Instructions
Saddle up your horse and warm it up appropriately to loosen muscles. Practice maintaining steady speeds while working your horse at a trot and canter. Work on both a straight line and in circles.
Count your strides in between fence posts, cones or obstacles to make sure your horse is maintaining even strides. Slow your horse down or speed it up as necessary to regulate your pace. You can slow your horse down slightly by using half-halts, which are a brief check of the reins and seat to give the horse a slight pause between strides. Speed the horse up with a gentle kick or tap with a riding crop.
Introduce trotting poles. Trotting poles are used to encourage your horse to maintain a steady pace and even stride. Place them one to two strides (or further for variety as you improve) apart in a straight line or a circle formation. If your horse does not maintain its strides, you will know because it will have an awkward time getting over the poles/avoiding stepping on them. Practice with poles until you and your horse are able to travel across them without breaking stride or changing speeds.
Practice speed regulation and stride regulation as a part of your riding routine until it becomes habit and you no longer have to think about it. Practice encouraging your horse to extend and shorten its strides and to adjust its pace. The ability to control your horse's speeds comes with experience.
How to Get an Even Amount of Strides When Riding Horses
Getting a horse to maintain an even number of strides between obstacles such as jumps, trotting poles and cavelleti requires the rider to be able to maintain and adjust the horse's speed as necessary. Even strides are necessary to position a horse properly for a jump or to make a riding pattern flow smoothly in a Western riding event. Sloppy steps and uneven speeds are typically seen when a green horse or an inexperienced rider are attempting more complicated work and riding tasks.