Marijke de Jong's ST Academy
Mastery Student Reviews
They Did It. So Can You.
Hear from Mastery Students from who made their dream with their horse come true!
Reviews From Mastery Students With ThoroughBreds
"In the beginning, I was a lost soul. I didn't know myself, I didn't know my horse, life was hard. I was in search of something that will have purpose in my life, and then I saw it... ST Mastery Program! Through the Mastery Program I am walking the amazing journey of Mastery of One Self, and by improving myself, my relationship is improving with my horse. THIS IS SO AWESOME!!! My horse is a different horse, mentally and physically. I am a different person mentally and physically. The Mastery Program is shaping my diamond in the rough, and now I know how I can help others to shape their diamonds so that we all can Shine Together! I Love working with my horse in ST, and as an instructor at a riding school, I love to see the smiles on the kids' faces when I can improve them and their horse so that they can also reach their dreams and goals while having fun. ST IS FUN, and I love every second of it. It is Life Changing, and both me and my horse are happier and working in a way I have always dreamed of. Dreams can come true after all!"
Nastalia Gaude | Groblersdal, South Africa
Silver Express (Lex), TB, gelding, 6 yo
"I adopted my TB Clifford from a rescue in Colorado in the spring of 2014. He was a yearling at the time and hadn’t been handled much. We started out with lots of trust building and groundwork, but nothing seemed to really click for us.
I’ve been an ST Mastery student since November 2015 and let me tell you, this has been a game changer for Cliffi and I. I am super happy with the results thus far.
ST helps body and mind of both, horse and rider. I have attended an ST clinic with ST Instructor Carolin Moldenhauer and was blown away. Everyone here, instructors and fellow students alike, are super supportive and always there to help.
I love how ST looks at the biomechanics and the mind of the horse and puts a lot of focus on building a trusting relationship between you and your equine friend. I can highly recommend this course to anyone wanting to do right by their horse! You won’t be disappointed."
Sabine Reynoso | Growtown, GA, USA
Clifford, TB, gelding, 5 yo
"The Mastery Program makes a huge difference for me and my so-called 'problem' thoroughbred mare.
It has opened my eyes to training horses - both from having better connection and communication with my horse and also from the biomechanics point of view.
Following the program content me and my mare have been changing from the very beginning, and our relationship has been getting much much deeper and closer. Not mentioning the impact on her body condition!
ST also helped us during recovery after a surgery of my mare. The results of the rehab surprised even our vet :)"
Ela Pryka | Krakow Poland
Elite, TB, mare, 15 yo
"I fell on this program online and being curious clicked on the link for the Mini Mastery Program. I was addicted instantly and was amazed at what I have seen before me. The knowledge, layout and truly professional. Nothing was hidden and all the answers where there to be found. I decided to use my 8 yr old homebred TB stallion as my mastery horse. Even though broken in and very lightly ridden away I felt that he and I needed the help. He had become very dominant and unsettled through lots of moves and was becoming increasingly difficult. To the point where I could hardly work him on the right rein at all. This was resulting in sessions of bolt upright rears, spinning on to the other rein and generally being unethical.
My first year of ST Mastery has been amazing. If its mastery you want its mastery you get!!! The journey so far has tort me so much. My knowledge i is now much wider and deeper in understanding and the program keeps encouraging you to dig deeper. I can now deal with bitey, pushy horses, help and encourage their mental behaviour. I now can help a horse to physically improve and fix a problem as it arises. Tipsy is now a much-balanced horse both physically and mentally.”
Liz Groves | Faulkland, UK
Tipsy, TB, stallion, 9 yo
"Joining the Mastery Program has allowed me to have access to a library of information as well as a great community of like-minded people. Even though I do not always participate in the chats, the reading of posts teaches me a lot, and I am also grateful for Marijke's enthusiasm, emailing coaching and energy - always being available and giving her input. Joining ST has helped my horse with recovering from a sacroiliac injury, and I am seeing him grow into a stronger horse - both physically and mentally. For myself too I feel that I have grown a lot and am still growing. I am sensitive to animals feelings and reactions, and I have always pulled away from various trainings as have felt that the horses part in the training is not taken into consideration. And in ST this is so much part of the training and learning - working with inner picture and feeling - and seeing my horse adjust himself as my inner pictures and feelings of an exercise improves. We are a real team!"
