The dressage mindset
- nicolejtough
- Apr 7
- 4 min read
A positive and resilient mindset is crucial to success in sport, and dressage is no exception. As NICOLE TOUGH explains, mindset can make or break an athlete. - As seen in Equest Hub Magazine
Success in dressage requires a love of horses and a positive and resilient mindset, which is vital for maintaining motivation and overcoming the challenges that come with the sport. It’s a mindset that includes perseverance, self-belief, attentional control, quality preparation and being involved for the right reasons.
Crucial to this mindset is the understanding that we are in it for the long haul - nothing happens overnight, or even in a few months. Dressage sport training is about physically conditioning and suppling a body of muscles in our horses. We can’t ride once or twice a week, once a month, or for a few weeks in the summer to develop these muscles, because we lose what we gained while not training. Neither the horse nor the rider will be posturally strong, supple, or fit enough to do the work, or to evolve and improve.
It is perseverance that leads to success. That dogged commitment to do what has to be done, when it has to be done, and as well as it can be done every time we do it. All it takes to be proficient in dressage is discipline, proper preparation, focusing and practise – and the best thing is that we alone are responsible for our own proficiency. If we can accept that, we can be winners, and by winning, I’m not referring to blue ribbons.
‘Taking on a challenge is a lot like riding a horse … If you’re comfortable while doing it, you’re probably doing it wrong’ – this classic line from Ted Lasso sums up dressage nicely: if it’s easy, we’re probably doing it wrong. And wishing it was easier will get us nowhere! Instead, in the words of Jim Rohn, “don’t wish it was easier, wish you were better.”
Getting better is completely within our control. We can study the rule book, the tests, and their directives. We can know the letters and dimensions of the arena, read articles and text books, take lessons, attend masterclasses, and watch other riders’ lessons. Dressage is a sport of development that takes years to improve and a lifetime to master, so if we want to get better, we should never miss an opportunity to learn.
Key to a positive mindset is what it is that fosters our motivation to train. Motivation can come from external or internal sources, or a balance of both. The human need for external validation can fuel our motivation through competitions, trophies/awards, feedback from judges and coaches, the scores we achieve, prize money, titles, social media compliments and so on. While all these external factors can confirm if we’re moving in the right direction, problems arise when there are no competitions to train for, or our performances fail to meet expectations.
The truth is, rosettes and who we compete against don’t matter. It is healthier to put personal improvement above competing for accolades, which can easily lead to being daunted by circumstances that are out of our control.
Riders perform better and cope better with failure if they are self-motivated to train, so that instead of feeling frustrated or deflated, their mental dialogue allows them to recognise that they did the best they could and there is always a next time.
A few tips to help develop a healthy mindset;
Surround yourself with positive people who want the best for you.
Set goals that are internally motivated.
Chose a reward for yourself for when you reach your goal.
Review feedback: read your test sheets and the judges’ comments (even if it hurts), and if you disagree, ask yourself why it might have looked that way to the judges
Let go of judgement: riding in balance, on the hind leg, in self carriage and with an open throat is really, really hard. If we could all do it, we would! But in the meantime, we keep training and trying to improve.
Find a coach who tells you the truth, adds to your toolbox, and helps you form building blocks to fall back on when needed.
Turn your losses into learning opportunities, gaining strength and knowledge from mistakes.
Success isn’t measured by ribbons and trophies. It is about being better than you were yesterday, and that comes from planning, preparation, discipline, effort, persistence and patience. There is no elevator to success, we all have to take the stairs - all the while keeping in mind author Paulo Coelho’s words: “The highest reward for our hard work, is not what we get for it; but what we become by it.”
Bình luận