Lesson 7/26/11

About a month ago, when we were deciding on whether or not I wanted to have a lesson on the same day I would be at camp, my answer had been "Duh!" But as my lesson approached, all I could think was "What was I thinking??" I was really tired from camp and I was running out of water. But I still did want to have my lesson, even though I was already beat. But I can't say the lesson started out too good. When I went to get Annie in her shed, I got stung by two wasps, and once I got Annie on the crossties in the barn, she was even grumpier than she was earlier that day. I guess by that point she was sick of being ridden and wanted a longer break. Also, I kept messing things up that I normally don't, like putting on the girth backwards. My mind was kind of somewhere else then.

Anyway, once I got up to the ring with no more major issues, I got on Annie and we started our warm-up. We talked about half halts again and I practiced those, and then I did some figure-eights at the trot. After that I told my instructor I wanted to work on getting Annie to do a right lead canter, which we worked at for a while, and which I eventually got (yay!) Then I worked on turning from my seat, so I had to loosen my reins all the way and try to get Annie to turn without using them. That was not easy, and I found out my seat bones don't stay balanced when I try to turn from my seat. I was told I should practice from a chair to help me get the feel of it, which I will try to remember to do.

I guess I was pretty glad when the lesson was over. It's not that I didn't enjoy it or anything, it's just that I was tired of using my seat to turn, mentally and physically. I'm hoping next week I will be more focused and energetic at my lesson, which I should be. Right then I just needed to go home, get some water, and take an ice cold shower (which is just what I did). And thank goodness for my mom, who brought me some chocolate and a bottle of ice cold water when she picked me up. Even after my shower though, my whole legs ached and I went to bed extra early because I was so tired. It's a good thing too, because I had to get up at 8 again for another full day of camp. I will blog about my second day at camp after I finish this post, so look for that later!