Upcoming Events

Science Of Motion IHTC International Conference

Saturday October 4, 2014 at 10:00 AM EDT -to- Sunday October 5, 2014 at 4:00 PM EDT

Please join us for our SOM IHTC International Conference. There will be numerous sessions where all the subjects treated in the IHTC will be explained live. Riding the horse, in hand, and how to teach it. Lunch will be served.

Science Of Motion farm

 

Aug 2, 2014 (Sat) - Aug 3, 2014 (Sun)  Location: CT

JLC clinic in CT 3 Shoddy Mill Rd. Bolton, CT 06043 phone  860.990.5163 Marianne Stowell  kismom2000@yahoo.com

Aug 9, 2014 (Sat) - Aug 10, 2014 (Sun)  Location: CO

Carbondale CO on August 9, 10.  560 Spring Park Ranch Road, Carbondale, CO  contact -  Andrea Datz:  ardatz@acsol.net 970-640-9880

We hope all are enjoyng the warm weather! it is nice to see green again and feel he warmth of ths sun as well as life renewing.

 We have a live interview tonight June 4th with Jean Luc hosted by Patrica Reszetylo.   Information in this newsletter hope you will be signing up (is free) . 

Our 2nd International Conference is now set for October 4th and 5th 2014 register via newsletter and on our site. We have limited seating so please be sure to book early to assure  your place. 

 

He was thinking, "Only Einstein can understand that," and Caesar, who was looking at us from his stall asked, "Why does he think that energy is hard to understand?"  I told him, because humans are not as sensitive to energy as we are. For us, energy is a natural way of communication. We have not rewired our brain with language, script and other ways of communication as human have done. Inherently, they probably can feel energy as well as we do. In fact, some are more sensitive to it, but overall, they have lost the sense in favor of other senses.

Prior to 2003, when they started to investigate the plasticity of muscles function, they believed that muscles shortened and lengthened to move bones. I remember a private conversation that he had with Karren Gelman. Her explanation opened new perspectives, The concept that muscle has concentric (shortening), isometric (stay same length) and eccentric (stretching) contractions is true.  But this refers to individual muscle fibers, not the muscle body which has specific fiber types, architecture and connective tissue components.  Concentric contraction tends to go along with the old style idea of a muscle: simple architecture, sarcomeres in series, long muscle fibers and few connective tissue insertions.  When a simple muscle like that contracts, it can actually shorten because each sarcomere along a long line in a long fiber is shortening, and is usually fast twitch fibers. This kind of muscle architecture and activity can generate power, the power needed to move a joint in locomotion when it is attached to a stiff tendon that can transmit the power.

Even though this is what everyone tends to think of as muscle 

function, it only makes up a fraction of what muscles do in the body. The most common muscle configuration for posture is a force-producing muscle.  This kind of muscle has short twitch fibers, which are oxidative and more economical to use. They are often referred to as fatigue-resistant.  In a force producing muscle, there are many complex connective tissue compartments, short fiber length and sarcomeres in parallel.   

Manchester commented, "They really believe that. He was the first human that I meet who did not try to increase my vertebral column range of motion.  Most of them even continue to believe that increasing the amplitude of our vertebral column movements will improve our gaits and performances. Very often, when a student is riding me, he concentrates the rider on controlling forces instead of making gestures. At first, I always have to protect my back from the student movements. Students come from many different schools of thought but there is a unity of errors, shifts of their body weight, excessive motion of the lumbar vertebrae, tension on their forearms and heavy contact on the bit. They all execute movements, legs movements, hands movements, back movements. Their gestures, which they refer to as 'rider aids,' are like formulas that I am supposed to know For me these gestures are associated in my mind with the memory of lameness. I have been submitted to this type of equitation and I have been lame for many years because of this type of equitation. When he explains that most students realise that they are entering a new world. Few resists referring to their education as 'classic.' I like when he quietly responds, "Well, General Decarpentry, author of the very classical 'Academic Equitation', wrote in reference to the hands,  "Hand movements diminish as dressage progresses to the point of giving an illusion of immobility." (Academic Equitation, J. A. Allen & CO LTD. 1971 p. 44)

