The stretchy circle is an essential exercise for both training and competing. In eventing, you’ll see it at the Novice, Training, Preliminary, Intermediate and Advanced levels of competition. It’s also used during training warm-ups and cooldowns as it’s a good test to ensure your horse is adjustable and not rigid in the contact. Plus, it will tell you where you and your horse are at a very basic level. Is he balanced? Are you capable of maintaining your own balance without contact? Does your horse have complete freedom of his head and neck? Are your aids independent of one another?

Additionally, the stretch circle can be a really useful tool to teach horses how to use their backs. And for horses who carry a lot of tension, it will help them learn to relax and breathe, which is very important for our equine athletes.

In her new video series on EQUESTRIAN+, top eventer and CCI5* 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event contender Sharon White explains why the stretchy circle is a crucial component of your eventing horse’s dressage training and how to teach him how to stretch forward into the bit at the walk, trot and canter, as well as on a three-loop serpentine.

Even—or especially—if dressage isn’t your horse’s strongest phase, you can work on making small improvements to the movements you expect to see in your level’s test. And because stretchy circles have a coefficient of two, it’s something you really want to own. Otherwise, you’re just throwing points away.

Introducing the Stretchy Circle

“If you’re worried your horse can’t do a stretchy circle, just imagine him gracefully putting his head down to eat grass. Don’t make it overly complicated. Your inside aids are your stretching aids. If you need to encourage your horse to stretch more use a little more inside leg and inside rein. You’re not pulling your horse with the inside rein; you’re just using it to guide the bit and show him how to stretch.

“Maintain your balance and keep encouraging your horse to take the contact all the way down to allow for the full use of the reins. You want your horse at the end of the reins, so use your hips to keep pushing him out and down.

“The only way you can learn to do this is by doing it. There’s no right or wrong way. It’s just practice. The worst that could happen is your horse loses his balance by either going slower or going faster. Your job is to continue to look at your own balance and alignment. A lot of times if you do this, it will fix those things in your horse.

“Throughout this exercise, practice letting your horse’s head down for the stretch and then picking him back up again in more collection. As you pick up your reins, focus on maintaining the rhythm and your own balance and work your inside leg to outside rein. This is the basis of the stretch circle because it puts your horse in proper alignment and balance so he can lift and use his back.

“Flexion of the poll and jaw is also an important part of the stretch circle. But flexion isn’t backward. It’s like putting the key in your car and turning it away from you. It’s pushing forward and turning on the circle so you can maintain flexion in your horse’s jaw. If your horse is tight in his poll or neck, it’s going to be hard for him to supple and stretch down. So always focus on working your horse’s poll joint forward and into the bit.

“In addition to stretching at the walk and trot, you also want to stretch at the canter. But before you ask for a canter stretch, establish push at the canter. Then, when you ask for the stretch, be relaxed about it, think about sitting on your horse’s outside hind leg and just allowing him to stretch. It’s such a beautiful thing be able to canter and have nothing change and let go of the reins and just trust it.”

Intention, Not Perfection

“When working the stretch circle at a trot or canter it’s important to pick your reins back up before asking him to walk because that’s what you have to do in almost every test. So every time you do a stretch, pick your reins up and then transition downward to the walk. This way, when you have to do it in competition and you’re a little nervous or stressed, it’s not a big deal because you’ve done it so many times. This is true of any dressage movement.

“In many ways, I disagree with perfect practice makes for perfection. Yes, eventually. But if you’re so worried it’s not going to be perfect from the start, you’re never going to get there. So, for all you perfectionists out there, don’t worry if it’s not perfect. Just do it. Don’t be afraid to get it wrong until you get it right. That’s how you get better in riding.

“Intention is big thing when communicating with your horse. Horses are almost telepathic creatures, so if you have good intention about what you want your horse to do that will go a long way.

“Another bonus of teaching your horse how to stretch properly is that it encourages carrying power in their shoulders. That throughness allows your horse to pick up his back and really use his topline to carry his own power.”

Stretchy Circle for Self-Carriage, Rhythm and Balance

“Dressage tests are designed to flow, so the stretch circle will be included where it makes sense after you’ve walked, trotted and cantered. In the Advanced five-star level, the stretch circle is often at the end of the test. This is to show that your horse is relaxed and can maintain self-carriage while stretching forward and down without losing his balance or rhythm.

“In order to properly stretch, you and your horse need to be breathing slow and steady. Use it to your advantage and teach your horse that there’s going to be a release of pressure so he can take a breath and stretch. Always practice breathing through this exercise at home to ensure your horse stays relaxed and doesn’t carry any tension when you get to the competition.

“Be aware of your and your horse’s weaknesses. Some horses are naturally stronger or straighter; others are less so. You need to know your horse so you can help him succeed. So much of dressage is about planning ahead and knowing your horse.

“Use your body language and position to control your horse. If he speeds up when you go on your stretchy circle, use your posture by sitting up more, engaging your core and think about maintaining the rhythm in your own body.”

“With the stretchy circle and any movement, rhythm is the foundation of the dressage Training Scale, so that should always be your first priority in the dressage ring. Even if your horse is uptight or holds a little more tension in the show ring, simply focus on maintaining the rhythm to the best of your ability. To help facilitate this, you must maintain your own balance perfectly. If you lose your balance, maintaining the rhythm is going to be that much harder.

For More:

• To watch Sharon White’s full video series on how to master the stretchy circle, click here.
• You can find more EQUESTRIAN+ videos with White here.
• Can’t get enough of eventing? We’re counting down to our favorite event of the year—2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. We’ll be kicking off our live coverage of this year’s KY3DE on Wednesday, April 23, with the CCI5* Jog, before the main event starts on April 24 and continues through April 27.⁣ Click here for more of our coverage of this year’s event.

About Sharon White

Sharon White is an international CCI5* three-day eventing rider, trainer and Level 4 U.S. Eventing Association ECP Certified Instructor based at Last Frontier Farm in Summit Point, West Virginia. White’s career includes over 10 starts at the Kentucky Three-Day Event with five different horses.

She has also traveled overseas to contest CCI5* events at Lühmuhlen (France) and Les Etoiles de Pau (France) as well as CCI4* events at Boekelo (Netherlands) and Hartpury (United Kingdom). She most recently earned a team silver medal at the 2023 Pan American Games with Claus 63.

White will be competing in the CCI5* at the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event aboard Claus 63.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. It includes lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more.