Derriere Equestrian Fitness Guru Lottie Keble-Wyatt

Discusses The Derriere!

We are delighted to be introducing our Derriere Blogger and Rider Fitness Guru Lottie Keble-Wyatt. We had a fabulous photo shoot with Lottie and have some outstanding images to share with Lottie's fitness blogs that will follow. As a little teaser of what is to come ~ Here is Lottie's first Blog for us, it is captivating and will have you eager to read some more! Thank you Lottie and welcome to Team Derriere Equestrian.

The perfect Derriere.......

Dear riders I want you to look at your bottom anew, I want you to marvel at it, I want you to challenge it, in essence this is a call to arms (or legs), I want all derrieres to be rediscovered. It is time to ignite the passion back into your relationship, and it's time to treat those buttocks with the respect and care they deserve. Most of us consider the derrière just a pair of 'chunky monkey' muscles that sit astride the legs. But, when you consider the saddle is a mechanical extension of this physical attribute, and then you realize the level of craftsmanship and design that goes into fashioning these saddles, it becomes axiomatic that the bottom is pretty darn special. And I don't mean just a teeny bit special, oh no, this is super hot stuff right here, because the bum, well, it's actually made up of a series of muscles arranged in layers. If the muscles are weak then that throws the hips out, and if the hips are unstable, that throws the alignment of the trunk out, and if that's imbalanced, well inevitably this all too quickly translates through to the horse.

It is an unfortunate, but unavoidable fact that flaccid, unconditioned, unsuitably 'suited and booted' bottoms will ultimately be responsible for the demise of riding skill, passing on poor habits and imbalances to the horse. If you want the best from your horse you want the best possible body. You want to fit the mold, and create the perfect symmetry between rider and horse; and this can only be achieved through hard work, combined with a hard working material to encase this new creation you have so painstakingly carved. I mean, if you've trained your bottom to look like a Ferrari it deserves to be treated like one, for gods sake, get it a proper dust cover to protect and support it, don't leave it to rot in some grotty little 'lean to' of a garage.

So, what is the fantastic region aka our backsides made up of? The gluteus maximus is the most superficial muscle. It is responsible for the power needed to drive the horse forward, to maintain a good connection and to keep the horse active. It is also the part which keeps you balanced and centred in the saddle. Then there is the gluteus medius and minimus, these are the deep muscles and are there for postural support rather than strength. They control the alignment of the leg relative to the pelvis and are responsible for the side to side movement of the pelvis and rotation of the leg from the hip. In riding, if they are strong and working effectively the rider can keep themselves perfectly grounded in the saddle, able to use these muscles to control the horse's position and make subtle changes in the pressure of their seat accordingly. When they are weak, riders compensate by recruiting other global muscles in the leg, knee and foot, in an effort to control the leg alignment, limiting the success of leg aids and ability to influence the horse.

Have I got your attention then, are you sitting on the edge of your derrières? There is a whole plethora of exercises devoted to your new friend, but for now I'm just going to tease you. Yes, that's right, you heard me, I'm going to leave it hanging... Literally. If you want to find out more, in my next blog post I will be showing you exactly what you need to do to whip that butt into shape, and in the meantime, well, don't just sit on it.

Derriere Equestrian

Saturday 15 August 2015