Mary Mahler Dressage

04/14/2026

Delilah borrowing her friend Chloe’s tiara 😂😍

04/03/2026

 I spend about 50% of every ride in the walk, and it has been a real game changer😊

Why so much walk?

…says another insecure voice in my head second guessing what others are thinking of my horse training 🤪.

But seriously, why are you still in walk 20 minutes after getting on?

Because in French classical training, the walk isn’t the warm-up before the real work; the walk often is the real work.

One of the biggest mindset shifts for me was realising that rushing into trot and canter was often my way of skipping over the boring but essential stuff: balance, looseness, straightness, genuine connection… all the things I later complained about not having.

The walk is where we develop those ingredients without the added chaos of speed or suspension. I’m not saying you should stay in walk; it’s vital to keep a horse eager to move forward, and some horses absolutely need to go before they can think. But once the desire to go is there, walk is where we can install the alphabet of aids and build balance before expecting the same clarity in trot and canter.

So we spend time in walk because:

✅ It gives you and your horse thinking time.

More time to think means more precision, and more precision means faster learning for both of you.

✅ You can fix crookedness before it becomes a habit.

If the shoulders are falling left at walk, they will launch left in trot.

✅ Walk is the only gait where each limb steps independently.

Because walk is a clear four beat rhythm with each leg landing separately, it is the easiest pace to isolate a single limb, influence it, and coordinate it with the rest of the body.

✅ Relaxation and balance come first.

A horse who isn’t mentally or physically balanced at walk won’t magically be balanced in canter. (Ask me how I know.)

And guess what: when you finally ask for trot or canter after all that patient, technical walk work, the trot and canter are magically improved. That is why we do it.

So if your friend peers over the arena fence wondering why you’re still walking in circles, smile politely. You’re not wasting time; you’re building foundations that will make your tower of training so much stronger.

02/28/2026

I’m so proud of Miss Annie and 11 year old Ari! Just their second ride together and really getting a good feel for each other 🩷

01/28/2026

I call this the horsey version of thumb wrestling 😛

01/28/2026

Prior to the storm, these two were never out together as they are both dominant types, but they have found a friendly way of playing a game of world dominance😝

01/16/2026

My little beefcake 😍

08/09/2025

So proud of the Chromey pony with his first outing in well over a year. Only showed one day for this one, but so grateful to the DDC and all the volunteers who make Lemonade Daze such a pleasant show, even with the Texas heat 🔥

07/13/2025

It’s been a minute since I’ve had an OTTB to train, and an even longer minute since riding in a jumping saddle multiple times a week 🤣 But I sure am going to miss this very special guy, one of the nicest TBs I’ve come across (thank you Kristina Hobbs!)Thank you to Barbara Webster for trusting my process to help you and Ollie get started on your journey❤️Now off to the hill country!

03/13/2025

This is a great testimony from one of my favorite comedians 😀

#1 Catholic Prayer and Meditation App

03/12/2025

03/10/2025

Hey friends, you may have seen the handful of instructional type videos I’ve posted on my Mary Mahler Dressage page recently. I also have a Y😊uT🤘be by the same name where I have a lot more, most under three minutes, of lesson, riding and other snippets that I’m hoping can give riders a little something valuable to take to their horses. If that sounds intriguing😀, head over there and subscribe. I post several each week and will continue to put some up on Facebook, but they’re more easily accessed and organized over there😊