Topic: foot placement in front stance

[Captain Morgan]

From reading threads and so forth, with regards to foot placement when doing a front stance are both feet supposed to face the same way?

 as for example imagine two strips of tape on the floor. they're around shoulder width apart . When I'm in front stance i should i try and keep both feet along those lines. i know the the direction of the front foot will be on the line but the back foot should be facing the same way as well. or should it be around 45 degrees?

( if any on has told me this before sorry but i have the memory of a gold fish)

[Moley]

Not many people have the flexibility in the ankle to have both feet (especially the back foot) pointing forward in front stance. Obviously, the more forward pointing the foot, the faster the step forward, but what is most comfortable for you is now the norm. Provided of course that it's not too much quarter to three and that it doesn't collapse the back knee.

[Captain Morgan]

Should I "force" my self to gain flexibility steadily in the ankles?   To improve performance and accuracy of the form?


force = work on it for hours

[Moley]

Have you seen this section ?
http://www.sekiryuzan.org/index.php?p=00935bb66a&iaith=1

Also I can show you some ankle flexibility exercises... Are you training tonight ?

[Captain Morgan]

hmmmm your twisting my arm gwyn, i might although need to get the gi cleaned first. -whats the main "theme" for tonights training ?

Think cheungy wants mw to train tonight aswell.

[Hong Kong Cheungy]

come tonight to or i'll give you a hinding

[Captain Morgan]

Ye ill go , washing my gi now only for the first hour tho.

[Hong Kong Cheungy]

you cock, i'm workin until half 7

[Captain Morgan]

It gets to advanced by 8. And i got loads of work to do.

[Hong Kong Cheungy]

excuse because we all know you scared of the cheungster

[Captain Morgan]

right back to, the subject. soo if i was to put some tape on the floor to stand in fornt stance for a long time. how much should the legs be apart from and how far shoudl the legs distance of the front and back leg.

In Karate it says 1 foot apart - and the front and back foot should be 1 foot and half. it also stated that shotokan seems to be wider :S - could any body advise on width of foot placent.

[Lloydie]

right back to, the subject. soo if i was to put some tape on the floor to stand in fornt stance for a long time. how much should the legs be apart from and how far shoudl the legs distance of the front and back leg.

In Karate it says 1 foot apart - and the front and back foot should be 1 foot and half. it also stated that shotokan seems to be wider :S - could any body advise on width of foot placent.

LOL - where is this definitive - pass me the tape measure, - "karate manual"    The basic principles are to keep joints aligned. Your legs and body are different from mine - so work out your best alignment.  Just keep everything moving as smoothly through the major joints as you can.
If it's any consolation - I'm still trying to work out my best alignment 


Lloydie

[Captain Morgan]

Thanks. i like the way YOUR is made to stick out.

Ok so aslong as my femur is square with my hips this would give me the best posible placment to be able to move forword quicker and more effectivly then if they were an wider. like it is for the speed and power of a punch ith the elbow tucked in.

I tend to find the narrower the stance the harder it is to twist the hips. is this just a get used to the new alignment od the legs than what works best.


I have a lot to learn, but yo dont build a strong house on weak foundations

[JimmyTheHoover]

Feet shoulder width apart - push front knee forward till the big toe disappears - make sure front foot is not turned in or out.

Regarding length of stance - as Dave says - it's differnet for evetyone but I'd suggest starting with about 1.5 - 2 times the width.

Of course flexibilty will initially define your "maximum" but as flexibility increases don't extend it any longer that you can still comfortably push off the back heel without raising the heel.

Jim

[ManonPiws]

A little excercise to increase ankle flexibility:
Stand on a step (stairs or whatever) with the back half of your foot off the step.
GENTLY sink down, increasing the angle of your foot until you can't go any lower.
Stay there for a bit (however long you want!). DONT bounce and make sure you're grabbing on to something as maybe your ankle isn't strong enough to hold you weight in this position.
Do this every day and your ankle will get more supple with time!

Positioning of the back foot:
Sensei Kawasoe said in the training on the Friday before the grading that the back foot MUST be pointing forward BUT not totally forward.
This is because you simply CANT use your hips and the floor if your foot is pointing out. Your foot needs to me pointing forward because this way, when you move forward, you can push down on your heel them propell yourself forward with your toes. It's physics! Newton's law of every action has an equal and opposite reaction i.e. the harder you push down on your heel the more power and speed you'll get.
Make sure your knees are always pointing forward so that this is the direction the power you generate will go!

Everyone's right - your stance is unique.
It takes a long time to find your stance. Just keep trying stuff out.
See how fast you can move and how much power you can generate in a variety of widths and lengths.

Manon.