Dressage Life with JJ Tate

Meet JJ's fabulous sports psychologist, Annette Paterakis! In this podcast, JJ and Annette give us a look into her Master Your Mind program and how the ongoing process of self-development is just as important as training and caring for yourself physically. Improve your riding AND your life!

A treat for the philosophical dressage riders out there! Learn why you shouldn't believe everything you think, and how Hegel's Dialectics can help you ride like Charlotte Dujardin.  

This episode has been digitally remastered and edited from the original version that was published on July 26, 2022.

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A common problem, JJ offers some new insights on why it happens, and how to fix it.

Drop your whip and spurs and take a closer look at why your horse may be "lazy" and how you can make some changes that will make "behind the leg" a problem you used to have! Want more JJ? Check out her online community, Team Tate TV, a private Facebook group of inspired & supportive dressage lovers just like you. If you’re on Facebook we welcome you to join the conversation there.

This week, JJ brings to the podcast her dear friend and creator of what she calls her "soulmate of saddles," Debbie Witty.

Debbie has an extensive background in driving and riding and also spent 10 years as a research assistant evaluating equine biomechanics at Cornell Veterinary College.

A certified saddle fitter with the Society of Master Saddlers, Debbie generously shares her expertise with us, including things we should consider when fitting the horse and the rider, as well as when NOT to purchase a new saddle.

You can learn more about Trilogy Saddles at https://performancesaddlery.com/

To speak with Debby, call her office at 561-469-2367

Want more JJ? Check out her online community, Team Tate TV, a private Facebook group of inspired & supportive dressage lovers just like you. If you’re on Facebook we welcome you to join the conversation there.

Today, JJ brings us 2 very interesting and inspiring people: Jan Byyny and Laura Crump Anderson.

Jan is well-known in the eventing world and her story of returning to top-level sport after what could have been a catastrophic fall is incredibly inspiring.

Jan is joined by Laura Crump Anderson, a fitness trainer and author of the Ultimate Exercise Routines for Riders: Fitness that Fits a Horse-Crazy Lifestyle.

This week, JJ shares a lecture she did recently while teaching a clinic at Daisy Lane Farm in Maryland. The concept of taming, teaching and training, is just as much about the rider as it is the horse. As usual, JJ gives us a lot to think about and reminds us that if you follow the science of riding and keep chopping the wood, you never know where ANY horse will top out - it might just be the Grand Prix!

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She's BAAACK! JJ returns to Germany with a few horses in tow, and takes her up-and-coming superstar, Denali, to his first show in Germany.

With Olympians in the warmup and well-known riders in her class, JJ fills us in on how it went (spoiler alert, she got a ribbon!) and reflects on just how far Denali has come, reminding us that even when it feels like you'll never get there, just keep chopping the wood. The day will come when you look back and realize that you made it through to the other side!

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In this podcast, JJ does a quick check-in with Jillian Kreinbring, equine functional anatomist, who is currently hosting Manolo Mendez at her Se Raeda Ranch in Boerne, Texas, for an entire month.

Jillian and JJ discuss how Jillian's work with functional anatomy proves that classical masters Manolo Mendez and Charles de Kunffy, truly serve the horse with training principles and techniques that work with the horse's body and mind.

Getting your horse "on the aids" is one of the most important aspects of riding. Not only do we want them "with us" when we're schooling or showing, we really need them when we have a potentially scary situation such as a show or clinic, or even out on the trails!

In this week's podcast, JJ shares with us her methods for keeping everyone safe and how using the right exercises and approach at home will help you learn to stay focused and help your horse when things get a little dicey.

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In this encore episode from July 2022, JJ interviews one of the USA's FEI Dressage World Cup riders, Anna Buffini.

Get to know Anna as she chats with JJ about her recent successes, the tough road to get there, how she balances life, and her take on coping with the pressures of top-level competition.

It would be fair to say that the majority of dressage horses at the top of the sport have European bloodlines. This is not an accident and did not happen overnight.