Anthea Myburgh | Winelands, South Africa
Glider, TB, gelding, 7 yo
Before I began the Mastery Program, I was doing a little bit of this and a little bit of that with my horse. It was going fine, but the question that kept bothering me was... WHERE were we going? All the courses I studied and the trainers I admired, never really gave me the BIG picture. The WHY. The step by step HOW PER 2mm - THE EXACT track to follow in order to reach my goals. They never shared their life philosophies so honestly. They never shared their struggles. They never seemed to be normal humans!!! How could I, little old me, Mommy of 2, run a business and be a master with horses all at the same time?! Marijke is honest, open and ever learning. She shares her struggles so her students can bypass them! She gives a VERY transparent pathway. She puts high-level exercises within reach because by following her steps you start to see that the horse will naturally be ready for the higher movement. No mystery and slow motion. Just hard work, dedication, and passion!
Lara Pieret | Cape Town, South Africa
Suvari Royale (Vari), TB, mare, 14 yo
"Tanner, I love this horse more and more each day, he’s turning in to something quite special, and I’m so thankful that he’s mine. The jumping has improved no end thanks to Marijke de Jong’s Straightness Training. I’m so thankful to be a Straightness Training Mastery student - it’s a lifetime of studying and training but is making me a much better horse trainer and rider, and I have access to so much knowledge and support online as well as help from the ST Instructors - particularly Meg Brauch and Rebecca Gilbert. All the pieces of the puzzle are slowly coming together!"
Zoe Donley | USA
Tanner, TB, gelding, 7 yo
"I was looking for information on how to develop my mare's body in a way that would help her have a healthy and happy life as a riding horse. A friend sent me a link to the Mini-Mastery course, and when I learned that there is a magic button to teach my horse to do haunches-in from the ground. I run to see if it worked and it did!
I signed up for The Mastery Program right then and have been amazed by the effectiveness of the program.
A few months after we started. Friends and strangers began asking me what I was doing that Aaghie looked so great. I was a little surprised because I felt that I was just fumbling around, trying to figure things out, and yet horseman and woman were seeing wonderful development in her muscles and self-carriage. Aaghie's development is really my testimonial to The Mastery Program.
I also love that there is an emphasis on a conversation with our horses through various modalities. We shape their bodies and influence their minds in groundwork, longing, work in hand, riding and then test it all at liberty. This variety keeps things interesting and engaging for me and my very clever mare as we take on more and more technical feats.
My mare and I are excited about our future possibilities!"
Zuzanna Poprawski | Malibu, United States
Aahgie, Frisian/Thoroughbred, mare, 16 yo
"Tanner, I love this horse more and more each day, he’s turning in to something quite special, and I’m so thankful that he’s mine. The jumping has improved no end thanks to Marijke de Jong’s Straightness Training. I’m so thankful to be a Straightness Training Mastery student - it’s a lifetime of studying and training but is making me a much better horse trainer and rider, and I have access to so much knowledge and support online as well as help from the ST Instructors - particularly Meg Brauch and Rebecca Gilbert. All the pieces of the puzzle are slowly coming together!"
Zoe Donley | USA
Tanner, TB, gelding, 7 yo
"Straightness Training Has Changed Our Lives"
This is the ST Cadence group from South Africa: Sarah Hugow, Lizelle van Vuuren, Nastalia Naude, and Astrid van der Laan - and their honorary ST member, Lisa Byers who’s from Canada.
They speak about that their horses are their teachers, the importance of practicing outside outside the arena what you want to achieve inside, and how self-mastery can be a big life-changer:
Nastalia Naude: "Through Straightness Training I’ve met amazing people and my work has improved so much with my horses and in my life personally as well".
This Program Has Helped Riders Just Like You
"I joined the Mastery Program in 2014 and immediately immersed myself in the theoretical modules of the online program. I found these to be some of the most enlightening articles on horsemanship and the biomechanics of the horse's movement that I had ever come across. I finally (after many years of searching) had found an approach that, I felt, truly addressed both the physical and mental aspects of working with horses in such a way that they were not only educated but also benefitted on a number of levels from the training. I was so excited and completely sold on ST! Then, when I started with the practical training, my horses improved in strength and flexibility quite quickly and began to exhibit a softness and lightness which I found completely addictive. Fast forward another 1.5 years, and I am both enthralled and a little gobsmacked by the depth of this program. It's becoming increasingly clear to me that in order for me to reach ever higher with my horses, I have to up my game too. The mastery program, of course, challenges me on a physical and mental level, but equally so on an emotional and spiritual one and it's bringing about changes in my life. Love it!"
Gisela Marnewecke | Cape Town, South Africa
Corday, Thoroughbred, mare, 7 yo
"They are the most intelligent, sensitive, willing to please horses. Very affectionate. Big hearts. All you need is lightness."
