gymnastics on
horseback, and simply has to be beautiful!
It's not so much
if you point your heel down, it's that you're pushing your leg
down, and that's what keeps you on, as you can see by the
Fassifern Vaulters (photo courtesy Darryn Fedricks).
When you have a
stirrup, it's also helpful because you can 'lever' the foot
against the stirrup, but vaulters stay on in canter, sitting on
the wither BACKWARDS just by pushing their legs DOWN.
It sure works for them. But, remember, in dressage, it's
against the FEI rules above!
RDA - Disabilities and
injured riders
1. "One
leg is longer"
A commonly asked
question is “I have one leg longer than the other, should I have
unequal stirrups?”
My answer is that if you are a Riding
for Disabled rider, perhaps an amputee, then of course the
stirrups need to match your asymmetries, and very specialized
equipment might be required to keep you safe, and to keep you
balanced.
However if a
doctor or a podiatrist hasn't prescribed you an orthotic or a
special elevated shoe or prosthesis...then you don't need it on
your horse.
Honestly if you
start "measuring", we're all lop-sided, and on leg longer,
that's part of our goal as higher level riders is to create as
much balance in the body as possible. It's not easy,
but it's worth trying, and there's lots of tips to measure
balance & straightness on the talking book "101 Ways to Improve
Your Riding"
2. Keeping your stirrup
The longer I work
with disabled riders and Paralympians the more disabilities and
injuries I see - and the more I realize how ingenious the riders, and their
supporters, become to work around their disabilities.
Below is a
photo of Janet Hallet from Western Australia who invented a rubber band
(that would obviously break if she had a fall), but that gives her
the ability to keep her foot in the stirrup which would
otherwise be impossible for her.
See:
how to keep your stirrups
