FOUNDATIONS, PART 2

FOUNDATIONS, PART 2

Continued. The pyramid shape is often used to explain the importance of how something is built because it well depicts how much larger and stronger your base must be. Pat Parelli says, “Foundation before specialization.” This idea pairs so well with the concept  of a pyramid, because it shows how much more time needs to be spent building your foundation in order to give specialization a firm base to build on.

Strong Legs

Another area where I noticed the importance of foundations in my life is in my jumping practice. I kept having problems with my form over the jump: pushing my shoulders forward, not getting my hips back, falling behind the saddle, etc. I was getting very frustrated, seeing glimmers of progress but knowing I wasn’t truly getting it. My mentor and instructor, Amy Bowers, kept saying, “Your legs need to be strong!” but it never clicked in my brain what that meant.

Then the other day, during a lesson, Amy took my gloves and placed them between my lower calf/upper ankle and my horse. Then she instructed me to ride and jump with them there without letting them fall to the ground. All of a sudden I understood just how strong my legs needed to be!

I lost a glove a time or two, but my form suddenly  started feeling so much different. Because I hadn’t had strong legs as the foundation of my “pyramid,” there was no way the rest of my body could be in the right place. I was trying to throw my hips and shoulders into the position, but without my legs to hold them up, they would come out of balance, throw off my horse, and/or fall behind the action.

Isolate, Separate, Recombine

              When something in my practice is going wrong, I always think of the Parelli Program saying, “Isolate, Separate, Recombine.” This means, you have to isolate is the root of the problem. Ask, what foundational piece is missing that is causing the symptom I’m looking at?

              Once you have isolated it, then you can separate that piece to work on by itself. It’s important in our practice to keep our goals very simple and achievable. Instead of trying to work on the problem as part of a larger picture, take it aside to work on just that piece by itself. For Carolyn and Magic, one foundational piece was the understanding that legs didn’t just mean “go.” Without separating that piece to simplify the learning process for Magic, they would have never been able to progress toward working on lateral movements and bending with relaxation.

              After the problem has been worked out separately, then it’s time to recombine it with the rest of the exercise. Once I tried jumping while focusing on my legs,  I then I added in being conscious of my hip angle, straight back, and giving hands. Having that foundation in place has helped me feel loads of improvement in my overall jumping practice.

Final Thoughts

              Having strong foundations in your horsemanship is imperative. However, it is just as important to have a firm base for your pyramid of life as well. Every aspect of what you do can be assessed in the same way, looking at symptoms and deciding what piece you are missing that could be causing it. Isolate the issue, separate it to work it out, and then recombine it to see if it changes things in your work, relationships, or another part of life. Sometimes problems are out of our control, but remember that you are the only person who has the power to change. The best way to start is by making sure your foundation is strong.