The Rider’s Centre Of Balance: Landing In The Sweet Spot

If you want your horse to find true self-carriage, you must know exactly where you land in the saddle. This isn’t guesswork — it’s precise. Your landing point is the middle of the saddle, directly above the stirrup bar — the metal hook inside the flap where your stirrup leather attaches.

From here your pelvis stays upright, not rolled forward or tucked under, resting over a solid base of both feet in the stirrups. You’re not perched up near the pommel, and you’re not dropped back into the cantle. You are in the “neutral zone” — the flat part of the seat where you can allow movement to pass through without blocking or chasing it. Your legs drape softly, your shoulders stack over your hips, and your hands are carried without the need to brace.

Why This Matters At A Lower Level

When a horse is still developing strength, he’s usually longer in the body, with his hind legs stretching behind him. Your job is to help him find balance in all four feet and shorten the wheelbase. If you land too far forward of the stirrup bar, you tip weight onto the forehand; if you land behind it, you drop weight behind the movement which blocks the flow.

Staying directly above the stirrup bar allows you to make smooth, subtle rebalances — steadying the steps while letting his back lift and swing. Balance first. Energy after.

Why This Matters At A Higher Level

In advanced work, your position over the stirrup bar becomes the fine-tuning lever for expression. This central point allows you to adjust how the energy travels from the shoulders to the hindquarters and back again — without visible effort.

In passage, the wheelbase is already shorter, and balance in all four feet is constantly being refined stride by stride.

From this exact landing spot, you can lift the forehand, invite more stretch over the back, or create suspension — all without breaking rhythm.

Drift even a few millimetres forward or back from the stirrup bar and you’ll feel the lift flatten, the rhythm lose clarity, or the stride become hurried.

Golden Rules

  • Land directly above the stirrup bar — this is your balance point.
  • Pelvis upright over a solid base of both feet in the stirrups (80/20).
  • Neither up the pommel nor back into the cantle — stay in the middle.
  • Never add power to imbalance — balance the four feet first – i.e. check balance before you use your leg.
  • At higher levels the smaller your shifts, the bigger the result.