Teaching lateral movements: shoulder-in and travers

What makes lateral movements valuable?

Lateral movements require the horse to place its hindquarters under its mass while moving on two or three tracks. This demands coordination, looseness and strength. Shoulder-in is often called the 'mother of all exercises': the horse bends evenly throughout its entire body while the inner hind leg steps under the centre of gravity. This strengthens the driving power and improves the contact. Travers — also known as haunches-in — places greater emphasis on collection and bend through the hindquarters. Both exercises lay a solid foundation for pirouettes, passage and piaffe later in training. On average it takes four to eight weeks of consistent work before a green horse reasonably understands both exercises.

Shoulder-in: aids step by step

Ride your horse along a long side in a well-flowing working trot. Halfway through the short side, ask for a slight inside bend, as if you were riding an eight-metre circle. Just before you reach the long side, maintain that bend and allow the horse's shoulders to come inward. The hooves now move on three tracks: the inner shoulder moves over the track of the outer hind leg.

• Inside hand leads the shoulder inward, then softens
• Outside hand controls the tempo and the bend
• Inside leg at the girth asks for the bend and the energy
• Outside leg slightly behind the girth prevents the hindquarters from swinging out
• Angle: 30 degrees relative to the wall is correct for elementary level

Travers: how it differs from shoulder-in

In travers the horse looks in the direction of movement and the hindquarters move inward, while the shoulders remain on the track. The horse bends around your inside leg, which is now positioned slightly behind the girth. Your outside leg provides the impulse to ask the hindquarters inward. Begin in walk and ask only for a slight four-track positioning: the inside fore and hind hooves move in line with each other. Once that is achieved, repeat the exercise in trot. Travers on a circle is an excellent preparatory exercise for the pirouette.

• Inside leg behind the girth asks for the bend and the sideways movement
• Outside leg at the girth keeps the shoulder on the track
• Inside hand maintains the bend, softens at the right moment
• Outside hand regulates tempo and outside boundary
• Aim for four to six well-bent strides before you pause

Common mistakes and how to correct them

The most common mistake in shoulder-in is too much bend in the neck without bend through the body. The horse then 'cranks' its neck inward while the hindquarters continue straight. Check this by consciously feeling whether your inside leg meets resistance: that is a sign of genuine bend. In travers you often see the horse bringing the hindquarters too far inward — more than four tracks — causing the exercise to collapse and the horse to shift its weight onto the outside shoulder. In that case, bring the hindquarters back to two tracks and start again. Record your observations in the horse profile in EquiSight so you can compare patterns across multiple training sessions.

Four-week training plan

• Week 1: shoulder-in in walk, short series of 6–8 strides on the long side
• Week 2: shoulder-in in trot, introduce travers in walk
• Week 3: both exercises in trot, alternating on the long side and on the circle
• Week 4: travers in trot, combine with renvers or half-pirouette as a reward
• In between: use the EquiSight calendar to plan training sessions and build in rest days

Using EquiCoach for lateral movements

Not sure whether your aids are correct or wondering why your horse keeps leaning on the outside shoulder? Ask EquiCoach in the app. The intelligence analyses the context of your horse profile — training history, age, level — and provides concrete suggestions, such as a specific preparatory exercise or an adjustment to your seat. That way you always have a sounding board, even when your trainer is not there.