 Lightness is a phenomenon that no student CLICK HERE TO READ ON

M anchester does have an inured right stifle. We did not restored soundness treating the joint, as not much more can be done. We restored soundness teaching him proper movement. We created, at the walk, trot and canter locomotor patterns reducing the stresses on both stifles. Jean Luc

In his BIOMECHANICS OF LAMENESS  IN HORSES  (1976) James Rooney stated that arthritis occurred in the cartilages before spreading in the bones. The pathologist based his belief on studies effectuated in the necropsy room, under the microscope and X-rays. Since, MRI and other technologies have demonstrated that at the contrary, damages occur in the subchondral bone before they spread in the cartilage. New discoveries questioning previous beliefs, is the fundamental of evolution; this true for scientific researches and also true for riding and training principles. In fact, while exposing the inaccuracy of some concepts, new findings further James Rooney's pertinent idea, which is that kinematics abnormalities create aberrant stresses which repeated over a period of time, cause injuries, "A major cause of lameness is lameness."

Investigating the gait abnormality creating the lesion, James Rooney pioneered the concept known as, "The gait lesion, gait principle. The gait abnormality created by a specific lesion is the gait abnormality that causes the lesion." Investigating the source of the kinematics abnormality causing the lesion, and developing riding and training techniques allowing correcting the root cause, the Science of Motion fills the missing link of all existing treatments and therapies. While it is necessary to understand the kinematics abnormalities causing the lesion, complete success of therapies and above all, prevention of the injury demands identifying and correcting the root cause of the kinematics abnormality. As long as the source of the abnormal stress is not addressed and corrected, the same aberrant stresses damage and re-damage the structure.  Basically, without a riding and training technique capable of correcting the root cause of the kinematics abnormalities, the benefits of treatments and therapies are altered as soon as the first stride.

"Patellofemoral osteo arthritis (knee for humans and stifle for equine,) is largely biomechanically mediated and it seems logical that the specific biomechanical factors that are disrupted in a particular individual need to be addressed when designing a treatment strategy."(Kathryn Mills, BPhty, PhD, and David J. Hunter, MBBS, MSc. PhD, FRACP. Patellofemoral joint osteoarthritis: An individual pathomechanical approach to management. 2014.) As knowledge evolves, the dependence on sound biomechanics is strongly emphasized and from his position on the horse's back, where all body movements are created, the rider is ultimately the one that can correct the root cause  and ensure proper functioning of the horse's physique.

The thought that the rider could be the horse's best therapy is foreign to veterinarians because actually, the situation is exactly the opposite; riding and training techniques are the main source of equine injuries. Riding and training techniques can teach the move but do not focus on preparing efficiently the horse's physique for the athletic demand of the move. As a result, horses perform out of their talent but with kinematics abnormalities limiting their potential and developing injuries.    

Understanding that lesions start in the bone before reaching the cartilage, is an evolution of knowledge as dramatic as the fact that the main function of the horse back muscles is not increasing the thoracolumbar spine's range of motion but instead, protecting the thoracolmbar column from movements exceeding its possible range of motion. We are trained to think stretching and relaxation when in fact, muscles tendons and ligaments are designed to resist excessive range of motion. Even at the level of the stifle, stability does not result from stretching but instead from resisting forces. "Patellofemoral joint integrity is maintained by an optimal interaction of passive, dynamic and structural restraints." The concept of restraint, which needs to be understood as protection and control, contradicts the principles of traditional equitation but is in fact more related to the functioning of the horse's physique than stretching and relaxation. A great part of equine locomotion is the outcome of elastic strain energy stored in tendons and aponeurosis and consequently, resistance of the correspondent muscles.

Static and dynamic are very different and data collected in static situation have to be interpreted with caution. Manipulations effectuated on human cadavers allow ranges of motion that are greater than in vivo situations. For instance, in respect of the knee, the influence of tibia and femur alignment as well as kinematics of patellofemoral mechanics has been well documented. Individuals suffering of patellofemoral pain syndrome exhibit significant increase of femoral internal rotation in knee extension and flexion. However, individual who landed from a jump in increased femoral internal rotation exhibited a rotation shy of the 20�-30� threshold required to increase joint contact in cadaver.  In relation to equine, James Rooney also observed damages created by increase of femoral internal rotation. "If stifle extension is carried on beyond about 143�-145�, there is a final lateral-to-medial twist, which rotates the patella medially and hooks the medial patellar ligament over the medial ridge of the femoral trochlea. The stifle is "locked" and flexion prevented."

