Over your years of watching fights, you more than likely have had to opportunity to see many exceptional fighters such as Chuck Liddell, Mike Tyson, Muhammad Ali, or Anderson Silva, to mention but a few. Now try and picture in your mind what you most admired about their fighting techniques and the way they threw punches.
Next try and remember what their feet were doing at critical junctures in any given fight. That is much more difficult, isn’t it, because most people are only concentrating on a fighters hands where in reality their feet, their balance, or their base is just as important, if not more important as their hands.
A little off the subject, but still very important, do you know what the greatest golfer of all time, Jack Nicklaus said was the key to his success? He said it was what his very first golf coach taught him when he was a small child: “The key to your golf swing is your feet and the balance and base you create for yourself.”
A great fighter will always have well conditioned legs and exceptional foot work. In most instances when a fighter is in the defense mode, they will rise up on the balls of his feet, while the other fighter who is in an offensive position will attempt to strike while standing flat-footed.
There are only three types of animals that walk on their heels with humans being the most dominate one. But when we run, we do so on our toes, because it is far more efficient and effective. At the University of Utah they tested walking efficiency by measuring the amount of oxygen that was consumed over a given time frame. The experiments revealed that the best way to run was on either your toes or the balls of your feet. The best way to walk was heal to toe.
When attempting to develop a great martial arts stance for combat, there are a few key components that all champions have which are the following; where the feet are positioned, how far apart are your legs, and what is the weight distribution between your two sides.
If a fighter throws a punch when they are off balance, it will not be as nearly as powerful as it would have been if they were balanced with a great base, which would have allowed them to put everything they had into it. Even if a punch or strike is released incorrectly, if the stance is solid it will be extremely hard for an adversary to dislodge and gain advantage.
If and when you become serious about fighting and in particular martial arts, it is critical for your success that you understand that your foot work is just as important as your ability to throw a punch. An extraordinary martial arts stance always, but always starts with well conditioned legs and feet. You must also possess exceptional balance and be able to have a very strong base that will allow you to launch powerful punches.