Horse Geeks

What it means for horses to find balance left to right involves two different spinal functions that affect each other. The function of spinal alignment, reducing all lateral bending, is how horses begin to stabilize the midline and make lifting the back or engaging the hindquarters much easier for them. The function of spinal rotation is the least understood function of horse's spines in the horse world. Rotation of the spine is what makes a horse's barrel roll side to side, why the saddle slips to one side and why the hindquarters tilt on a turn or during lateral work. Unstable rotation in a horse's spine also causes weight to shift left to right, making a horse heavy on the forehand and often heaviest on one front leg, which can lead to a lot of lameness issues. Conversely, when we understand what internal straightness means in horses and help them develop that coordination, then suppleness through the muscles and ease of steering on any path of travel is the result we feel. Internal straightness is an important part of horse balance that relates to the left and right sides of the body. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructor www.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerdeveloper of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

It depends... what is the mindset behind the actual dressage training? I share a really great article about the need to change the current mindset around competitive dressage that I tend to agree with, a lot. I explain the different factions of dressage and how confusing that can be, especially in America. Finally I talk about the essence of dressage and how dressage fundamentals are exactly the same as working on balance or doing rehab work with horses, even though it looks pretty darn different from what people expect. Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerdeveloper of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

Choosing the right saddle has two sides to it - the fit for the horse and the fit for the rider. Finding a saddle that both horse and rider agree upon is important for success with any horse. Having a good saddle fitter can be incredibly helpful in the process, and preferably not a saddle fitter that only sells one brand of saddle unless you have done saddle research on your own. With good balance as a rider we can adapt to saddles far easier than horses can. When it comes right down to it, the comfort and stability of the saddle for the horse is what really makes the difference between ease of riding or not. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerdeveloper of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

Perceptions are personal, for people and horses. It is the perception of things that affect us, that motivate different responses. It is perceptions, more than actual events, that shape how we organize our lives and how we feel most of the time. With horses and people, the key to overcoming fear or even things that stress us out, is changing the perception we have of it. This is a process that cannot be forced but can be achieved. Changing a perception of something requires gentleness, kindness and patience. We have to prove to the body and mind that something perceived as unsafe can transition into something that feels safe. This requires delicate repetition, not force, and respecting thresholds instead of trying to blast through them. The question, “how good can it get?” is a way to help us focus on what we want, instead of what we don’t want, and opens us up to a change in perception. Guest: Deb Romero, certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerdeveloper of Training for Optimal Balancewww.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

Horses ripping the reins from our hands, snatching the bit or just leaning on our arms all drive us crazy, but it is not a behavior issue and it is not personal. When horses lose control of their own body weight distribution during motion then too much weight passes through the barrel and lands on the forehand. While this does not cause horses to actually fall most of the time, it is a landslide of weight that they cannot control and we feel this weight distribution change in our reins the most. The problem is not really in our hands, that is just the final result. The problem is that the horse cannot control weight distribution during motion. This means that no amount of leverage or clever tricks with reins or bits are going to resolve the underlying issue. We have to look at this problem back to front, not front to back. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerdeveloper of Training for Optimal Balancewww.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

We often get caught up in horse sales videos - looking at all the cool things that a horse can do. But it can be a different story when the horse arrives at the new home with a new owner. Deb and I share some tips for picking out the right horse for you, what to look for, what to check and how to have a realistic view of getting a new horse settled in. It helps to let your heart lead the way. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructor www.optimalposture.org Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainer developer of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

The invisible forces that we can easily feel but we can’t see are the most important elements for developing balance. We can direct forces into specific directions, in ourself or while guiding a horse, and allow the body to adapt around this channel of invisible, organized forces of motion. Instead of shortening and contracting inward, we guide through lengthening and expanding gently outward. Even if we are unaware of invisible forces, the way we use our body and the way we give aids to horses will still have a dynamic effect. It is unavoidable even if we never really noticed before. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructor www.optimalposture.org Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainer developer of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

It is another one of those backwards, opposite of what we think, things with horses. Horses that are called lazy, slow or stubborn have really lost the desire to go forward freely and energetically. We think if we just push hard enough the problem will resolve - but that seldom works even after trying for years. The real solution is addressing the reasons that lurk a little deeper. Horses have to feel safe, stable and comfortable during forward motion in order to want to move forward with the energy we seek. Downward transitions are the key to helping horses learn how to control their own body weight distribution during motion, how to find more stability and comfort. As horses improve coordination the desire to move forward returns and builds up into more and more controlled energetic movement. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructor www.optimalposture.org Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainer developer of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