During forward motion, the forward swing of the hind limb and consequently the pendular movement of the femur around the hip joint is coupled with a dorso-ventral rotation of the pelvic. Mikael Holmstr�m, who compared the gaits of Grand Prix level Swedish Warmblood with the gaits of average school horses, found that better horses exhibited greater dorso-ventral rotation of the pelvic. In the light of new knowledge, one would think that riding and training techniques would have evolved from the simplistic idea that larger spurs would stimulates greater engagement of the hind legs. The problem is that in response to intense leg actions of the riders, a horse might effectively increase the pendular motion of the femur around the hip joint. Without proportional dorso-ventral rotation of the pelvis, the horse's submission to the rider's legs jeopardizes the integrity of the horse's stifles.

The rider furthers or alters the benefits of treatment regiments and therapies. There is no neutral land. However, accepting the responsibility grants the inestimable ability of preventing injuries. Abnormal stresses stimulates the development of osteoarthritis but sound stress are used to maintain bone density and consequently to retard the development of osteoporosis. Classic authors have always professed the discretion and sobriety of the rider's aids. "Hand movements diminish as dressage progresses to the point of giving an illusion of immobility." (General Decarpentry, Academic Equitation, J. A. Allen & CO LTD. 1971 p. 44) The greatest have hinted, between the lines, another dimension, like if the study of the rider aids were only a teaching technique educating the rider body for a more subtle body language where gestures are replaced by nuances in muscle tone. The aids, (gestures,) are no longer the finality, (obedience to the rider aids.) The aids are simply descriptions of the coordination and nuances in muscles tone that became the rider's body language.

The work in hand practiced at the Science of Motion, suggests an even more sophisticated dimension. Muscles create energy and the ability of the horse to feel back muscles adjustments of the trainer walking by his side is more likely the perception of the energy created by the trainer's muscular work than the nuances in muscle tone itself. We have explored this dimension riding the horses and realize that this extraordinary level of subtlety was indeed, the horse real comfort zone. Compared with the way equestrian education is taught, these concepts appear out of reach. The next discovery has been that in fact many riders have the intuition to functions at this level of sophistication but their intuitive mind has been marred by riding and training techniques limiting them to the studious application of the correct aids.

The next discovery has been that in every field, the ones who have the intellectual curiosity of applying advanced scientific knowledge, have evolved in the same direction. Instead or knee surgery, great surgeons teach their patient how to walk. Therapists involved in such rehabilitation are thinking in terms of forces and energy. University professors involved in pertinent researches have studied why women and men ride differently. Pathologist who are also riders have studied in great details the damage that have lead horses into the necropsy room hoping that teaching their knowledge will allow riders to prevent injuries or when injury happens, became active artisan of the recovery. We have asked to the bests if they would come and speak at the Second Science of Motion's International Conferences and they have accepted.

Jean Luc Cornille

Speakers 

October 4th and 5th 2014 10 AM to 4 PM

Live explanations always bring a different dimension. During this 2nd International Conference, there will be numerous sessions where all the subjects treated in the IHTC will be explained live. Riding the horse, in hand, and how to teach it. Four voices will be part of the demonstrations, Betsy with her extensive knowledge and studies of equine physiology and also her personal riding and training experience, Michelle with her extensive knowledge on human physiology and her study on women and men vertebral column, Louis  Louis with his enormous experience and constant research on physical therapies' new techniques and his unequaled sene of humor. Jean Luc wearing a microphone while riding and working in hand, and the horse participating to the session.

Jean Luc Cornille M.A.(M.Phil) has gained worldwide recognition by applying practical science to the training of the equine athlete. Influenced by his background as a gymnast, Jean Luc deeply understands how equine training can be enhanced by contemporary scientific research. A unique combination of riding skill, training experience and extensive knowledge of the equine physiology enables Jean Luc to "translate" scientific insights into a language comprehensible to both horse and rider. This approach has been the trademark of his training.

