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Thoughts on Footwear

November 30, 2009 | Author: Matthew | Filed under: Martial Arts, Opinion, karate, self defense

It’s important not to leave your martial arts at the dojo door. All too often the training floor and ‘real life’ serve as different worlds, never touching but allowing people to transition back and forth.

The problem with such a separation is that training becomes something abstract. Something that exists while wearing a white gi, colored belt, no shoes, and a well established sense of space. The experienced practitioner will realize that it is crucially important to take concepts, both mental and physical, out of the dojo and into day-to-day activity.

Acquiring a mindset that follows the martial way involves honing the natural abilities of perception and preparedness. Today I’d like to focus on one little matter that many people overlook – footwear.

The Old School

Most martial arts training is done barefoot. Why?

The answer is a two-parter. First, a lot of training (both now and back then) took place indoors. This is more true to Japan than Okinawa, but true for both nonetheless. For Japan, most techniques required secrecy from other clans. Therefore it was prudent for them to train behind closed doors in buildings with high windows. In Okinawa there was a lot of backyard training done during earlier generations, but things ultimately moved indoors similar to what we see today. And, as is still a part of Asian culture, people take off their shoes when entering a building to avoid tracking dirt and damaging flooring.

Second, people simply didn’t have a lot of money to spend on shoes, so they went barefoot. The main shoes of the common class were predominantly Geta and Zori, both of which were designed for environmental needs.

the zori are the very standard sandals you see in the black and white photo above. Geta are of wooden construction and involve raised platforms. Due to the changing weather patterns of Japan, individuals used geta to stay out of snow, rain puddles, and mud while gaining an element of traction in those slick conditions.

The martial tradition of no shoes (or at maximum sandals) is still with us today and is an ingrained part of traditional training. We shouldn’t, however, assume it is the ultimate option in footwear for real life. After all, don’t you think low ranking Japanese soldiers would have loved water proof hiking boots with traction soles and a lightweight steel tip toe?

The New School – Embrace Your Options

You and I are part of the new school, and we have more options that we know what to do with. Every mall contains 20-30 shoe stores with walls of shoes spanning the gamet of casual, hiking, work, dress, running, skateboarding, and who knows what else. They are all specially designed to optimize performance and comfort for various activities.

A lot of people think that bare feet provide the best feedback to the ground, and they’re right. Unfortunately, most ground these days involves some sort of concrete, hardwood, or blacktop. As good as bare feet might be for gripping grass and earth, they are not particularly good for negotiating loose gravel on a sidewalk. In fact, that’s a really quick way to get your soles torn up. In our modern day world, the best option is the scientifically designed rubber found on the bottom of most sneakers. After all, people don’t drive their cars on bare rims for a reason.

Thinking Self Defense

When considering real self defense or life protection, shoes are where it all starts. How you interact with the ground is going to greatly effect what you are capable of. As discussed previously, the most important factor is what kind of grip your shoe soles will give you. If you spend all day on the beach, I give you my bare foot blessings, but for the rest of us we have to consider different surfaces. Furthermore, we have to consider the day-to-day dress we have to wear for responsibilities such as work, weekend excursions, dates, etc.

Some people worry that shoes will hinder kicking, but I think the opposite is true. In classical Okinawan karate, there are a lot of toe kicks that are used to penetrate vital points. It can take many years to develop the kind of conditioning required to make toe kicks work. However, if you happen to be wearing shoes with a decent sole (or steel toe), you can immediately begin to penetrate without damage to your feet.

Other more typical kicks benefit as well. Good shoes protect both the instep and ball of the foot while providing a solid base with your support leg.

What about other shoes though like high heels? We can’t all go around in hiking boots all day. Heels and other less stable shoes come with the added responsibility of knowing their strengths and weaknesses.

On the plus side, heels offer a great resource for stomping and thrust kicking (especially to the feet, shins, knees, and even groin). The problem is that they are a real hassle to run in, and offer very little in the way of grip and traction. Furthermore, it can sometimes be difficult to kick them off when in a panic and hurry without injuring oneself.

Modern sandals and flipflops suffer from some of the same problems. They provide little in the way of traction and can’t really be kicked off to any benefit (as in to distract an opponent). In fact, as you twist and turn in a grapple situation, they will likely get caught up in your toes and create additional pain.

Every other kind of shoe can be analyzed in this fashion, and should be if you intend to wear them regularly. This includes kung fu shoes, Vibrams, Crocs, and Ugg boots.

Final Thought – Reverse It!

So far all we’ve talked about is bringing the dojo out into real life. What about bringing real life into the dojo!? Of course I don’t suggest you start wearing shoes on your training floor because that is both a faux-pas and destructive to the floor, but that doesn’t mean you can’t train outside. Find some open space and feel what it’s like moving around, trying techniques, and gripping one-another in a non-dojo environment. Heck take it one step further and wear street clothes.