Horses use their necks the same way humans use their arms when the torso gets unstable. When we slip, trip or almost fall, we stick our arms out to the side and move them in order to help our torso not fall. Since horses arms are on the ground, the front legs, they only have their necks to make the same type of adjustments when their torso gets unstable. While a horse’s skull and neck is part of the axial skeleton, meaning it needs some stability, it is functionally used like a limb, meaning it needs a lot of mobility. How we use the reins, with or without a bit, not only affects a horse’s head and neck, it affects the torso balance too. Trying to manipulate a head-set in horses often causes dysfunctional coordination through the back and hindquarters because that adjustment has to go somewhere! Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.org Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainer developer of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

Deb and I are a little spicy in this episode, but we have both been there, done that, so what we share is not a judgement. Our intention is to point out what we see as fashions of riding that gravitate away from healthy movement in horses. It has become fashionable to look at tracking up as a sign of balance, that longer strides are always better than shorter strides for horses. The term impulsion has come to mean that faster is better, that energetically forward with quick tempos is the only way a horse can move correctly. But balance inherently shows us that imbalances can be caused by too much of anything. The fashion of faster or slower means better is what shifts competitive riding into movement that is no longer good for horses, no longer healthy, balanced movement. While the western pleasure world leans towards too slow and the dressage world leans towards too fast, both were originally intended to show, and build, balance in horses. Things just get unbalanced over time and turn into fashions instead of healthy movement. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerdeveloper of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

Deb and I are back from a sabbatical of sorts, working on projects while absent from doing the podcast. This conversation goes a bit all over the place but has lots of interesting tidbits to take with you! Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructor www.optimalposture.org Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainer developer of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

We don’t often think about our hands or how we use them, so this episode may bring some insights that help with shoulder discomfort and help with rein contact while riding or driving. This is one of Deb’s areas of expertise and she helps me understand why I am still feeling some discomfort from my slip and fall - the gift that keeps on giving. We use our hands for so much that just altering our focus and paying attention can help us improve our balance and use in measurable ways. Finding more ease when the body feels uncomfortable is always a great way to change our use because the discomfort is a constant reminder that we can’t forget about or even ignore sometimes. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructor www.optimalposture.org Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainer developer of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

All people and horses learn at different rates and in different ways. Learning is that light bulb moment of understanding - but we are never exactly sure when or how that light bulb moment will happen. When we remain in the assumption that all people and horses are intelligent enough to learn, then we adapt how we share information until it happens. When our method of sharing information is not making sense to another, we tend to assume the other is just dumb. But maybe we just lack the skills for saying the same thing a different way until what we have to share is actually understood by another. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructor www.optimalposture.org Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainer developer of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

As. people, we are mass with weight that a horse has to manage under saddle or in a cart. How we balance our own body weight either adds to problems that horses have regarding balance or we help counteract imbalances. It is sort of one or the other. If we are not consciously in control of our own balance - relative to gravity - then we tend to just exaggerate any imbalances that horses happen to have. The idea of a mass/weight moving with unbalanced forces of motion, or an unbalanced horses, makes no sense. The imbalance is only and ever exaggerated in that situation. Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerdeveloper of Training for Optimal Balancewww.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

Going solo right now since Deb is out of town for a few weeks and I am finally ready to start up again. This episode is about horsemanship in general, a little bit about my own journey and what I am looking for as a horse trainer. It's a mash up but with a point in there somethere as I talk about the less tangible parts of horsemanship such as balance, feel and timing. Host: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainer developer of Training for Optimal Balance www.kirstennelsen.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

The Horse Geeks Podcast - Where we look at horses and riding from the inside outFREE TICKET link for the Art of the Horseman Online Horse Fair September 27-28 https://www.becauseofthehorse.net/a/23333/a2zsSgDHNEW: Sign up for Kirsten's email list and get all four of the horse fair videos as part of the welcome sequence and a free monthly newsletter. Sign up is at the bottom of the home page at www.kirstennelsen.com  Topic: Sorry for the delay in episodes! Things have been challenging lately and episodes fell behind. Deb and I discuss what to expect going forward for just a little while. We might not be able to keep up with our normal weekly episodes for some time, but we will keep producing podcasts as often as we can. We would love to hear from you - either in the comments on YouTube or through contact forms on our websites listed below - if you are a fan of the podcast and would like to see it continue. Just trying to sort out where to put more time and energy these days as we approach episode 200! Thank you for all your support!Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerDeveloper of Training for Optimal Balancehttps://kirstennelsen.com/The workbook series mentioned is only available at: https://kirstennelsen.com/shop/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

