DF: The importance of stances

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The importance of stances
By TigerClaw - 01-16-2009 02:15 AM
Originally Posted at: Deluxe Forums

====================

Hello,

It seems to me that stance training today is not pressed and important as it should be. I know that every martial art there is has some form of stances in their fighting, even MMA. But I don't see strong stances and shifting in stances very much these days. I think stances goes in line with what I call "form fighting". If a person has strong stances and can shift and move in them effortlessly, then he will have a great advantage over other opponents. But if they do not have strong stances etc, they will flop around like so many do in combat and trip over themselves. They will not be able to position themselves for defense or attack properly.

I find one of the best things to do for this is to practice traditional Kung Fu or any other style that stresses good stances and how to keep in them when fighting.

Some may say that stances will fail when a person just rushes in at you and tries to grapple you etc . This is not true, if the person has mastered his stances and can shift and move freely in them. To perfect stances in combat, may be all you need at times, not even your hands.

But weak stances and movement in stances is one of the things I see lacking in many combat arts to day, especially in MMA and other kick boxing competitions. I also see stances lacking in many sport martial arts tournaments as well.

Stances are like the roots of a tree, if they are firm the tree will stand, if they are weak it falls over.

I am not saying we need to practice hours and hours a day in stances, but we need to put stance training at the top of our training.

Whenever I teach a class, I alway have stance training as part of it. We move all over the room n our stances and it gets painful at times. But it helps incredibly. One exercise you can try is to have a person walk at you fairly slow at first and try to bump into you with their body, not their arms yet), and shift away from them and around them etc. Also try placing a object in the center and practice going around it in every direction, keeping low in your stances, don't bob up and down. Use many different stances, and shift from all f hem in various patterns. learn how to move quickly in to other stances. Practice leaping in stances also and moveing forward in attack and back, as well as side stepping and learn how to twist while low in your stance ( try this from a low unicorn stance to the opposite side in a unicorn stance).


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