Classical Dressage for the Horse’s Long-Term Health: Sonja Weber on Optimising Posture

Sonja Weber, a classical rider and trainer with over 25 years of experience, shares how to keep the horse healthy long-term with classical dressage, through developing its carrying capacity.

Passionate about sharing how training can be used to develop the horse’s body to support its health, she has written two books, and produced several films on how to use collection to build the horse’s thoracic sling muscles, and establish a healthy posture.

Based in Germany, and originally from Austria, Sonja Weber has extensive experience using classical dressage to develop horses of a vast number of breeds, from Lusitanos and Arabians, to Icelandic horses and Haflingers.

Sharing her insights online in both English and German, Sonja has a wealth of knowledge about the connection between biomechanics and classical training – and continues to inspire students and followers from around the world with her simple and straightforward insights.

In this episode, we explore:

◼️ How to recognise Topline Syndrome and Abnormal Compensatory Posture

◼️ How the thoracic sling works and why it’s so important

◼️ How to use classical dressage for different breeds and conformations

◼️ How you can change a horse’s posture through training

For this special episode, we filmed this conversation in Sonja’s native German, to make it easier to dive deep into the topic, and what you see here is an English translation. If you’d like to see the original German version, you can watch the full episode on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/gSWwp-XCBBg

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:01 How can you use training to keep the horse healthy long-term?

04:41 Using collection to develop the horse’s carrying capacity

10:21 Why is posture important, and how can you influence it?

14:50 Analysing piaffe and passage & modern competition

19:05 What’s the role of the forehand in collection?

21:35 Abnormal Compensatory Posture & changing the horse’s posture

27:26 Developing piaffe with multiple breeds & stallions’ natural posture

31:13 How Topline Syndrome and Abnormal Compensatory Posture develop

33:00 Elements of collection, balance, & the horse’s natural shock absorbers

41:14 The role of the back, and analysing the long & low position