Welcome to one of the horse industry's top sources of training and coaching for proper gymnastic development of horse and rider. With Jec A. Ballou, you will enjoy a committment to classical dressage applied to every equine athlete regardless of discipline, from Western to trail to show ring. Your horse will move and perform better with Jec's conditioning plans and passion for optimizing every horse's individual talents. Sign up for a clinic or browse our books. Remember to always enjoy the journey.

Modern training of horses and riders has been derailed from its classical foundations, which has created a complicated and confusing world for many horse owners. What’s needed is a return to straightforward, simple training. A lifetime in the horse world has given me the tools to be successful over the years bringing numerous diverse breeds and horses with different aptitudes to their individual optimal athleticism, mental confidence, and performance. Through this, I’ve identified five fundamentals of training horses and riders:

		Healthy Movement
		Simplicity in the training approach
		Consistency
		Mind-body connection for both horse and rider
		cross-disciplinary

First, a rider needs to be educated and developed. Next, and often simultaneously, his or her horse also needs to be educated and trained. These are separate jobs. Development of riders is not synonymous with training horses. Education of each entity must be treated distinctly and appropriately. Separating the education requirements of horse versus rider demystifies much of the training process. This is necessary for a holistic and compassionate training journey.