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Balance vs. Motion in Dressage |
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Written by Jec Ballou
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Page 1 of 3 The development of dressage horses falls more or less into two camps, with a lively debate dividing them over the proper foundation and training progression.
For example, should a horse in the early work achieve precise and stable longitudinal balance prior to developing the motion of his gaits? Or, should the horse learn first to push himself forward with loose and rhythmic strides before knowing how to balance and carry himself at all times?
The two prominent sides of this training argument are commonly seen as a “German” method versus a “French” or classical Iberian method. It is not as simple as that, though. Historical dressage traditions have melted together so much in our country that it is impossible to say any technique is purely German, French, or otherwise. There certainly are at least two prevalent philosophies regarding the dressage training scale, but it is fair to only loosely ascribe national ties to them. Yet, it is interesting to examine how the traditions may have evolved.
Modern trainers and riders-—competitive or otherwise—strive toward the standards upheld by the F.E.I. and classical riding academies around the globe. With one uniform set of goals, it might seem logical to have just a single path to get there. But that is not the case. Each training system has its own progression to arrive at the same place. So, the question remains: which is the best way?
Sometimes, this question is tackled in forums about classical dressage versus competitive dressage. The former prides itself on a slow, tedious training program that teaches a horse to round and carry itself in an uphill manner in early work. The latter, meanwhile, teaches pushing—as opposed to carrying—power in the beginning, and a primary achievement of horizontal balance prior to uphill carriage.
The difference in methods is sometimes wrongly referred to as “balance before motion vs. motion before balance.” But it is incorrect to say that one school of thought favors balance while the other does not. Both are in pursuit of balance; the difference lies in how each seeks to achieve it. A historical perspective helps explain why different methods evolved.
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