Why Walk Works!

It may seem surprising to think of walk work as a way to improve your horse’s way of going. Walk is often seen as rest time, with serious schooling reserved for trot or canter. Some instructors even discourage extended periods of walking, mistakenly believing it could harm the gait.

However, my experience shows the opposite—connected walk can have profound and lasting benefits. Walk has incredible potential because, at this pace, horse and rider can deeply connect, allowing the rider to guide the horse’s posture and suggest healthier movement patterns. The goal is always to help the horse discover and choose a way of moving that feels good to them, ultimately leading to self-carriage and better posture. By deliberately working at a slower pace, the horse learns not to rely on forward momentum for balance but instead to hold themselves correctly with poise and self-carriage.

Walk work benefits all horses, enhancing their posture, straightness, and freedom of movement across all gaits. Horses with postural-related conditions can also show dramatic improvements through consistent walk work.

I’ve witnessed remarkable changes: sway-backed horses showing permanent improvement, horses naturally choosing to stand square, cow hocks straightening in just ten days, and upside-down necks developing a soft, arched shape.