The German Training Scale 1

The training scale is made up of six blocks, which interact with each other. Each word describes a stage in your horse's training and each step can't be achieved without completing the previous one. The German word describes each stage more in depth but the English translation is as good as it gets. Each step should be revisited in ongoing training as they also describe the process of warming up or preparation.

• Relaxation (Losgelassenheit)
• Rhythm (Takt)
• Contact (Anlehnung)
• Impulsion (Schwung)
• Straightness (Geraderichten)
• Collection (Versammlung)

Achieving the first step, relaxation, should be part of every horse's education. Without relaxation, a horse will not be able to achieve a good rhythm or contact. Impulsion will be lost on the way and straightness or collection will not be possible. The first three steps could also be described as the process of familiarising the horse with carrying the rider's weight appropriately.

The horse used for illustration, "Absoluut," is a 5-year-old Warmblood gelding who is still growing. He tends to use his inner hind leg for added balance and steps too far underneath his belly. This gives him the balance he thinks he needs but also disables him from working forward energetically. His rider said she felt like she was constantly pushing him forward. The gelding has a good neck and a broad shoulder but a long back and weaker hind. When warming up, it sometimes looked like he was using his front end to move himself forward, whilst the inner hind leg kept the horse balanced. He has a very solid ridden foundation and is very attentive and well behaved.

Using the training scale as a general guide, he was not necessarily lacking relaxation but due to his incorrect balance, he couldn't relax enough to start "reconsidering" where to put his feet. The first steps for this horse were to change his posture and show him a different way to balance himself and his rider. In a walk on a 20-metre-circle, he was continuously asked to bend only his neck and head to the inside. This caused him to re-adjust his hind feet and made him use his hind legs in a wider stance to increase balance. This exercise was repeated on both reins and was then asked to bend towards the outside of the circle. Note it is important to give your horse a break on a long rein every now and then. This is not strenuous work but mentally challenging for a horse.

After successfully repeating those exercises, the gelding showed an improved stance in his back end and also started relaxing and stretching into the bit by himself. If you are unsure whether your horse starts relaxing and balancing itself, let the rein slowly slide through your fingers and see if the horse readily takes the rein to stretch down.

Now that he was able to use his back to balance himself and he started showing first signs of relaxation, he was asked to walk on a 20-metre-circle and half halt 4 times in each round. The circle encourages him to keep his balance while the half halts will raise his head and neck as well as teaching him to round his back and step "underneath" himself with his hind legs. Due to not having enough muscle power to keep this work up, the gelding tended to lift his head up or come behind the vertical. You can safely ignore this as it will improve with further work and muscle build up. Absoluut showed these signs but was very cooperative and worked hard to maintain a good outline. To establish more forward energy, he was asked to trot for a few steps after every half halt. The aim here is not to actually trot but to create some "up and go" in the horse. This exercise is also best performed on a circle. You can do the same exercise in a canter and ask your horse to canter after every half halt from a walk. Some horses, as did Absoluut, find this easier. Walk and canter are closer in nature then walk and trot.

At the end of the session, Absoluut was given a long rein and asked to trot. He was now relaxed with a better balance and instead of his rider having to push him, he used his new found balance to move forward with more impulsion. This brings us back to the scale of training where each step is connected and Absoluut showed that improving balance, rhythm and relaxation also created impulsion and contact.

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