Why Riders Need Smarter Glutes — Not Stronger Ones

If you’ve been in my classes or webinars, you’ve probably heard me say it more than once:

Your pelvis is the center of your seat.

It holds your weight, transmits your feel, and moves with your horse in every gait.

That means the seat bones, sacrum, and lower spine aren’t just anatomical details —

they’re communication points.

When they’re mobile and awake, your seat becomes:

• Clearer

• Softer

• Easier for your horse to follow

So yes, the pelvis matters deeply.

But here’s the part we often forget:

Bones can’t do the job alone.

They need the support of muscles to move freely and function well —

especially when we ride.

The right muscular coordination gives your pelvis the ability to balance, absorb, and respond —

and that’s where your glutes come in.

Glutes: Not Just Power Muscles (and Definitely Not Just for Squats)

In fitness culture, glutes are often trained for strength or shape —

heavy squats, bridges, lunges, max effort.

But for riders, that approach can actually backfire.

When we over-train the glutes for force, they often become:

• Too tight to allow free pelvic motion

• Too dominant compared to smaller stabilizers

• Disconnected from breath and coordination

Riding isn’t about maximum force — it’s about minimum interference.

Your glutes shouldn’t clamp down on the pelvis.

They should support it with elasticity and awareness.

In the saddle, your glutes have a different job:

To stabilize without stiffness, and to allow movement without collapse.

They are part of the support and coordination system that helps:

• Keep the pelvis balanced through changes of gait

• Absorb motion from the horse’s back

• Connect the sacrum, spine, and legs

• Offer tone, not tension — stability, not stiffness

They’re not there to push the horse.

They’re there to hold space — to allow freedom around the pelvis, not rigidity through it.

What Happens When Glutes Aren’t Doing Their Job?

In my work with riders (and in my own journey), I see two patterns over and over:

1. Tight glutes

• Create a rigid pelvis that can’t move with the horse

• Lock the sacroiliac joint

• Reduce spinal mobility

• Lead to hip compression and low back tension

2. Lazy or “checked-out” glutes

• Dump work into the hamstrings and piriformis

• Increase risk of sciatic-type symptoms

• Reduce stability, especially in transitions

• Leave your seat feeling vague or “off”

Either way, when glutes aren’t coordinated, your body finds compensation strategies.

And those compensations affect everything — from your balance, to your breath, to how clearly your horse can read you.

Glutes That Listen and Support

You don’t need your glutes to work harder —

you need them to listen, respond, and coordinate with the rest of your seat.

Instead of “activating” your glutes like you would in a squat,

think of them as part of a quiet support team —

offering tone, not tension.

They stabilize the back of the pelvis, absorb motion from below,

and allow the spine to respond freely — without gripping or collapsing.

And here’s a simple but powerful place to start:

As you ride, notice the exact moments your glutes begin to grip, clench, or tighten.

Awareness is the first aid.

Instead of fighting the tension, breathe, soften, and try the same movement again.

You’ll feel immediately how awareness + breath create more freedom than any amount of effort ever could.

This isn’t about strength — it’s about coordination.

Your glutes should feel present, not clenched.

Supportive, not sticky.

Alive, not asleep.

When you understand how your glutes really work in the saddle,

you stop chasing stability through tension —

and start riding with a seat that feels grounded, available, and alive.

Let this be your invitation to listen deeper, move softer,

and ride from a place of connection.

With love and awareness,

Ale