bannana Posted June 2, 2005 Share Posted June 2, 2005 My legs are pretty long in proportion to my height ( I am 5 foot 9). Will this affect my footwork speed/stability in fighting? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uechi Kid Posted June 2, 2005 Share Posted June 2, 2005 My Sensei is about six foot tall with extra long legs and arms. He is also very lean. It works to his advantage. When he does kata the long lean look makes him look very graceful. In sparing he has an advantage with his extra reach. You will do just find. More Practice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aodhan Posted June 2, 2005 Share Posted June 2, 2005 My legs are pretty long in proportion to my height ( I am 5 foot 9). Will this affect my footwork speed/stability in fighting? Thanks.Shouldn't affect speed too much, look at Stephen Lopez. You will, however, probably need to work on disguising foot techniques a little more than a shorter legged person, simply because of the fact that the longer the limb, the more time the end of the limb takes to go from point to point.Aodhan There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other.-Douglas Everett, American hockey player Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boxeador Posted June 2, 2005 Share Posted June 2, 2005 Won't make you any slower. Might make you a little more off balanced then the average person but training will make up for it. Long legs are a great advantage be glad you have them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parkerlineage Posted June 5, 2005 Share Posted June 5, 2005 My legs are long for my body, and my full height is long for a normal person (6'6"). I can't say I've ever wished they weren't - I can kick anybody from anywhere (I just recently developed a kick that I'm sure isn't an original, but nobody else in my studio uses it, that takes me about three of my own stance-lengths), and it looks pretty cool with kata, too.Don't sweat it; be thankful;Parkerlineage American Kenpo Karate- First Degree Black Belt"He who hesitates, meditates in a horizontal position."Ed Parker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted June 5, 2005 Share Posted June 5, 2005 no we get loads of long legged people in tkd and they have no problems at all - if anything it can be an advantage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivette_green Posted June 9, 2005 Share Posted June 9, 2005 I have heard that when doing karate or any okinawan based martial arts it is better to be shorter, because the people who developed the style were shorter than most of us are. That's just what I heard though, I'm not bringing down the tall people. "Don't tell me what I can't do." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aodhan Posted June 9, 2005 Share Posted June 9, 2005 I have heard that when doing karate or any okinawan based martial arts it is better to be shorter, because the people who developed the style were shorter than most of us are. That's just what I heard though, I'm not bringing down the tall people.There's all kinds of myths and legends about the start of various martial arts. A kick is a kick, it's the same technique for a long legged person as it is for a short legged person.It's all in how you apply that kick Aodhan There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other.-Douglas Everett, American hockey player Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted June 9, 2005 Share Posted June 9, 2005 yeah - its all about how you adapt the techniques to your physique - personally being long in the leg im not going ot engage in techniques that involve low centres of gravity.... etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtstiachi Posted June 13, 2005 Share Posted June 13, 2005 In TCC, I have found that having long legs can be to my disadvantage, (especially when doing stretches in warmups) My friend who practices TKD says having long legs means he can kick from a farther distance, so for him it is an advantage, for me a disadvantage. "The journey of a 1,000 miles starts with but a single step." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now