Flat feet and martial arts

[AndyC]

First of all hello forum!

Ok, I've been wondering about this for a while. Basically i've got flat feet and i heard from a friend that it's a possible 'disadvantage' in any sport, although i'm not exactly sure what those are as he wasn't too specific. Something concerned with speed of movement iirc.

Anyhow I'm more concerned as to whether it could cause any damage to my legs. I practice CLF and when doing horse stance we get told that you should be able to see your toes peeking out in front of your knees. However, this isnt the case for me as i wouldn't be able to maintain my balance if i tried to shift my weight, and hence my knees backward. Basically is it possible that my knees or any other part of my legs could end up 'damaged' over a long period of training?

Also what type of footwear would be recommended for training? I ended up getting shin splints recently from skipping (jump rope) barefooted. After being told i was flat footed i was told to get some appropriate footwear. In a trainer store i was told that running shoes wouldn't be suitable so i ended up getting a pair of adidas delta X. However, it seems like there is still slight pain in my shins should i be switching to running shoes for proper foot support?

[Starchaser107]

i have flat feet , and many martial artists do
i also train nothern shaolin which has similar stances to clf
flat feet haven't been a problem , but thats just my experience.

oh yeah welcome aboard .

[fa_jing]

The Yoga pose where you are sitting balanced on the balls of your feet is supposed to be good for flat feet.

[PLCrane]

Having flat feet could cause you to roll the knees inward and put more stress on them, but that's not a given. Press the knees outward and make sure your they're pointing in the same direction as the feet (in any stance).

I don't think you should guage your horse stance by whether or not you can see your toes. It depends on where you're looking from and how big your feet are. As you've noticed, there are a lot of alignments, and changing one affects the others. Your stance will change over time.

How do you get shin splints from skipping rope? Are you landing on your heels?


PLC

[AndyC]

I went to see a physiotherapist and he said that a combination of skipping (i was doing it barefooted) and long hours at work (i'm on my feet most the time) was probably what brought about shin splints. The only things recommended were to get some footwear which give proper support and ice it after training. Once the pain subsides i can perform stretches, and an exercise that was shown to me to help strengthen the muscle on the inside of the shin.

fa_jing which particular yoga pose are you talking about? Do you know it by name?

[inic]

I got flat feet too!! never really knew until I joined the army and they make you stand on a box with a mirror on teh bottom. I was first, and the guy looked down and yelled "WOW! FLAT FEET!!"
i've never had any problems, ever. Running, training, MA. Never any probs...

[Laughing Cow]

Flat feet shouldn't cause any probs in MA.

In TJQ we are also told that we should see the toes during stance training.

Knees should never got further than your toes and should always be aligned with your foot.

As for shoes, bassically any shoe should do, but afterwards go with the shoes to a good in-sole specialist and let him create in-soles for you.
Should take about 60~90 minutes for the consultation and maybe a few hours to get the in-soles done.
Don't by any ready-made, but get them made for you.

I would recommend atleast 2 sets for you:
1.) Sports shoes for MA.
2.) Shoes that you wear at work, especially if you spend a lot of time on your feet.
3.) Any other shoe that you wear on a regular basis.

Cheers.