I know Doc said he'd get back to you; hopefully he won't get mad at me for steppin on his thread a bit with a tiny answer; I got time to kill just yet.
The 'drag" part in the foot maneuvers you mentioned is pretty much always a bad idea, mechanically. It's how I learned foot-maneuvers, and drilled them accross football fields to engrain them into muscle memory, so it's been a hard one for me to shake, and I still drop back to it patternistically when visiting Doc's mat (for which I get a hollerin'). Dragging one leg towards the other fires the adductor muscles against the friction resistance of the floor...more recruitment than if you just pick the leg up and step with it (the step, alone, is also highly important, due to the feedback the rest of the body gets "neuro-anatomically" as a result of foot-strike, but we'll get back to that). The adductors are attached (mostly) to the pubic rami of the ischium, and share collateral innervation with other muscles coordinating the hip. Firing them against resistance sends all sorts of counter-productive messages to the body about hip alignment with the spine, resulting in an incongruent state of stability. Drags are replaced with steps..."step-steps". We still use the names "drag-step" and "step-drag" to denote which foot moves first (each covers different distances), but the defeating mechanism of dragging the foot along the floor is replaced with a stepping maneuver.
Also available from the NB is step-through forward or reverse (short or long 1). Many teach (as have I) a "C" step...this is one of the things Doc is referring to about the lower extremities approximating each other, causing incorrect body mechanics. On other threads, he's posited the experiment of having someone push into you, from front to back, after you have done a step-thru forward. If you C-step, you will be easily pushed out of your NB. If you strike a transitional forward bow, and step straight forward (like your feet are following railroad ties) to an opposite side transitional forward bow, then pivot into your NB while using the necessary corrective mechanisms, your stance will be much stronger. So will your forward movement. This matters greatly if the guy is tyrying to crash you while you're in transition, or if you are applying any contact-manipulative force in moving or directing him (you can't fire a cannon out of a canoe). The more stable you are in motion...
Now, let's assume a reverse step-thru, retreating from the attack with an upward block against a descending/overhead attack or straight punch. Why do we care about what the feet are doing, if the attack is coming at the head? "It's all connected". If your foundation is weak, so will be the rest of your tech. Any pressure downward on the upward block contact surface in the angle of incidence will reveal that the block crumbles against a descending force; if you aren't lucky enough to nullify the downward momentum of the strike with the strike impact of your block in motion, then the blow will plough right on through your shields and thump you on the head. I see this in sparring all the time; one guy decides he's going to launch an attack, and really "sell" his strikes, while the defender is positioned athletically, but out of alignment. Blocks put out by the defender end up acting merely as interference that eventually comes down like a house of cards...maybe I didn't actually hit you with my own hand, but your own mitts bopped you in the head because the blocks were weak.
Taking the time to move differently, and de-program old habits, starts you off moving much slower than you may initially be accustomed to. But, with only a couple months of "remedial" corrrective training, it ain't long before you're right back to where you were before speed-wise, but without the instability.
As for the martial science being an advertising thing...people who have met Doc, and visited his school, "get" why that's kind of a silly accusation. He selects for a certain type of student, and not everyone is welcome as such (in fact, few are...he screens out lotsa folks before they even make it to "tourist" [try to find his location in the phone book...go ahead], and runs background checks on applicants prior to letting them come on board). He has a small but intense group of dedicated kenpo geeks who show up for 4-6 hour sessions that can last well past midnight depending on what Doc has them working on. Each technique has components that involve knocking or pulling or bumping some poor slob out of alignment before working over the rest of the technique; being the uke for this means that you're getting bounced around for half the night in the tender state of being "misaligned"...meaning, in short, that everything hurts more. None of this...the hours, the unpleasant after-effects (total-body joint and muscle soreness) of the training...appeals to the masses, and as such you will not see a "masses" class being held at Doc's bat-cave. Advertising means you WANT the masses to come, and conduct yourself accordingly once they have arrived to ensure their continuation. Ain't none of that at Doc's.
Hope this helps a small bit, at least.
Regards,
Dave
), with a step-drag. Should the back-fist be executed when the front leg is extended with the first step, or should it wait until the rear leg has 'dragged' (or rather been placed) behind you? Same goes for the drag-step - what are the stable positions within these movements that allow the execution of a basic strike?
