EP 17 // From Training Level to Prix St. Georges – How to Progress Step by Step in Dressage

🎙️ The Happy Rider Healthy Horse Podcast Episode: From Training Level to Prix St. Georges – How to Progress Step by Step in Dressage Episode Summary

Moving from Training Level to Prix St. Georges is one of the most exciting — and most challenging — transitions in a dressage rider’s journey.

In this episode, we explore what it really takes to progress step by step through the levels, with patience, understanding, and harmony as the guiding principles.

Your host shares her own personal story of bringing several horses successfully to Medium level, yet struggling to make that final leap to Prix St. Georges — and how, with time and reflection, she learned that the key wasn’t about pushing harder, but about slowing down and building stronger foundations.

Together, we’ll unpack the mindset, physical preparation, and exercises that help you and your horse develop the strength, balance, and confidence to move up the levels without losing the joy and flow of your partnership.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

💡 1. Why patience is your most powerful training tool – How rushing to the next level can hold you back in the long run. – Why allowing time for muscle memory, balance, and understanding leads to lasting progress.

💡 2. The importance of aligning your ambitions with your horse’s learning curve – How to recognize when your horse is ready for more — and when they need consolidation. – Building a partnership based on trust and timing, not pressure and deadlines.

💡 3. Key exercises to strengthen your horse’s body and mind – Canter-walk transitions two meters off the wall to improve collection and engagement. – Counter-canter with leg-yield for developing straightness, suppleness, and balance before flying changes. – Square canter exercises and transitions within the gait to build toward half pirouettes.

💡 4. How to prepare for flying changes and pirouettes the right way – What to master before you even ask for a change. – How to build the “pirouette canter” step by step without tension or resistance.

💡 5. The mindset of steady, joyful progress – Shifting your focus from achieving movements to achieving harmony. – Celebrating the small moments of connection that make big goals possible.

Key Quote from the Episode

“True, sustainable progress can only happen at a pace the horse can mentally and physically keep up with. It’s not about lowering your expectations — it’s about giving both yourself and your horse the time needed for the learning to settle into strength, balance, and trust.”

Your Homework for the Week

Pick one canter exercise — for example:

• Canter–walk transitions, or

• Counter-canter with leg-yields.

Work on making it smoother, more balanced, and more relaxed. Then reflect: 📝 What improved? 💭 What still needs work?

That small, mindful awareness is what builds long-term progress and connection.

If you loved this episode, please share it with a fellow rider or leave a review — it helps more riders find the podcast and build a happy, healthy partnership with their horses.