Originally Posted by
SevenStar
Traditional Thai guard is actually more open, as the elbows flare outward. That is done so That incoming round kicks have possibility of connecting with your elbow, damaging the opponent. The elbow down position seen here prevents the elbow from being used as a lever in chin na. The pigeon toed stance is for protection. The southern styles aren't kicking styles. When they do kick, they are below waist level and some styles only had one or two kicks - a front kick and a stomp kick. The stance protects the groin from that common front kick, much in the way the Thai stance elbow position protects against the roundhouse. The guard is closer how I learned it, but pretty much all San zhan / sanchin is similar. The stance is for protection and rooting, maximizing the amount of short power that can be easily applied.
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