This is the work-in-hand course you have been waiting for!
A Solid, Correct, Classical Work-in-Hand Foundation in 4 weeks.
INTRODUCTION TO WORK-IN-HAND COURSE WITH RITTER DRESSAGE
Click here to watch this video about how we do the work-in-hand.
NOTE: The "Supported" version with Q&As and Hot Seats Feedback is not available right now.
Very simple basic exercises can lead to advanced movements like the piaffe. You can teach the horse very simple basic transitions and help the horse to organise his balance in such a way that he discovers that diagonalising the steps from the walk saves energy. You can do the same thing with voltes when you ask the haunches to yield a little to the outside and ask the inside hind leg to engage and lift off a little sooner. You get the same effect. The horse sooner or later starts to diagonalise his steps. In this way you can teach the horse advanced concepts and ideas in a playful way.
For instance....
ππΌTHIS IS KABUL. HE IS A P.R.E. (PURA RAZA ESPAÑOLA) STALLION, AND HE DOES A BEAUTIFUL PIAFFE. BUT IT DIDN'T START WITH THIS.
IN FACT, NOT EVEN CLOSE....
IT STARTED WITH VERY SIMPLE WORK.
BASIC WORK.
FOUNDATIONAL WORK.
If we had started with "THE PIAFFE", we would have never gotten a piaffe like this... relaxed, happy, exuberant, and willing.
The secret to really GREAT in-hand work is to start with the absolute basics.
You've ALWAYS been interested in Work-in-Hand but you have no experience with it.
You DEVOUR everything about the work-in-hand yet.... you know you are missing crucial pieces.
You are intimidated by the work-in-hand. It is something that is for "professional" riders, or "talented" riders or... anyone but YOU.
A SOLID, HAPPY FOUNDATION IS THE KEY TO SMOOTH PROGRESS IN ALL ASPECTS OF THE TRAINING.
But how do you produce that solid HAPPY foundation when you don't know how? You certainly don't want to start the work in a way that creates mistakes you can't correct later.
MANY RIDERS ARE THEMSELVES STRESSED ABOUT THE "WORK-IN-HAND" AND, THEREFORE, TRANSFER THAT ANXIETY AND STRESS TO THEIR HORSE. NO WONDER THE HORSE NEVER LEARNS TO ENJOY THE WORK IN HAND LIKE HE COULD.
But, it doesn’t HAVE TO BE stressful for either horse or rider. In fact, when you know you have a clear path, know your clear objective with every new thing you introduce, and know you can ask for advice along the way, you can relax and ENJOY the process of learning. And so can your horse!
YOU DON'T NEED TO BE A PROFESSIONAL TRAINER, HIGHLY EXPERIENCED, OR EXCEPTIONALLY TALENTED TO LEARN WORK-IN-HAND AND DO IT WELL.
In fact, anyone who might tell you so... either doesn't want you to be able to do this work yourself, or... doesn't know how to teach you in a way that is clear, concise, and straight-forward (without all the "Guru" mumbo jumbo talk that is designed to simply make you feel incapable and unsure of yourself).
The secret is that none of this knowledge should be kept secret!
We developed a clear, easy method to introducing any horse and rider to the work-in-hand so that it is a simple, straightforward, and FUN uplifting experience for both. And we want to share this with as many riders (and their horses) as possible because every rider deserves to enjoy this kind of work with their horse (and to reap its many benefits)!
Brief video of Thomas and Shana talking about the Introduction to Work-in-Hand Course.
To watch the full video click here.
Thomas wrote about his complete system in his first book, "Dressage Principles based on Biomechanics" (Cadmos Publishing, 2010)
in which he outlined the Universal Basic Principles of Biomechanics combined with classical riding theory as it applies to the individual application to each individual horse.
But his specialty has always been the work on the ground,
and he then wrote about the training of the horse at the Long Rein in his second book, "Long Reining: From the Beginning through the Levade" (Cadmos Publishing, 2014).
How much fun you will have with your horse!
There are SOOOOO many reasons why to do work-in-hand with your horse. You might not even realize all the benefits that this work can do for you and your horse...
IMPROVES YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR HORSE
This work creates a strong bond and relationship of trust and respect with your horse. We have successfully used this work to connect with horses who were shut off, shut down, and tuned out. It helps you to define the "language" of the work and nature of the relationship.