In this episode, JJ talks with Wilken Treu, General Manager of the Hanoverian Verband in Hanover, Germany.

You’ll learn about the 100-plus-year history of the Hanoverian horse and the rigorous testing that stallions AND mares must go through before they are approved for breeding.

The Hanoverian Verband takes a long view of improving the breed with careful planning and forethought. Excellence is not because of luck!

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Every day we have the opportunity to make choices for ourselves and our horses.  We need to always honor our horses for who they are and how they are made. While there is no such thing as perfect, we must always strive to become the next best version of ourselves, and the same goes for our horses. Water doesn’t make a hole in a stone by power, but by persistence.  The perception of perfection is about slowly getting better every day.

In this episode, JJ integrates what she has learned about influencing the horse more effectively by doing less, which is possible with a more correct and balanced body position while in motion. 

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JJ isn't afraid to say it: "Rehab Sucks!" Anyone who has been through a long agonizing process of diagnosing and rehabbing their beloved horse knows the process is fraught with challenges, heartache, and second-guessing every decision. In this episode, JJ shares some of her experience, advice, and stories about rehabilitating horse injuries. 

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The goal of perfect balance in motion is unattainable... but the study of balance can offer you as a rider so many deep and profound lessons. In this episode, JJ integrates for us fifteen thoughts about balance from many of her trainers and mentors.  

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Some things are too good to listen to only once! Please enjoy this encore episode from March 12, 2021. 

JJ sits down with dressage superstar, Steffen Peters, for a deep conversation on who he is as a person, how he balances the challenges of competing, training, and life, along with his views on compassion, being present, dealing with self-doubt and anxiety and simply being a good human. Pour yourself a cup of tea and join JJ and Steffen for this deeply inspiring conversation that’s guaranteed to put a smile on your face. 

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Have you ever wanted to pick up your whole life and move to Germany and train with some of the world's top riders? That's just what dressage rider JJ Tate has been doing, and in this episode, she takes us along on her whirlwind adventure of the last few months. It has been a much bigger adventure than she ever could have imagined....  

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"On the Bit" is one of those terms that can seem incredibly basic... but the more you learn, the deeper your understanding becomes!

JJ likes to joke that while she is studying in Germany, she has been learning how to sit and how to put her horse on the bit. As an international Grand Prix Trainer, she might have *a little* more insight into this concept than the rest of us, but her point is that you are NEVER done learning what it is to put your horse on the bit. Bonus: JJ gives us her one-year post Breast Cancer diagnosis update, and a little glimpse into her life riding and working in Germany.

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This episode was originally featured on September 15, 2022 in JJ’s online community, Team Tate TV a private Facebook group of inspired & supportive dressage lovers just like you. If you’re on Facebook we welcome you to join the conversation there.

Have you ever had a health crisis suddenly disrupt your riding, your career, your whole... life?  

"A month ago, my two biggest things were going to be taking Romeo to the developing Prix St George Championships and teaching Denali flying changes, but then cancer came knocking at my door, and it's a door you have to answer, even when you don't want to."    

One week post double masectomy and reconstructive surgery, JJ candidly shares her experience being diagnosed with breast cancer and her recovery. She urges everyone to know their body, and be careful of the "NQRs" -- the Not Quite Rights.   

True to JJ's irrepressible teacher's spirit, her focus moves on from her recovery to dressage, encouraging her riders showing at Lamplight, and sharing her most important advice for riders competing young horses, especially at a large venue.   

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If having children is part of your path, you can definitely have your kids and horses, too! 

JJ interviews Laura Burkett, a successful Grand Prix dressage rider and trainer who just had her second son. Laura shares her struggles, joys, and the surprising benefits of balancing motherhood with her career with horses.

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"You win or lose in the warm-up." 

JJ uses her Grand Prix warm-up on Derby at Nationals under adverse weather conditions as an example of how her thoughtful warm-up routine doesn't change "because I have my shiny boots on!"