Elizabeth W. Uhl, D.V.M., Ph.D., Dip ACVP- "So much information - how do I know what to believe?"

Michelle L Osborn, M.A., Ph.D.- "Why men and women do not ride the same way: Effects of the curved spine"

Louis Wild -B.A , Ma.Ed, LMT., CKTP, CESMT "Wheel Inside a Wheel and All the Wheels Go Around: IHTC Principles at the Micro Movement Level."

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER (Prices are listed once you start to register.You can click register just to view prices without signing up)

Manchester came back frustrated from his training session. He whispered pointing his nose toward his toe, "I was that close from finding the solution and he did not help me. He waited for me to figure." I told him that considering the size of his hoof, he was not that close, but he was all in his thoughts. "You don't know what it is to be lame for so long and feel that one more adjustment in my back and I would have been sound. I waited for him. He brought me that close, he could have provided the last insight but he did not." And why you were waiting for him? Manchester responded, "because I am a dumblood.I have been trained to obey, not to think." This is when I blew up. There are no dumbloods; only Warmbloods ridden by dumb riders.

I went for a drink of fresh water and, in my burst of anger; I blew air making bubbles. An amusing thought crossed my mind in French; "Je fais des bulles, come le pape, (I make bubbles like the Pope.) "Bulles" is the French word for bubbles. "Bulles" is also the name of official documents signed by the Pope. Empowered by my new position, I asked to Manchester, and why do you think that he did not provide the last insight?  "Because he wanted me to process it. I don't think that I can think at this level." And what are you going to do? "I am going to think about it". He did, and the next day, Manchester came back from his training session absolutely ecstatic. He was in the cross ties looking at me side way thinking, "Soundness is cool."

Most humans do like horses. They take riding lessons hoping that they will learn how to communicate with us. Most of them start with good intuitions, but their senses are neutered by the riding techniques. Instead of refining and furthering their intuitions, training techniques teach gestures and formulas that we are supposed to know and understand. For many, their equitation never goes beyond the studious application of correct aids. Like you did when you arrived, they don't think that they can functions, both physically and intellectually, beyond gestures. They talk biomechanics but they don't realize that the true definition of biomechanics is, "interaction of forces and consequent actions." They are brainwashed by dressage formulas and rigid orders such as the training pyramid, losing confidence in their inherent senses. The equestrian education creates riders depending on systems and horses depending on injections and therapies.

 

Systems and rider's aids fail preparing us for the athletic demand of the performances because they submit us to stereotypes instead of guiding our brain and therefore our body toward the coordination correcting our defects, considering our morphological flaws and preparing our physique for the athletic demand of the performances. They know how the movements look like but they don't have advanced understanding of our physique as well as physics. They do gestures and we deal with forces. And when we have difficulties with the way forces interact within our physique, they consider our difficulties in function of what should be our theoretical response to their gestures, (aids). When he did not provide the last insight because he believed that you were mentally capable to process the right coordination, he acted as a real teacher. Instead of flatting his ego showing that he was capable of making you do it. He acted as a supportive actor whom real task is making the star shine and you shined the next day. You shined because he challenged your intelligence and your intelligence and courage lead you the victory of soundness.

In lieu of using more therapies, he taught you the mastery of balance, which is the mastery of your whole physique. This is in fact what skilled therapists do. You are handicapped by the damages of your left CLICK HERE TO READ ON