USE IT TO TEACH MOVEMENTS TO YOUR HORSE
Because you don't have the weight of the rider, and you are on the ground so you can more easily guide and influence the horse slowly, it is perfect for introducing and teaching movements to the horse such as shoulder-in, half-pass, turn on the forehand in motion, full pass, turn on the haunches, piaffe, and passage. You can also use it to troubleshoot problems.
IMPROVES BALANCE, SUPPLENESS, COORDINATION, AND BODY AWARENESS FOR THE HORSE
Without the weight of the rider on the horse, you can guide the horse into exercises which improve the balance (so the horse learns to more easily and readily shift the weight to the hindquarters), suppleness (so the horse releases blockages and resistance throughout his body), coordination (because you can go slowly, the horse learns to coordinate his body better), and body awareness (so the horse learns he has FOUR legs and he can use all of them!).
Introducing the...
INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK-IN-HAND COURSE WITH RITTER DRESSAGE
“Hands down” the very best way to introduce your horse to the work in hand.
In 4 weeks, you’ll be able to do simple transitions and exercises with your horse with coordination, communication, and confidence.
Special 4 weeks course happening in March 2023.
You’ll learn how to:
CREATE PARTNERSHIP...
You'll learn how to create an enjoyable partnership with the work in hand (without the mistakes that often frustrate both horse and rider in the early stages).
SIMPLIFY THE PROCESS
You'll learn how to simplify the process of introducing this work to your horse and getting started with exercises which build a solid foundation (so you can later progress easily and simply to the more advanced work).
INCREASE YOUR CONFIDENCE
You'll learn how to increase your understanding, coordination, and confidence with the work-in-hand (perfect for riders who have no, or little, prior experience with the work-in-hand).
ADD MORE OPTIONS TO YOUR WORK
You'll increase your repertoire of creative foundational exercises (perfect for riders who love and devour everything “work in hand” and feel like they can’t get enough of learning about it).
ENHANCE YOUR TRAINING
You'll enhance your training with work that helps improve coordination, body awareness, balance, and suppleness (so you can stop trying to do it all the hard way).
TRAIN YOUR HORSE WITHOUT RIDING
You'll learn how to strengthen and develop your horse even when you are unable to ride or your horse is unable to be ridden (so that minimal time is lost in the training due to injury, bad weather, lockdown, etc.).
Inside the Course...
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How to hold your hands and the whip
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Using the Whip
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How to walk along side the horse
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Body Position
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Your Balance and how to carry yourself
Clear explanations on how to position yourself and use your hands, reins and whip.
Over 2 hours of clear video explanations.
Includes videos showing you the exercises with "how to" detail and "rider" demos.
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Walk-Halt Transitions into the 4 legs
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Trot Transitions
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Transitions and Flexions
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Turn on the Forehand
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Spiral Volte
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Leg Yield - Volte
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Shoulder-in on the long side
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Shoulder-in on a circle
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Shoulder-in on circle - TOF - Shoulder-in on circle
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Shortening and Lengthening the Strides in the Trot
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Picking up the Hind Legs
This is a short online course for riders who want to learn how to start work-in-hand with their horse. Perfect for riders who have no prior experience with work-in-hand, riders who devour EVERYTHING “Work-in-Hand”, and riders who are looking for another way to work with their horse when they can’t ride or their horse can’t be ridden.
INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK-IN-HAND COURSE WITH RITTER DRESSAGE
A Solid, Correct, Classical Work-in-Hand Foundation in 4 weeks
SELF-STUDY PARTICIPATION
7 Theory Foundation Lessons (lifetime access) . . . . . . . . . . . . . (Value €140)
9 Foundation Exercises (lifetime access) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (Value €225)
Total Value = (€365)
TODAY'S PRICE = €97
Payment options in USD, Euro, GBP, CAD, AUD, NZD, & ZAR.
THIS IS "THE" COURSE THAT EVERY RIDER SHOULD TAKE. THIS INFORMATION IS "THAT" ESSENTIAL.
If you’re not 100% satisfied with the program, the strategies, the exercises, or the support after 30 days, we will offer you a full refund.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
“Hands down” the very best way to introduce your horse to the work in hand.
