Now that you’ve done the wither rock (see last post), try the wither lift to help your horse open the joint spaces of the back and ribs, relax the back muscles, and engage the belly and shoulder sling muscles. Feel in the girth area for a slightly hollow spot. That’s the end of your horse’s sternum, or breast bone. Scratch/tickle your horse there while looking up at the withers and expecting to see them rise. Some horses will lift more than others. If yours doesn’t lift well yet, it can improve with this exercise and other bodywork. It’s often possible to get noticeable improvements by simply repeating the wither rock, wither lift combination a few times.
Posts Tagged ‘ribs’
Wither Lift (easier after the Wither Rock!)
Posted in Anatomy, Coaching Tips, tagged Back, ribs, sternum, wither lift, withers on March 10, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Rib technique and anatomy (first YouTube video!)
Posted in Anatomy, Coaching Tips, Video, tagged equine anatomy, ribs, Video on February 17, 2010| Leave a Comment »
If you haven’t already seen this video through the All About Animal Massage site or newsletter, here’s a link to a video taken from an equine massage class I taught, which shows a technique for helping your horse’s ribs, breath, and back (so therefore everything really :)) It also includes some discussion of the anatomy behind it, which is how I teach all the techniques and anatomy in The Horse Lover’s Guide to Massage: What Your Horse Wants You to Know. That is, I like to teach them in chunks together, so they enhance each other through the connections.
All About Equine Massage 