We were watching in complete silence. The scene outside of the barn scared us. Going back home from a lesson, the horse refused loading the trailer and the pressure escalated. They were shaking the lunge of the rope halter making the horse back up a few steps and then the other person was behind the horse shaking what looks like a dressage whip but thicker with a plastic bag attached at the end making the horse move forward. At first, I looked at the plastic bag thinking that it was a new technique for flying carrots. Often he comes in the barn with a plastic bag in his hands but the bag is full of carrots. This one was empty and Caesar explained. This is supposed to be a loading technique. They make you walk back and forth many times, they make you spin and back again, hoping that you will be so confused, or disoriented, or submitted, that you would rather load the trailer. They tried this type of rope halter with me and I hated it. These things are made of fine rope and when they pull on the lunge the halter gives the feeling of cutting into your poll. There are also two knots on the front part that put pressure on our facial nerves. I removed it in two minutes rubbing my head against my leg. Once I got rid of this junk, I was ready to load the trailer by myself just to give them a lesson, but these pretenders are so pretentious that they would have believed that I learned my lesson. I just walked back in my stall. Amazingly they tried a second time punishing me by shaking the lunge of this rope thing into my face. Now I was annoyed and I charged them throwing my front legs in their direction. They run away dropping the lunge and I removed the halter a second time. This time I stood in the corridor with my feet on their rope thing. They looked at me disconcerted. I did not fit their behavior theories. I was not supposed to react like that. They did not question the coherence of their behavior; they decided that my behavior was out of the norms. While they were arguing that I was too thick for their subtle training, I turned back into my stall deciding that they were to dumb for me.

The loading session or more exactly the non-loading session continued outside. After several back and fore and back and fore, shaking the lunge of the rope halter into the horse face and shaking the plastic bag behind him, they walked toward the trailer and of course the horse refused loading. The horse brain was overly saturated, rapid oxygen flaw, heat, chaotic succession of senseless stimulus had totally short circuited both hemispheres of his brain. For the horse, it was no longer about the trailer but about surviving by refusing everything. I was thinking, even if this poor horse finally load into the trailer he will not remember the event or the reason. His brain is no longer capable to register anything and never the less memorize a lesson.

I was very angry. This reminded me the absurdities of the race track training. When I was into this world of abuses I believed that it was the norm. Now that we live in a world where we are respected and educated, seeing such low grade, inane and abusive training is revolting. I know now how much our brain develops when properly challenged. I know how greater intelligence enhances our life both physically and mentally. I know how sounder we are and better we perform when our education is about guiding our brain toward the coordination of our physique optimally adapted to the athletic demand of the performance. Instead of being intelligently educated, Caesar has been submitted to execute performances and he ended with a cripple body. He reeducated his crippled physique by processing mentally beyond the limits of his natural reflexes. He had to have the intelligence of taking over his survival reflexes, which has been his way of life for years. While the majority of horses never have the chance to be trained through the Science of Motion approach, we all know how fascinating, efficient and kind this progressive development of our intelligence can be. Watching this type of loading technique is like returning to the prehistoric age. It is like equine and human species have lost decades of progresses.

This abuse needed to stop. Where is he? I turned on the other side of my Click HERE to read on

T his is not the vertebral column of the horse that you can see on the video, but this specimen shows the thoracolumbar spine abnormality that leaded this horse to absolutely refuse any water jump. He was a "would be" Grand Prix jumper in the sense that he had the power, the stamina and courage to fly above the technical difficulties of a Grand Prix Jumping course, but he never finished any course until he came at the Science of Motion, as he never jumped the river.

As it is the case in 90% of the times, it was a physical issue which was approached as a behavior problem. However, after more than a year of unsuccessful attempts, the rider, who was also the owner, explored the thought that a physical issue was possibly the problem. This is when the horse came at the Science of Motion training center.

The horse was quite good over high jumps and very poor over low jumps. He was not disturbed by the landing of a 6 feet oxer, but he anticipated the landing of a low and wide jump such as a river. He traveled and performed with a thoracolumbar spine very crooked, which could explain intense loading of the leading front leg at the landing as well as severe pain in the thoracic vertebrae. The question was why the crookedness did not seem to induce pain at the landing of higher jumps. It was a considerable difference between the horse's style over higher jumps, which was quite good, and the style of the same horse over lower jumps, which was very poor. This suggested that the athletic demands of higher jumps and in particular the longitudinal flexion of the thoracic spine, recreated a transient alignment of the thoracolumbar spine allowing less painful landing. Based in this working hypothesis, it was rational to think that correcting the back muscles imbalance causing lateral bending and inverted rotation would allow painless landing of lower jumps and this is word for word what happened.

