When Mike takes it up a notch, we both get sore

We had a couple weeks off from lessons because Mike was showing in southern California, and the timing worked out "well" because they were two terrible weeks for me with almost no riding. (In theory, that would be good timing, in practice, I ride more regularly and show up for my lessons if I have them, no matter how busy or terrible I think my week is going. So I've taught myself that I need to have at least a lesson every other week - I try to do Shannon even weeks and Mike odd weeks so that I actually end up with a lesson every week.)
So we didn't get to work on most of what he had us doing the last lesson, and then the first informal show was coming up fast (next post) and I hadn't even ridden test 1-1 or 1-2 in a couple of months.
While Mike had us do some of the 1-2 movements, and gave me feedback on how to improve those, what he really did was start holding us to a higher standard. Now, as the title says, when Mike decides to hold us to a higher standard, my abs get sore, and Willig seemed to be a bit sore the next day too) (although not two days later, for the show, when he had a crazy eye).
This is really hard to ride, because I have to think about what feels like everything every second, and here we go back to riding with Bob ... if I would quit trying to control it (i.e. think about everything every second) and just ride it, for god's sake, I could be present and in the zone instead of a freaking control freak.
That being said, it gets amazing results.
So some of the things I'm now thinking about (the next layer of the onion):
- No more puttering around! When I ask for something, Willig better respond. No beating on him with my legs, no clucking, no whip-whip-whipping. I ask; he gives.
- No more lollygagging. We were weaving in and out, couldn't hold the 20 meter circle to save our lives, his head was tossing or grubbing, and Mike is just like "are you ASKING him for that or is he just doing it because he feels like it?" (Hint: I am not asking him to grub while he weaves like a drunken sailor on and off the rail.) I'm the rider, and I need to be the boss.
- Work on my sitting trot. I haven't been working on it, and I'm locking my back up again, so I need to go back to work without stirrups. Mike kindly (praise the lord!) said we weren't doing it during the lesson, and that's good because it wasn't just my abs that were sore the next day, even without being without stirrups.
What does this all boil down to? Consistency.
- Then taking his movements up a bit. When I ask for a canter, no lifting his head, no falling on his forehand, no rushing, no hurrying, no waiting 3 strides before doing it.
- And similarly, asking for him to be on the bit - no head up in the air, no grubbing. A nice "waterfall" neck.
- And also, asking him to bend to the inside. He's not physically deformed. Do it, Willig, do it.
- Then asking him to actually move. Impulsion.
- And then asking him to stretch down on that stretchy circle. The half-ass "stretch" isn't good enough anymore.
So I loved it. I love that Mike is making it harder and not letting us just get away with a plateau, and I love that he's able to ask for harder, explain, patiently ask again, and then not gloat when I grin with pleasure when we catch on.
He said we're approaching the next level of stuff, and that we can do it (renvers, travers, flying changes) and at "flying changes" I started laughing, and he pointed out that last year I never would have believed I'd be where I am right now. And he's right.
I'm super excited. I love these lessons because they make me want to work harder in between so we can go even further the next lesson. It's just my damn job and rest of my life, all those hours I'm not riding ...