Beth - moving forward with the motion

I had a dual session/lesson with Beth yesterday, which was very useful.  Indoors, we worked on re-engaging the lower core (I have been compensating by rounding my upper back), and then separating the core from my legs, by doing egg beaters and leg circles (egg beaters are tracing the letter "D" with your knees).  Then we worked on the ball, on forward and back with the hips, but watching in a mirror to see where my back engages.  I need to keep focusing on little movements until my core gets strong again because I have been "cheating" at the movements, particularly, the plank roll up.  It is more rounded back, then weight over your elbows as you walk out.  I had to do these on my knees, unlike last time, because I wasn't strong enough to do them on my toes anymore.
On Charlie, we worked on moving from the hip joint - not the waist.  To prevent the forward/back in the belly, I can put one hand on my lower back or my "caliper" fingers on my rib/hip length to make sure it isn't changing.  It also helps to think of the "isotoner" - that I have a corset around my waist that is tightening.
Then we worked on controlling Charlie's speed from only my hips - making HIM follow ME instead of the other way around.  I could slow his walk down a lot, and Beth said that is a really good exercise for his core, because it takes a lot of balance for him to go slow.  I have less control over the trot, because I tend to get floppy after not much time, but I think that is practice.  This is to try to get the bouncing basketball feeling in the trot (energy cycling from his hind legs forward) instead of the driving onto the forehand (reverse energy cycle). 
Last but not least, I also need to be careful about rounding my shoulders and being behind the vertical.  I get a little behind and then don't move forward when I ask for the forward aid.  If I think of keeping my upper body on a track with his shoulders, it improves things considerably.
Beth noted that both Charlie and I need to work on the same muscles, which helped me appreciate why this has been so difficult.  Unlike the prior things we've worked on, now we're both working on it together.  It helps that Charlie is so incredibly responsive, so that I can feel when I do it right instead of guessing blindly.