Whether you are a competitor or your goal is simply many years of sound and enjoyable riding, EVERY warm-up should include: 1 - lengthening and shortening your horses FRAME, 2 - lengthening and shortening your horse's STRIDE, 3 - BENDING and GOING STRAIGHT. 

Learn tips for preparing your horse physically and mentally for work and addressing the needs and weaknesses of YOUR horse as a unique individual through a warm-up routine you can take anywhere.

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"You're up there by two graces. The grace of God, and the grace of that horse. And if either one of them wants you off, you're OFF."   

Nicknamed "The Kid Pro" at her barn, talented sixteen year old JJ thought she could REALLY ride... until she got her fancy black warmblood Ehrenpreis! Ehrenpreis served her the lessons she needed about respect, patience, and the three evasions with a heaping side of humility. 

As JJ grew as a rider and horseman, he rewarded her with success up the levels and opportunities to study with top dressage riders in Europe.   

But Ehrenpreis delivered his most powerful lesson in Budapest in a frightening incident that almost took his life and changed JJ forever.  This episode will have you on the edge of your seat as you relive JJ's lessons learned from Ehrenpreis, the "textbook on four legs."  

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How do you know whether you should push through challenges with your horse to become a better rider or sell him and move on? In this episode, JJ discusses her criteria for making this difficult decision. She approaches the taboo subject of rider fear with both compassion and pragmatism, and encourages you to trust your trainer to help you decide when your emotions cloud your decision. Just like dating, your frog might be someone else's prince or princess. Life is too short to hold onto a horse you don't LOVE to ride! 

"You really need to find a horse you have a spiritual connection with. There are some horses that bring you to a centered place, and that is like therapy."   

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A treat for the philosophical dressage riders out there... JJ gets deep, sharing lessons from sports psychologist Dr. Jenny Susser and classical dressage master Charles DeKunffy. Learn why you shouldn't believe everything you think, and how Hegel's Dialectics can help you ride like Charlotte Dujardin.  

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"What does an ice cream scoop, elf ears, and double-dutch jump rope have to do with dressage? In this episode, JJ shares some aha moments from her lessons with Susanne von Dietze-Pollack. 

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This episode was originally featured on February 24, 2022 in JJ’s online community, Team Tate TV a private Facebook group of inspired & supportive dressage lovers just like you. If you’re on Facebook we welcome you to join the conversation there.

The three phases of training include:

1. The restorative phase

2. The therapeutic phase

3. Amplification of the gaits

The horse moves through each phase during the course of its ridden life, but also in each training session. Learn more about each phase in this episode.

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This episode was originally featured on September 22, 2021, in JJ’s online community, Team Tate TV a private Facebook group of inspired & supportive dressage lovers just like you. If you’re on Facebook we welcome you to join the conversation there.

In this episode, JJ sits down with equestrian biomechanics expert Susanne von Dietze to discuss The Rider's Process

The horse world has a laser focus on how to improve the horse and what THEY must do but not enough has been taught about the rider’s role. At the start of her career, Susanne von Dietze observed a missing link in equestrian sport and was able to channel her background in physical therapy to fill this obvious gap. In this interview, she sits down with JJ to discuss the importance of the rider's process and role in the dynamic partnership between horse and rider. Hear from Susanne about how people learn the skills of body mastery and what that actually means.

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Progress isn't possible if you never open up that can of worms! The way forward is to examine the challenges, get help when needed, and imagine what's truly possible. When your horse understands, the movements can become joyful!

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This episode was originally featured on November 3, 2021, in JJ’s online community, Team Tate TV a private Facebook group of inspired & supportive dressage lovers just like you. If you’re on Facebook we welcome you to join the conversation there.

Riding without Stirrups is a wonderful practice to enhance your skill as a rider, but it's not just as simple as dropping your irons. JJ helps you understand what goes into the skill and understanding of how to do so effectively and in a way that is horse friendly. 

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