In line with the overly simplistic thinking of most training techniques the advice commonly given to the rider was, "only jump big jumps". This is the primitive thinking of behavior theories. The horse flew effortlessly over 6 feet oxers, but just to annoy the rider, it does not jump the river. Another one turns left but just to aggravate the rider, the horse refuses to turn right. He likes halt but not want to back up. Running away from the predator, forward movement, is the horse's most basic survival instinct, but because it is "lazy", the horse refuses moving forward. Come on, if you think about it, these behavior theories are ridiculous.  

In two months of corrective gymnastic on the flat the back muscle imbalance was corrected and proper coordination was created. Once the horse performed on the flat, at the walk, trot and canter with a functional thoracolumbar spine, the gymnastic was extended over low and wide jumps. In one month, the horse figured that keeping over the jump the body coordination created on the flat, rendered the jumping performance easy and pain free. It was time to face the truth.

The river was set in the middle of the ring, blue tarp, water contrasting strongly with the white sand. The first attempt over the river was recorded on video, first the warm up and then the fly over the river.

We have received horses refusing entering the show ring, bucking between the jumps. One added one stride in the middle of a in and out and amazingly was still capable to clear the second jump. This one had difficulties turning right at the landing of a jump. This one's balance was perturbed by the lead changes. This other one scared himself jumping too high, etc., etc. Each time it was a dysfunction in the vertebral column mechanism. Each time, correcting the muscular issue "corrected the behavior." 

Jean Luc Cornille

Equine training program.

2014, SOM's Training Program

(we are booked through 2014 for 2015 contact us)

 Reviews on bottom of this WEBPAGE

 

The Science of Motion training program is restoring soundness and competitive skill even when other approaches have failed. Shelly had a chronic case of Sacroiliac Joint. She was lame with the right hind leg and responded positive to all tests at the exception of pressure on the tuber coxal. Shelly owes her full recovery to the determination and intuition of her owner Julie. Julie Reich did not believe the advises of numerous professionals telling her that the mare had no physical issue, "It's in her head." Of course not it was not in her head. The problem was an inverted rotation of the thoracic spine which placed the thoracolumbar column and therefore sacrum and pelvis in the wrong alignment in relation to the direction of the motion. Consequently, repetitive abnormal stresses were induced on the sacroiliac joint and the joints' stabilizing mechanism worked dysfunctional inducing protective reflex contractions and pain.

 

Shelly is now sound, calm, cooperative and scheduled to go back home in two weeks. Julie spent a full week at the center learning how to ride her newly sound horse. The experience went very well. Julie fully understood the concept and her skill allowed her to ride her horse very well. Julie is confident that she will be able to continue the horse reeducation and I agree with her. They will be reunited soon.

Mini cooper is her nick name because she is small surrounded by giants such as Chazot, Manchester, and Caesar. An accident turned her into a monster almost dangerous to handle. Victoria has been educated by a knowledgeable trainer and both knew that it was not a behavior problem. Victoria realized that the SOM approach was her horse's sole hope and decided to send her horse for reeducation. Yes it was a problem of torsion in the thoracic vertebrae that rendered mini cooper disconnected in her back. The physical pain created by the two problems triggered her reactions. One month in her reeducation, mini cooper is now sound, exploring comfortable gaits and behaving with great intelligence and kindness.

 

 

The horse are trained every week days and exclusively by Jean Luc. Once their education or reeducation is advanced, we encourage the rider to come and learn how to ride their new horse. When the rider feels confident that he or she will be able to carry on the recovery program, the horse goes back home. 

 

We only take three horses at the time as reeducation demands diligence and time. The rider has to be prepared for changes. Successful reeducation cannot be done applying the principles of riding and training that created the problem.

The monthly fee, including the rider's lessons is $2800 per month (training and boarding). We ask for a deposit of $1000.00 which cement the official reservation. The rest, $1800 is paid at the arrival of the horse. Payments can be made by check (Science of Motion LLC), or through our Paypal account.

 

For more information about our requirements about vaccination, worming and other issues please contact us.  Helyn@scienceofmotion.com, or 706 485 1217

 

Due to the limited number of availabilities, we encourage you to contact us rapidly for scheduling.

 

Thank your customer, tell them how valuable they are to you, but don't go overboard. Insincerity is easy to spot.