Is this course suitable for my horse?
We have designed this course so that there is virtually NO horse it is unsuitable for. The obvious exceptions would be horses too young to do any training (under 3 years old), horses too injured or unwell for any work, or horses too dangerous for normal handling. Please don't do any training other than standard handling with a horse younger than 3 years old (we personally prefer to start when the horse is 4 years old). In the latter two cases, we recommend you get the advice and help of appropriate professionals.
Is this course suitable for me?
This course is suitable for any rider, regardless of discipline, who has an open mind and is eager to learn new things. Some of the techniques, if you have never done them before, will make you initially feel awkward, but stick with it, because that quickly fades as you develop more competence.
Is this something I can learn in an online course?
Since 2017 we moved all of our teaching online, but we weren't sure we could teach a concept as "hands on" (pardon the pun!) as Work-in-Hand in an online course.
But we gave it a try in Summer of 2020 in our Exercise of the Month Club (now "Ritterize"). Many of our members in locations around the world were under lockdown and were not allowed to "ride" their horses but were allowed to do other work with their horses on the ground, so they requested exercises and trainings that would help them with this work, so... never ones to disappoint, we dove in! It turns out that it is no different than teaching riding concepts and instruction, but we wanted to be particularly explicit in our explanations so we started filming the theory videos which have become this course. We drew from our years of experience teaching riders in person how to hold the whip, how to hold the reins, where to position yourself, and how to walk. We knew the common problems and pitfalls that riders tended to experience, so we incorporated those into this course.
The members of EOTM/Ritterize loved the exercises and trainings we provided, and we then incorporated these into our Fall 2020 Topline Makeover course. Both were successful in helping riders learn how to do this work on their own, at home, with their own horses. We are sure that you will experience the same success.
Then in March 2021 we offered this course in its current form and the feedback and progress of the participants was overwhelmingly positive. We knew right away that this is something that needed to be done again! So THAT is where we are, doing it again!!!
When are the modules released? How long will I have access? Will I have access after the 30 days?
Upon enrollment, you will have full access to the entire current course materials. We may add some materials throughout the course, however.
You will not lose your access after the 30 days. You will have lifetime access. We will never take your access away, as long as we are alive and well and able to keep the course platform up (*unless you request a refund or do not fulfill your payment plan).
How is this information presented? I am a visual learner.
Everything is in both written, video, and audio form. We demonstrate all of the techniques with video. The exercises are all taught with video demonstrations.
What equipment do I need to take this course?
You likely have all the equipment you need already! You need a horse. You will need a simple snaffle bridle (or a bitless bridle is fine). You can alternatively do everything with simply a well-fitted cavesson, but a halter (or rope halter) is not suitable for this particular work. You will need a normal dressage whip or work-in-hand whip.
You will need a device (computer, tablet, or phone) and internet access.
For the supported learning option, you will also need Facebook (optional but the only way you will get feedback). You can attend the Q&As on Zoom. Everything will be hosted on a course platform you can access with any internet browser, but there is also a free app you can use to access the course platform on your phone, but it is not necessary.
What if I have never done any groundwork before?
Then you are in the right place! We have designed this course specifically with YOU in mind so that you can give yourself and your horse the very best possible start with this work.
Do you offer a payment plan? What if I have more questions about the course or have trouble enrolling or with the payment process?
We do offer a 3-month payment plan option. Just click the button and click your preference.
If you have any questions about the course, just email us at [email protected].
It is possible to pay by bank transfer within the EU. Just email us to set it up.
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How much fun you will have with your horse!
This is the very BEST way to start the work-in-hand with your horse.
And with the guarantee, the risk is all on us - make a decision using the information YOU HAVE, rather than the information you don’t.
INTRODUCTION TO THE WORK-IN-HAND COURSE WITH RITTER DRESSAGE
A Solid, Correct, Classical Work-in-Hand Foundation in 4 weeks
SELF-STUDY PARTICIPATION
7 Theory Foundation Lessons (lifetime access) . . . . . . . . . . . . . (Value €140)
9 Foundation Exercises (lifetime access) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (Value €225)
Total Value = (€365)
TODAY'S PRICE = €97
Payment options in USD, Euro, GBP, CAD, AUD, NZD, & ZAR.
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