Training Tip: Practice Builds Confidence at the Canter

If your confidence abandons you when it comes to cantering, don’t fear! You’re not alone and your feelings are completely normal. I was leery of cantering when I first started riding horses, too. At some point, all equestrians experience getting nervous flutters when asked to canter their horse. You can master your horse’s three-beat gait by setting yourself up for success with tips like the one below.

Tip #7: Get on and canter.

After you’ve followed all of the steps in this series, it’s time to get in the saddle and canter. There’s no substitute for putting your butt in the saddle and riding as often as you can for as long as you can to put some steady miles under you. The more you canter, the more natural it’ll become.

Initially, you may need a coach on the ground giving you confidence to canter your horse. This is where scheduling a lesson with a Professional Clinician or a Method Ambassador is invaluable. Oftentimes, when fear grabs a hold of us, we need an experienced horseman to get in our head and make us focus on the job at hand rather than all of the “what ifs” and “buts” that hold us back.

Read the previous tips in this series: Tip #1: Use Correctly Fitted Tack, Tip #2: Sit in the Saddle Correctly, Tip #3: Practice With the Right Horse, and Tip #4: Practice Posting to the Trot, Tip #5: Practice One Rein Stops, and Tip #6: Get Experienced Help.