Here is a short quiz. Master Pryga is not eligible to answer.
Why do we maintain our feet at a 45 degree angle, for instance, in the cat stance (meo bo jah sae)?
TcB
Sun Martial Arts Blog With Hosts: Master Tim Baker, Master Dave Pryga, and Mr. Matt Dowds
7 comments:
#1 balance
#2 feet positioned to "drive power" for offensive or defensive moves.
#3 balance
#4 because a 35 degree angle is too hard to calculate on the square floor mats...
Bravo, Mr Dragon. I L'dol at #4.
I like "drive power".
Balance is kind of general, could you elaborate please?
I'm also thinking of a serious injury (to ourselves) that the proper foot position can prevent. Any ideas?
By balance I meant that you can move in and out of your counterpart's range while maintaining a posture\form that allows you to react to or initiate combinations. Correct foot position, low center of balance, dropping your weight, and not "over committing" will help you stay on your (correctly positioned) feet.
I never considered rolling an ankle or tweaking a knee as a product of poor footwork before. The serious injury I envisioned was the one earned from hesitation due to poor balance and causing you to catch a sidekick to the ribs.
Well I'll do 50 extra pushups for throwing my 2 cents in here when I wasn't supposed to. SUN!
In addition to Mr. Dragons thoughts,
I always considered a cat stance to be a defense against a groin kick or strike.
Or a leg/ knee kick.
I still really like Mr. Dragon's term "drive power". It beats my "superior penetration force" just in brevity alone!
If one is charged at, the ankle roll becomes a real possibility on uneven ground or on gravel etc.
And if the rear foot is pointed at a 90 instead of 45 there is very little forward thrust (drive) because the knee is pointed away from the intended direction.
I would have to agree, Master Pryga, the cat stance in a great deterrent to groin attacks. And in point sparring, the quick front kick which penetrates deep because of the "drive power" (dang, I love that term) of the back leg is a sure score.
Thanks for the "penetrating" explanations Mr. Dragon. I intend to teach drive power in class this week.
I believe the 45° angle also provides protection, and enhanced fluidity for strike and counter strikes.
It provides good posture for rib protection. Just speaking form experience there.
I also believe that in addition to the mechanics so well described by Mr. Dragon, it also enhances the deception of some of our moves and strikes. I also feel that the general mechanics result in increased individual speed and fluidity. Perhaps that is rooted in blance?? Thereby aiding our strike or counter strike effectiveness and success.
I hate to see someone do push ups alone so I'm off to crank out 50 with Mr. Hawk. Sun!
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