Learning the Posting Trot - For Beginner Horseback Riders

The posting trot is the most widely accepted form of trotting for most disciplines.  Exceptions include upper level dressage and riding gaited horses.  Although I was unable to find a reputable historical paper or article stating exactly why we post the trot, the consensus on internet horse forums seems to be that it came from back in the cart and buggy days.  When traveling by carriage, there was always a Postilion or post rider, that was in the “post” position. The quickest and most efficient gait to get from point A to B for the horse was the trot, which meant the Postilion rode at a trot along with the carriage for long distances.  And for anyone who has started riding at the trot, they would know that the trot without posting it is very bouncy, hard on both the horses back, and the riders back.  So, to make the trot more comfortable and rideable over long distances, posting at the trot was adopted. 

Learning to post can be very difficult, and requires good balance, a strong core, and the ability to feel the movement of the horse. There is no easy way to learn to post, and some people will naturally “get it” much faster than others.  But, once you have it figured out, its like riding a bike, you will not forget how.  

About the Trot

The trot is a two-beat gate where the diagonal legs of the horse, such as left front and right hind, move together. The trot is the next quickest gate up from the walk and is slower than the canter. Each gate is very different from the others. 

Steps to Learn to Post Trot

Step 1 – Ensure Proper Stirrup Length and Position

If you are riding in a basic English riding style, and not dressage, then you are going to want the bottom of the stirrup iron at the height of your ankle bone where your feet are out of the stirrups. The best way to guess at the proper length before getting on is to put the tip of your middle finger at the top of the stirrup strap and tuck the iron into your arm pit.  The length of the stirrup should go from the tip of your finger into the crease of your elbow.  I know for me; the iron should stop just short of my armpit but, if it fits in there snug, then I am going to be on the long side.  Everyone is different and it might take you a few tries to figure it all out. If when you get on your stirrups are not right, you should take the time to adjust them. 

Always make note of which saddle you are using, and what hole the stirrups feel the best to you.

Step 2 – Practice at the Walk

Before you start to trot, you should practice holding your body in the three-point position as well as posting at the walk.  Do this for as long as you need to, to feel balanced while rising out of the saddle.

The Three-Point

As you can see in the image, the three point requires the hip angle to close slightly, putting your shoulders in from of your hips and requiring some engagement from the balls of your feet and lower leg to slightly lift you out of the saddle. The 3-point allows your seat to leave the saddle slightly but, leaves you still close enough to provide support if you lose balance and sit back down. Additionally, this is a great way for the rider to build core and leg strength, develop balance while in motion, learn to get your weight in your heels, keep your hands steady and provide you an opportunity to feel the rhythm of the horse without flailing around as you would at a sitting trot. Another reason I like to start my students off this way is because it provides a good foundation for the two-point or jumping position, when you are ready to jump.

Posting at the Walk

The act of posting itself is very simple; you sand up, you sit down, stand up, sit down, and repeat. Obviously, doing this while sitting on a moving animal makes it trick. Before trying to post at the walk, you need to make sure you have a strong stable leg with your weight in your heels.  If you do not, go back to practicing your 3 point while paying special attention to your leg.  Once you have a strong stable lower leg with your weight in your heels, you should only lift your seat out of the saddle about 3” to 4”.  You will learn as you go that some horses will bounce you up a bit higher but, 4” on a beginner horse will be a good goal.  For a point of reference, 4” is the width of a average sized adults fist. Next, sit back down gently, trying to control your upper body.  Hold the mane or buck strap if you need support.   Ain’t no shame in grabbing mane. 

Repeat the up, down motion at a walk until you feel comfortable and balanced while getting your bottom out of the saddle.

Step 3 – Getting the Feeling of the Trot

I am a huge proponent of focusing on one thing at a time, especially for beginners.  My preferred way to teach a new rider to trot is to start them on a lunge line, have them get in their 3-point, grab mane, and have the lunger ask the horse to trot.  Although it might seem counter intuitive to have the rider start in this position, I feel that it is the best way for them to feel the motion of the horse, and work on their balance and leg control.  When having a rider start at the sitting trot, they are tense, have no concept of what it will feel like; and typically bounce around so worried about getting bounced off the horse, they do not have an opportunity to do much else then hang on. Not helpful for learning.

Once the rider is somewhat confident with their balance at the 3 point, I ask them to verbalize while in their three point, at the trot, the timing of the “up” and “down”.  Once they have succeeded in their verbal timing, I will instruct them to post. 

Step 4 – Starting to Post

Starting in the 3-point, start trying to post with the rhythm of the horse saying out loud “up, down, up, down”.  Just continue to try to post until you get it or, need a break. If you lose your balance, try hard to get it back and get back to your 3 point but, if its looking precarious, just go back to the walk and try again. Repetition is key; just keep going until your comfortable.  Truly getting your balance and timing right will take a while, do not get discouraged. 

When you are comfortable enough just going around the rail at the posting trot yourself, you can increase the difficulty by steering in a circle or around cones that are in a grid.

Step 5 – Learning Diagonals

I do not teach diagonals until the rider is 100% confident in their ability to just trot around while steering and not leaning to much through turns, adding diagonals is more complex and being on the wrong diagonal is not going to hurt the horse in any way.  Keep it simple.

Posting on the correct diagonal means that you are rising out of the saddle when the horses outside leg moves forward, then sitting when its inside leg comes forward.  When the horse is trotting, it is working in a two-beat gait where the legs diagonal each other will move together.  To start to learn your diagonal, pickup the posting trot, look down at the horse’s legs and identify which leg you are standing up with.  Go back to the walk and try it all again.  You should continue this until you can guess without looking, which diagonal you are rising with. 

You know you have mastered this skill when you can pickup the correct diagonal from the walk based on feel.

Step 6 – Changing your Diagonal

The proper way to change your diagonal is to sit two beats in a row.  So, instead of “up, down, up”, you would go “up, down, down, up”.  If you have a bad back like me, you can do “up, up, down” and do your double beat on the “up”.  This, however, is not proper, and should not be done in the show ring.  And just like posting itself, this is not complicated and once you have progressed this far, I suspect you will be able to pick this up quickly. 

The most common mistake that riders make when learning to change their diagonals is that they sit for three beats instead of just two.  This is easily resolved by ensuring you say outload “up, down, down, up”.

Exercises at Home to Improve Your Balance and Strength for Posting

1.      Holding a squat.

2.      Hold a squat and do across the body arm raises with a 2lb weight, challenging your ability to stay stable while twisting.

3.      Squats on a balance board.

4.      Posting while on an exercise ball.

I hope that this article was helpful for you beginner riders out there struggling with the posting trot.