Dressage Movements Revealed: Biomechanical Concepts and Bodywork—Using the Masterson Method, by Jim Masterson with Susan Harris, Betsy Steiner & Coralie Hughes.

The creator of the Masterson Method™ presents an instructional two DVD set that addresses the unique expectations and demands put on the horse’s physiology while moving up through the different levels and movements of dressage.

Here you discover what goes on with the horse’s body during dressage training, enabling riders and trainers to recognize when a horse may be developing physiological issues. Specific Masterson Method bodywork techniques are shared to help riders meet the unique demands on the dressage horse. A horse painted with skeleton and muscles by renowned author and artist Susan Harris (creator of the first “painted horse” Anatomy in Motion DVDs released in 2005), performs upper level dressage movements that exhibit extension, collection, bending, and lateral movement.

Dressage rider and trainer Betsy Steiner helps demonstrate how it feels when muscle tension or lost range of motion make it difficult for an otherwise trained horse to execute the movements required of upper level dressage performers.

Jim Masterson, the official Equine Massage Therapist for the 2006 and 2008 and 2010 USET Endurance Teams, and for equine clientele competing in FEI World Cup, Pan American and World Games competitions, developed a system in which the horse participates in the bodywork process by showing the practitioner where tension has accumulated, precisely how much pressure is needed to release it, and when it has been released. The result is an effective method of bodywork that anyone can learn to use to improve performance while at the same time opening new levels of communication and trust with the horse. Jim is the author of the bestselling book Beyond Horse Massage and the DVD of the same name. He teaches Masterson Method seminars and advanced courses to horse owners, trainers and therapists worldwide (mastersonmethod.com).

2 DVDs, total run time 175 mins.