How Critical Are Feet Placement??

[Nidan Melbourne]

Kohkotsu Dachi + Kiba Dachi are definitely different from what i've seen over the years.

Kohkotsu Dachi (Shotokan) is more weighted over the back foot with the other leg more straight.

Kiba Dachi has both feet pointing forwards and weight equally distributed.

From what I have seen especially from competitions over the years, is that some people go very very low in their stance and the two become indistinguishable from one another.

[bushido_man96]

This is an issue that has come out of the MAs, in my mind, as a direct result of the training of forms/katas. If stances are supposed to be transitional in nature, what's important is what happens during the transition. However, with the move-stop-move-stop approach to training kata, and with the gradual introduction of aestheticness in watching forms, these strict ideas of what a stance should and shouldn't be have taken hold.

So now, we fuss and fuss over what a stance looks like when the students are walking up and down the floor during basics and forms competition, instead of really worrying about what the stance is supposed to do.

[DWx]

This is an issue that has come out of the MAs, in my mind, as a direct result of the training of forms/katas. If stances are supposed to be transitional in nature, what's important is what happens during the transition. However, with the move-stop-move-stop approach to training kata, and with the gradual introduction of aestheticness in watching forms, these strict ideas of what a stance should and shouldn't be have taken hold.

So now, we fuss and fuss over what a stance looks like when the students are walking up and down the floor during basics and forms competition, instead of really worrying about what the stance is supposed to do.

To a point yes but there is some benefit it training things strictly or by rote, especially for the beginner / intermediate. All stances are unnatural but you're trying to make them a natural position through muscle memory. To borrow a Japanese term: Shu Ha Ri

[sensei8]

This is an issue that has come out of the MAs, in my mind, as a direct result of the training of forms/katas. If stances are supposed to be transitional in nature, what's important is what happens during the transition. However, with the move-stop-move-stop approach to training kata, and with the gradual introduction of aestheticness in watching forms, these strict ideas of what a stance should and shouldn't be have taken hold.

So now, we fuss and fuss over what a stance looks like when the students are walking up and down the floor during basics and forms competition, instead of really worrying about what the stance is supposed to do.

Transitions are not part of the stance, but merely the in-between movement point 'A' to point 'B'; they're separate entities.

The fussing is important, imho!! If the stance isn't correct, than the stance is weak, and if the stance is weak, than that stance can't do what it's suppose to do effectively.

In my OP, I was trying to stress the feet placements of Kokutsu dachi, and I was only referring to Kiba dachi as a far as feet placements are concerned. I observe the wrong feet placement mostly in Kokutsu dachi, so much so, that the feet are more resemblance of what Kiba dachi is.

Kokutstu dachi's feet placement are 90 degree, or the 3/9 o'clock position, but when they're incorrect, then the individual is, and will be, incorrect/affected.

Get it right!! If not, get off the floor!!

Again, if this wasn't important, than Soke and Dai-Soke wouldn't be adamant about it...I can't ignore that. If the instructor isn't correcting feet placement, then that instructor is being lazy, thoughtless, and incompetent. Correction begins with feet placement.