The Horse Geeks Podcast - Where we look at horses and riding from the inside outFREE TICKET link for the Art of the Horseman Online Horse Fair September 27-28 https://www.becauseofthehorse.net/a/23333/a2zsSgDHNEW: Sign up for Kirsten's email list and get all four of the horse fair videos as part of the welcome sequence and a free monthly newsletter. Sign up is at the bottom of the home page at www.kirstennelsen.com  Topic: Deb and I continue our discussion about time and how it relates to our perceptions of progress, especially horse training progress. When we think competitively, time becomes a big deal with our horse. When we think creatively, in terms of a relationship with our horse or development of our balance and our horse's balance, then time is just less of a factor. Taking the time it takes to gain authentic, healthy changes regarding coordination is what allows us to do more and more with our horse over time. Rushing to get tasks accomplished as soon as possible is what gets us stuck with horses for years! Our primary perception of horse training has a lot to do with how we view and use time, and whether we think of training as a competitive project or creative project.Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerDeveloper of Training for Optimal Balancehttps://kirstennelsen.com/The workbook series mentioned is only available at: https://kirstennelsen.com/shop/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

The Horse Geeks Podcast - Where we look at horses and riding from the inside outFREE TICKET link for the Art of the Horseman Online Horse Fair May 31-June 1, 2025 https://www.becauseofthehorse.net/a/23333/a2zsSgDHNEW: Sign up for Kirsten's email list and get all four of the horse fair videos as part of the welcome sequence and a free monthly newsletter. Sign up is at the bottom of the home page at www.kirstennelsen.com  Topic: Time is just a way to measure changes. Without changes, there is no time. When it comes to developing horses we can look at changes on a clock, feeling stressed or frustrated because our horse is not cooperating with our time frames. Or, we can measure progress through the changes that our horse makes, even if they take a while. When we think competitively, time becomes a task master. When we think of training as a creative development, time stands still or just doesn't matter so much. Enjoying the creative process of developing ourself as a rider or developing our horses has a way of getting things done faster and with more permanence.Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerDeveloper of Training for Optimal Balancehttps://kirstennelsen.com/The workbook series mentioned is only available at: https://kirstennelsen.com/shop/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

The Horse Geeks Podcast - Where we look at horses and riding from the inside outFREE TICKET link for the Art of the Horseman Online Horse Fair May 31-June 1, 2025 https://www.becauseofthehorse.net/a/23333/a2zsSgDHNEW: Sign up for Kirsten's email list and get all four of the horse fair videos as part of the welcome sequence and a free monthly newsletter. Sign up is at the bottom of the home page at www.kirstennelsen.com  Topic: Deb takes a deeper dive into what she is always saying and explains what all the joints being open and available really means. And of course, we wander a bit into how this combination of muscle and joint use affects so many other aspects of riding.Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerDeveloper of Training for Optimal Balancehttps://kirstennelsen.com/The workbook series mentioned is only available at: https://kirstennelsen.com/shop/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com

The Horse Geeks Podcast - Where we look at horses and riding from the inside outFREE TICKET link for the Art of the Horseman Online Horse Fair May 31-June 1, 2025 https://www.becauseofthehorse.net/a/23333/a2zsSgDHNEW: Sign up for Kirsten's email list and get all four of the horse fair videos as part of the welcome sequence and a free monthly newsletter. Sign up is at the bottom of the home page at www.kirstennelsen.com  Topic: Training bands of different types are really popular right now. Deb and I take a look at the pro's and con's of using this type of equipment and how they work. The differences between tools that are dynamic and tools that are proprioceptive is also explained and how both can be beneficial at different stages of training - but only if they actually guide a horse and rider to the ultimate goal of self-carriage.Guest: Deb Romero, Certified Alexander Technique Instructorwww.optimalposture.orgHost: Kirsten Nelsen, professional horse trainerDeveloper of Training for Optimal Balancehttps://kirstennelsen.com/The workbook series mentioned is only available at: https://kirstennelsen.com/shop/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kirstennelsen.substack.com