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“You can not learn to ride better simply by riding more.
You must correct the
riders ability to move with the horses natural motion
to see real improvement in the performance.”
- Eckart
Meyners philosophy behind Balimo™
What does Balimo™ stand for?
Balance in Motion
Who is Eckart Meyners?
Eckart Meyners is co-founder of the Balimo™
program. He is a Professor of Sports Physiology and Body Movement, recently
retired from the University of Lüneburg in Germany. He
spent years researching movement and ways to improve athletic performance.
He has discovered numerous ways to improve body mobility and sustain a wider
range of motion.. His research and
techniques not only improve athletic performance, but support a healthier
body. These techniques, included in the Balimo™ Equestrian Training
Program, are easy to use and many can be incorporated into day to day activities.
(taken from the EES web site).
Who was Jill Hassler-Scoop? Jill Hassler-Scoop was the late
founder of EES (Equestrian Education Systems) and co-founder of the Balimo™ program along with Eckart
Meyners.
Who is Hannes Müller? Hannes
Müller is a Master Trainer and Judge in Germany, is currently the Director
and Chief Trainer of the German Academy for Professional Riders. The
academy is renowned for its intensive training program to prepare professional
trainers prior to their Bereiter and Pferdewirtschaftsmeister exams. Mr.
Müller is considered to be one of the best trainers in Germany.
It is his job to maintain the high standards and quality of riding that is
expected of all German professional trainers.
The Balimo™
program is honored to have Hannes Müller as one of it's main
faculty. Joan has benefited greatly from her riding sessions with Hannes,
both in the USA and Germany.
What is the Balimo™ Equestrian Training program
about?
The program uses uncomplicated exercises, (drawing from Feldenkrais,
Yoga, Brain Gym, Alexander Technique and more), which are straightforward
and fairly easy to carry out. The aim is to help balance riders’ musculatures
by stretching, relaxing and strengthening muscles. When a rider is more balanced,
relaxed and flexible, she can move more harmoniously with her horse. This
allows her to find her own correct, relaxed seat as she leaves behind a
fixed, tense, or strained position in the saddle.
Exercises
are performed on an exercise mat in the riding arena (rider unmounted),
some exercises use the Balimo™ Chair, which tilts freely in three directions,
other exercises are performed while on the horse. The Balimo™ chair is a
unique apparatus to teach riders to follow the movement of a horse and continuously
remain in balance.
How many observation hours are involved in the
Balimo™ program?
As a
graduate instructor of the Balimo™ program, Joan has spent
over 150 hours observing and interacting with Eckart Meyners, learning his
principles, techniques and exercises.
What are some of Eckart Meyner's principles?
- A rider must be an athlete
- there is a need for BALANCE before all else is
achieved
- riding is about movement and motion
- it is necessary to develop a feeling rider, as well as
harmony between horse and rider
- it is through the sensitive seat that true communication
between horse and rider happens, allowing harmony
- to achieve harmony, the rider must first uncover her
own strengths and weaknesses and then design an exercise program that will
balance her own muscles and muscle groups
- Eckart Meyners' 6 Point Program is the foundation of
exercises designed for riders to develop their athletic needs related to
balanced muscles
Learn more about Eckart Meyner's principles
and Balimo™ at Pleasant Bay Stable.
We offer private riding lessons, incorporating
Balimo™ exercises.
We offer unmounted Balimo™ sessions, where you learn various
exercises intended to help access more freedom for your riding.
We offer Balimo™ Clinics.
Can
you describe a Balimo™ Clinic?
There is a theory lecture on the first evening introducing the principles
of Eckart Meyner’s work so that everyone will have a foundation for what
they will observe over the next few days. They also discuss the importance
of a warm-up for the rider so that everyone is prepared for participating
in the exercise class. This is typically held on the Friday evening.
There is an exercise class on Saturday morning and lessons on Saturday
afternoon, focusing on taking the rider on and off the horse to do exercises.
On Sunday, the instructor incorporates the changes made the day before into
a more typical mounted session for each student and adds any final exercises
that they feel are important.
Everyone leaves with a taste of the Balimo™ program and hopefully a newly
found body awareness and specific exercises to address weaknesses or blockages.
Does the Balimo™ Seat Clinic always have to
be three days?
Absolutely not! We can offer it in a one day format, everything
just gets compressed! The advantage to the longer format is that the
rider really gets a chance to establish some new 'muscle memory' and that
enables her to really own the new change, rather than just experiencing it
one time.
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