“Going Sideway”.

The leg yield should be introduced before advancing toward collection and lateral movements. The leg yield is a movement in which the horse is kept almost straight, except for slight flexion of the poll away from the direction in which he moves, and the inside legs pass and cross in front of the outside legs. I will move the shoulders first with my inside rein and then the haunches with my outside leg. Leg yield is not a lateral movement, due to lack of bend, but it does prepare the horse for the true lateral movements.

The aids in the leg yield require communication between the inside aids and the outside aids. The inside leg asks the horse to yield to the side while the outside leg asks the horse to continue forward, maintaining straightness. The inside rein asks for slight flexion in the opposite direction of travel while the outside rein helps maintain straightness and tempo. To achieve this the rider should carry both hands slightly to the outside. The rider’s position should be balanced slightly over the inside hip with the shoulders square with the horse’s shoulders. The inside leg remains at the girth with the outside leg slightly behind the girth, to prevent the haunches from swinging too far to the side.