Your Rider Assessment Results
Thanks for making the time to take the "What Element is Missing from Your Riding" Assessment.
I’m Nicola Smith, creator of the Dressage Rider Training System and program.
Over the past 10 years, I have helped literally thousands of riders around the world improve their riding and become the best versions of themselves, by doing ONE thing really well:
Focussing on you as a rider.
In our experience, so many riders focus on their horse’s training only, making them fitter, stronger, more supple, while forgetting it’s a partnership and neglecting their own side of the equation.
Any form of riding is a team sport. We work with our horse to train & perform beautiful dances together, creating a common language & forming an unbreakable team bond. Success in riding is to synchronize, to move as one with your horse. This coalescence, or unity, is the pinnacle we strive for.
And what we’ve found is this:
There is generally one element that is the missing piece of the puzzle… for YOU… that is stopping you from achieving this unity, and that when you fix it, will help unlock your riding ability and make all the difference in the world.
So what element may be missing from your riding?
Well, let’s get to your results :-)
Nicola Smith
- BPHED, University of Otago (Double major exercise prescription and sport science)
- Chek Holistic Nutrition And Lifestyle Coach 2
- Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner
Your Element to Improve is...
Based on what you've told me, the element that I recommend you focus on improving right now is...
"Su"... which stands for Suppleness.
Now, what does that mean exactly?
Let me begin by explaining the “Dressage Rider Training System” as a whole.
This is the Dressage Rider Training System...
At the center of the System is Coalescence, “to unite so as to form one entity”. This is what we are striving to achieve as horse and rider, the ultimate goal.
The 4 elements of Suppleness, Stability, Stamina, and Mindset all contribute towards this culmination of coalescence. Just like a rainbow needs the perfect conditions to magically appear, if any of these 4 elements are missing, coalescence or unity with your horse will not arise.
You will notice there are layers within the DRT System, like rings of a tree. Each layer you develop with time, gives you more strength and depth to each element, allowing you to achieve coalescence more consistently, and less fleetingly.
Let’s focus on the element prescribed to you that you need to work on the most right now:
Suppleness
Notice each element contains 3 unique ingredients (or atoms that make up the element ;).
Suppleness is achieved through a combination of elasticity, flexibility, and integrity of your muscles and ligaments that surround your joints.
Let’s go through each in turn:
Flexibility
Flexibility is the range of extended movement you have in your joint. An increased range of movement allows your body to absorb larger movements and move fluidly with less strain. If your flexibility is restricted in one area such as your hips, then your body will compensate and have to find the rest of the movement required from somewhere else. An example is tight hip flexors giving you a sore lower back. Improved flexibility comes from both the muscles and the ligaments that surround the joint.
Elasticity
Elasticity is the ability of your body to return to its neutral state quickly. Having the flexibility to extend your range of movement is great, but you also need to be able to contract back equally well. Because Dressage, or any form of horse riding, requires quick reaction speeds to adjust constantly to a horses’ movements.
Integrity
Throughout this constant expansion and contraction, you need to maintain strength throughout that range of movement. Maintaining strong and healthy strength of your muscles, joints and ligaments keeps your joints safe and reduces wear and tear over time.
It is this combination of flexibility, elasticity and integrity that creates suppleness in the saddle.
Improving Your Suppleness Allows You to:
Gain a deeper seat
Move more freely with your horse's movement
Eliminate stiffness you may feel before, during or after you ride
Mount your horse with ease and grace
Gain a better posture in the saddle
Ride without aches and pains
Enjoy your riding more
Don’t just take my word for it. Hear what other riders just like you have to say about how they have improved their Suppleness within the Dressage Rider Training System, and the results they have seen…
Suppleness Results Achieved by Others
"In just the 1st 4 weeks of DRT1 the changes in my riding, strength and flexibility were significant! My hips got looser, my upper back became more relaxed, and best of all, my riding improved as a result. I was able to open the hip angle, sit up straight, and maintain the position throughout my ride. I swear my horse has been saying “FINALLY”! I’m able to give her more support from the saddle and keep us both in alignment."
- Nancy Martin, Calgary, Canada
"I now have the feeling of better suppleness through my body as I am able to do my sitting trot with more fluidity – both these areas are what I was targeting. I also feel more centered and better able to execute the canter pirouette work which I have really struggled with."
- Debra Freeman, Gaborone, Botswana
"I work out on a regular basis, but what I didn’t realize is that I was quite inflexible. However, working on that flexibility has been an absolute game changer. Also, my balance is SO much better because I now understand where my body is in space and time and on the horse, making his job so much easier. I’ve never found an exercise program specifically for riding and yours is top notch! You taught me where my seat bones are, for example and how to keep them even. And, I have never done Yoga before, nor did I think I ever could, however, I tried it and I have come to LOVE it! I’m learning more than I ever thought possible."
- Berney Graham, MA, United States
How to Improve Your Suppleness
Ok. You get it. You’re ready to improve your Suppleness because you know it’s going to benefit you greatly in the saddle just like it’s helped these people. But how?
Read on, and I’ll show you how…
Getting Started Now - I have created some articles with exercises you can do to get started on improving your Suppleness. They are listed below, do try them:
What To Do Next?
Maybe you’ve tried the exercises in the links above, but now you are ready to transform your riding for good! You want to work on your Suppleness properly, taking no shortcuts. What’s the next step? Where do you go from here?
Well, I’ve got some good news for you that will make it incredibly easy…
Our Dressage Rider Training Program
*A Done For You Solution - It gives you the exact workouts that will improve your suppleness in the saddle. This program gives you everything you need to improve your riding, including the Stability, Stamina and Mindset elements as well.
*MAKING IT EASY - It is as simple as pressing PLAY on the videos, following along with me, and I will take you through the workout like a group fitness class (I used to be an instructor in a prior life ;).
* PLANNED PERFECTLY FOR YOU - There is no need to think or stress about what to do, I have created this program specifically for your needs as a rider, giving you everything you need.
This program caters to YOUR [[ contact.custom_fields.fitness ]] fitness level, to YOUR abilities, to YOUR age bracket, and to YOUR focus as a rider.
I invite you to join us for the Dressage Rider Training program.
It's a hugely popular program that we only run a few times throughout the year.
I wish you all the best with your riding, and hope to see you with me on the program :).
Kind regards
Nicola. x
