Recap

The last 2 weeks we have mostly been working on sensitivity to the aids and bend to the right. Odin is a lot less supple on the right side, and I have up until now not really been able to do that much about it.

The first week we mostly worked on him listening to my aids. If I asked him with a light tap of the leg, and he didn't have a really convincing reation, I corrected him with a large aid with the whip. Doing it a with a little more, and a little more, etc would just need to nagging, which really is a bad habit of mine. Two things I learned that I must remember:
1) Most of this is mental, I must demand a immidiate and large reaction to my aids, not be satisfied with a little bit.
2) I cramp with my right leg. Because Odin is not really in front of it very often, I nag, pull my leg up and cramp it on. Much easier for him and me when I manage to relax it and use it lightly!

This week we worked on bend to the right, now I could get him to move off my right leg. We did a lot legyield on the left lead, and shoulderin or shoulder fore on the right lead, and I could feel him getting easier to bend. Nice!

Wednesday we did this weeks most interesting exercise. I was having trouble keeping him in front of my right leg countercantering on the left lead, not really figuring out how to apply my right leg and keep him on the left lead.
L. had me do this:

We go on a circle to the right, and do some shoulder in in walk. Straighten him, ask for canter to the left. Half halt and collect, keeping him in balance. If he stiffens against my right hand, back to walk and shoulder in, then back to left lead canter. If he popped a change, keep cantering on the right lead, shoulder in (ish, as well as I can do it) in the canter. When he feels softer, do a change back to the left lead.

It was a little hard for me to do, lots of thinking, but in the end I could feel him being softer on the right, more in balance, and I could see how doing all the right bend was helping him to be more in balance, and making it easier for him to do what I really wanted. That was a very cool feeling!