footwork

[SevenStar]

found this and thought it was pretty good:

http://trinity.psnw.com/~dlmurray/footdrills.html

[Mr Punch]

Yep that's nice.

Now to try it on a pile of old tires...! ;)

[Shooter]

That's pretty effective animation for describing the different stepping patterns.

"Slide and Step" = Pushing Step

"Walk The Line" = Fishing Step

"The Triangle" = Turning Over Step

"Zig Zag Man" = Breaking Step

[Oso]

pretty neat.

i'm using the smaller size puzzle mats set up like a checker board w/ different colors to do footwork drills on.

used to use tape on the floor, but we can't leave it down because it confused the rec center kids when they played four square.

[omarthefish]

A really fun little set of diagrams. I used spend a lot of time on the triangle stuff but now of course I just do bagua. One thing that bugged me though, even though he managed to frame the circle walking in a really down to earth way, he still mentioned "imagining your opponent in the middle of the circle.

That's allway bugged the crap out of me. IF you are imagining another opponet during your practice, he should be on the other side of the cricle from you otherwise your imagining that some idiot is going to stand there while you actually walk circles around him. Try it and see. Raise you hands in an on guard and face off with a partner. Come in close enough that you both touch each other at the wrists. Then slowly start trying to flank him. Walk s l o w l y around towards his rear while he tries to do the same to you. The center of the circle will be where your wrists meet.

[Oso]

right, good point. we always did two person circle walking to emphasize that point.

[WanderingMonk]

cool site, thanks 7*

[Christopher M]

Originally posted by omarthefish
IF you are imagining another opponet during your practice, he should be on the other side of the cricle from you

Not necessarily. Another way of looking at it is this:

Your opponent is in the middle of your circle, and you are in the middle of your opponent's circle - the two are different. When you take a step, it's purpose is to keep your opponent in the middle of your circle, but remove you from his: following the arc of your circle accomplishes this. However, he doesn't just stand there: he responds in precisely the same way. Every time a movement like this occurs, the two circles get redrawn (theoretically speaking, of course all of this movement must come from natural reflex). The resulting movements from the interaction of these two circles creates a third circle, which is the one which may actually be inscribed. Both partners appear to be walking the circumference of this third circle, but this is merely a result of using their own circles in the above-described fashion.

On a structural rather than tactical level, the movements of circlewalking include two ideas: internal rotating (rotating your body around it's center) and external rotating (rotating around the center of the circle). Both of these ideas generate force which is used in offensive and defensive technique. Your opponent being at the center of your theoretical circle places him in the focal point of this latter force, whereas being on the circumference of it places him outside of this force: which is why the above tactic is useful.


your imagining that some idiot is going to stand there while you actually walk circles around him.

Following the above perspective: Circlewalking is a training method, not a simulation of actual combat. As a training method, it teaches you to use the above-mentioned circular forces in attack and defense. These broad arcs can be applied, once understood, in more subtle arcs which can be employed in the most simple- and direct-seeming movements.

[Vash]

Good stuff!

copies web page to hard drive . . .

[Chang Style Novice]

Your opponent is in the middle of your circle, and you are in the middle of your opponent's circle - the two are differentVenn did you come up with this concept?

[omarthefish]

NAh. He's right about the 2 circles and overlapping circles and circles of circles and on and on and on.....

It's just too much **** theory to be of any use. If you wan't to be able to use this stuff, just stick with a cingle circle. If your hands are up, then you keep your attention in the hand that's closest to the inside of the circle unless maybe it's 'lion holds the ball' (aka Lion opens/closes its jaws) in which case you could focus on the space between your hands.

If you have a partner then you look at your partner. If you are circling a tree there's a focus in the middle of the circle (the tree) but that would be more relevent to qi-gong and less to combat.

this part is pretty good:
On a structural rather than tactical level, the movements of circlewalking include two ideas: internal rotating (rotating your body around it's center) and external rotating (rotating around the center of the circle). Both of these ideas generate force which is used in offensive and defensive technique.

But then to place your opponent at the middle of your circle your gonna be walking a MUCH smaller circle. One that's only about 2 steps because that's all you get before he turns around to face you. So if you can shoot in in 2 steps or less placing him "in your circle" ie seriously outflank him, then your golden. Otherwise that part isn't that relevent and to many visualizations just ****s you up.

[omarthefish]

What the heck, I thought this was worth repeating as well. I really get tired of some of the lame-a$$ stuff I hear about Baguazhang from time to time.

So once again some actual sense:
Following the above perspective: Circlewalking is a training method, not a simulation of actual combat. As a training method, it teaches you to use the above-mentioned circular forces in attack and defense. These broad arcs can be applied, once understood, in more subtle arcs which can be employed in the most simple- and direct-seeming movements.

Although, it CAN be used as a really good bridge into combat. The Bagua push hands I have been exposed to a bit works off of 2 people walking the circle.

[Christopher M]

Originally posted by omarthefish
But then to place your opponent at the middle of your circle your gonna be walking a MUCH smaller circle. One that's only about 2 steps because that's all you get...

I usually conceptualize circlewalking as being the repeated practice of a single step (being of two possible varieties: kou or bai), rather than as a footwork diagram in whole.

[omarthefish]

Word on that.