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A Quick Tip About Cat Stance

November 5, 2008 | Author: Matthew | Filed under: Bunkai, How-To, Martial Arts, Techniques, Tips and Tricks

Most people have some sort of cat stance in their style.  In karate, it is often referred to as neko ashi dachi (or neko dachi, niko dachi).  It tends to look like this -

www.karateescorial.com

Now that’s a neko dachi you can set your watch to!  Back foot at a perfect 45 degree angle, front foot with the heel raised in a high pointed fashion.  Both knees unlocked.  Most of the body’s weight being supported by the back foot, allowing the front foot to kick quickly.

This is a great stance…but a little obvious, don’t you think?

One of the most important parts of traditional martial arts is hiding intent and technique.  An opponent who is given no clues as to your next action has little chance to defend against it. This is true in both sparring and street self-defense.

If you drop into a perfect neko dachi, what does this tell your opponent?

Why telegraph both aggression and intention like that? Instead, it’s much wiser to drop the heel back down to earth and make a more subtle shift of body weight onto the rear foot.

This guy is just hanging out…or is he?  Now granted hands-in-pocket is a bad idea, but our focus is more on the stance.  This gentleman is just as prepared to kick as his karate counterpart, but could easily fit into any public scene without sending signals.

Q: So why train in the photographic, heel pointed fashion?
A: Good habit development!

If white belts were trained to be casual right off the bat, they might not grasp the proper weight distribution and heel alignment.  The instinct to balance themselves evenly or improperly would be very strong.  By keeping the heel up and the knees flexed, instructors can analyze from across the room how good a stance is.

Unfortunately, it’s easy to get stuck in that mindset and never play around with adapting neko dachi into your day-to-day life.

Here’s something fun - in normal conversations with people throughout your day, try setting prime kicking distance, and settling into the natural neko dachi that I’ve shown above.  Hypothetically, if the person you’re talking to suddenly made a move (secret ninja attack!), you should be able to stick them right in the floating ribs or knees with a solid front kick. If you’re getting weird looks from the people you’re talking to, you know you aren’t casual enough yet.  Keep tweaking it.

final thought - what we’ve got here is karate training everyday, outside the dojo, that improves technique, distancing, timing, and mindset.  What a beautiful thing!

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 5th, 2008 and is filed under Bunkai, How-To, Martial Arts, Techniques, Tips and Tricks. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

xygoxen
  • You never know when the secret ninjas will attack!
  • When clinched to an opponent, dropping your weight onto the back leg as in neko ashi dachi can sometimes be a great way of keeping the opponent of balance, allowing for the quick front leg techniques which you rightly point out.
  • I loved this post for two reasons. First, if anyone has read my blog, they know I am BIG on training in everyday life in an informal way. And also, you pointed out an obviousness (is that a word?)that I never really thought of before. That one "cat stance call out" you've made has given me ideas about trying to prep for other stances, techniques while in casual conversation. Interesting idea to work into my life. And like you said, if I'm attempting this and the person to which I'm conversing asks if I am having gastrointestinal problems, I know I'm not hiding it well enough. LOL! All kidding aside - Great post!
  • Greg: It's true. In fact...maybe you should look behind you...

    Mark: Nice point, thanks for taking this into the grappling realm.

    MAM: If you want to extricate yourself from a boring conversation, just drop down into a nice horse stance. Maybe do some straight punches too. That should do it.
  • Now that's a cat stance that this repaired ACL could handle. Casual karate, my new motto and mission in life.
  • I'll have to practice that at work--nobody will suspect anything if I'm appearing relaxed, I'm sure!
  • BBM - It's a good motto. Karate can fit any lifestyle, even folks who have grumpy knees!

    Marguerite - Cool and casual...and don't give into the temptation of actually kicking anyone ;)
  • Kuma-san
    I hope everyone can also keep in mind that the dachi (posture) is the END of the move and the real action is in the shifting from 50/50 to 90/10...it is meant for quick body shifts from attacks...cut the angle, front foot is now prepared to kick....just my observation
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