Sorry for the lack of posts. It's been a busy couple weeks. I have a lot to catch up on here. My drafts folder is full of started posts, but still working on finishing them. I also have very little related media, so many of those posts are going to be a wall of text, sorry.
Speaking of media, I do have two videos that my mom took at the Chinook Country Show. The files seem to be somewhat corrupted so I can only watch a few seconds at a time before it freezes. Attempting to move it onto my computer has also not worked, any attempt to copy or upload it has so far failed. This might be a blessing in disguise though, as watching parts of the videos makes me wince. There seems to be a disconnect between what I've been feeling and what is actually happening. I knew we had things to work on, but things look substantially worse than I thought they were. There are moments of really obvious counterflexion and hollowness. And my position... I thought I had been improving, but I was shocked to see how much I was leaning forward, and how far forward my lower leg was swinging.
Part of me is wishing these videos didn't exist and I never had to see them. But, the smarter part of me knows that watching them is invaluable. It allows me to see where my problems are and help me to correct them.
Luckily, I've already done a few things since the show that I think are going to help me improve. I'll hopefully get those posts up soon.
I've read about the love-hate relationship that other bloggers have with video, and I totally get it. Here's hoping that the next time I see video of myself, I will be happier with what I see.
Do you have many videos of you riding? Do you love them or hate them?
I take a fair amount of video and I usually hate them. haha Especially the videos that I can't even hand-pick one decent screen grab from the whole ride!! But when I can't have a lesson, I need that visual feedback to realize all the stuff you mentioned above.
ReplyDeleteAh yes, the screen grab test is a good way to judge how bad a ride is haha
DeleteI rarely have photos or videos because I'm usually the only person riding. When I do get photos, I'm usually okay if they're jumping ones, because I feel like my position is basically okay. Flatting or dressage photos- oh, yikes! Like you, I can't wait them without wincing. I've found that looking at them, then waiting a week or two before revisiting is helpful. I feel like having a little time to process makes me feel less awful.
ReplyDeleteI'm the same in that I rarely get photos or video. I think that's what makes watching it even worse as I didn't know what to expect.
DeleteI will have to try the week to process thing.
I utilize video a lot. At first I would cringe because I thought we looked better than we did but now I have realistic expectations of what we look like and it has helped me to improve. I know we are far from perfect but I can see that we are moving in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good point that it's the change from video to video that is important. Unfortunately, this video looked worse than my last one! It was my first time riding in that facility though and Kachina had done some rodeo tricks on me that morning so I probably wasn't at my best. Tension ruins my position every time, something I really need to work on.
DeleteI HATE videos of myself riding. But it's such a good tool (as you said). I hope you buy some professional photos from your dressage shows, whenever I can afford to show I'm going to buy all the photos! :)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I'm not the only one!
DeleteI would LOVE professional photos! Unfortunately, there hasn't been a photographer at any of my shows so far this year. Sounds like there might be a photographer at the Cochrane show in August so I will buy all the photos then! Here's hoping we look a little better by that time ;)