Shaping Your Horse's Canter

toward your hips. Your hands will be closed into a fist but avoid a cementlike feeling which will frighten the horse and make him eager to escape your contact.
If the fingers of one hand remain a bit spongelike your horse will give to the pressure not flee from it. Keep it up until your horse acknowledges you by yielding or flexing his jaw and compressing his stride even a little. He may try many escape routes head up head down break to a trot etc. but relax your muscles only when you feel him take a smaller canter stride. Reward him immediately by allowing your arms to flow with the motion of his head and neck.
Timing
Your horse wont recognize the pattern of resistandrelease unless your timing is absolutely consistent. Having a ground person is especially helpful. When Im teaching I ask riders to let me ride through them. I watch very carefully calling out resist when the horse tries an escape route followed by release the moment the horse nails the right answer. Eventually through consistent use of the shaping process your horse will learn to slow his canter.