You may be interested in what you find, and at the very least it will be a fun change of pace!

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This entry was posted on Monday, November 30th, 2009 and is filed under Martial Arts, Opinion, karate, self defense. 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
  • Hi Matt
    The only time I have trained in shoes was when our training session got moved into the school dining hall (we're usually in the gym) for a couple of sessions and the floor was so dirty and sticky we couldn't train bare foot. It felt really different with shoes on - the legs felt weighted down (I only had light trainers on) and turning during kata practice was more difficult. A lack of sensitivity in the feet was very noticable and affected kicking - I couldn't perceive how hard I'd hit the target (a pad in this case). I think we should definitely train occassionally in shoes - it takes a bit of adjusting too.
  • Hey Sue. Yea I agree, it definitely alters your perception and that specific sensitivity one has while bare foot in the dojo. The legs definitely do feel a bit hindered too, but eventually you get used to that I think.
  • Hi Matt. You made some good points there, specifically when you talk about using your foot wear to your advantage when it comes to kicking. When doing self defense techniques in my club we always do mawashigiri with the toes curled back, striking with the ball of the foot (as opposed to the flat of the foot) because we know we'll be wearing shoes outside and striking as such will provide for extra penetration, as you pointed out.

    It's also a very good idea to train outside of the dojo occasionally, preferably in street clothes, if only to step outside of the comfort zone and experience the difference in trying to apply techniques in tight clothing and in an outside environment.

    My dojo is pretty cold at the moment, it being winter, so I can hardly feel my toes after training. They go numb with cold! At this time of year I wish shoes were allowed in the hall! It's character building, I suppose...
  • MikeOliveri
    Good post. My dojo instructors often say try to incorporate our street clothes into our workout for the same reason, especially our shoes. I tend to wear motorcycle boots, which are both heavier and have a thicker sole with a rigid edge in front of the toes. I think they make kicks a bit more effective, but they are very different to move around in from barefoot in both the carpeted dojo I normally work out in and the mats at our main dojo.

    I don't do it regularly, but I try to remind myself to do so from time to time.
  • Mike - yea those cycle boots will definitely change up your strategy a little bit. Certainly you wouldn't be relying on lightning fast snap kicks, but could penetrate a lot more with whatever kicks do land. I wouldn't want to get kicked by them!
  • Because Krav Maga isn't a traditional system, my instructor encourages us to train in different clothes; everyone trains wearing sneakers of some description, but I have tried training in a pair of military boots I tend to wear a lot. I found that my kicks became much slower and easier to deal with for other people. however, the weight of the boot would definitely increase the damage done if the kick connects.

    I had considered this before, and I would have to say that a great shoe to be wearing if one should encounter some sort of dangerous situation would be something similar to a pair of converse; lightweight, easy to run in, and easily replaced!!
  • Jack - this is one area where I do try to learn from styles like Krav Maga and follow a good example set by them.
  • LD
    Interesting article (as always:) I wear work boots every day (own a garden center), so I often practice with those on. It really does give a different feel to things, and I find the added weight of the boot tends to make me slow down and concentrate on good form - not to mention the extra workout for the legs!
    This is my first comment, so just wanted to add that I really enjoy your blog:)
  • LD - thanks a lot for commenting! I'm glad to hear your input here. It is definitely interesting how boots like that can change the game up.
  • Great post Matt. I am a strong fan of training with shoes and I alwasy spend part of each lesson practicing with them on. As you pointed out when people question me on the topic I always refer to the example: "unless you are attacked while on a beach it's likely you'll be wearing shoes". I usually go one step forward by testing any pair of new shoes I buy to feel how they react to the various movements involved in a kick and how is their grip on the floor or while standing on one leg... quite geeky I know.
  • That's great Massimo, definitely a regiment the rest of us could learn from. Also don't worry about the geekiness - we fellow geeks understand, haha.
  • Hi Matt,

    I lived in Southern California for a long time. When I was a young adult I practiced kicking my flip flops at someones face. I was pretty good at it. Had someone messed with me that would have been "blindsided' by my sandal, followed by a quick lunge punch. :)
  • Hye John - who knows, perhaps I wrote off the flip flop kick too easily! It just seemed like a difficult skill to develop and use in the heat of the moment. Also, from my gravelly PA perspective, it then left you barefoot which is a slight disadvantage for traction and safety.
  • Good point Matt, While I would not depend on that too much as it was kind of like throwing a cup of coffee at an attacker - I was able to do better rear or side (with my heel extended) kicks better bare foot. I would have had to keep from stepping on glass or getting frost bite. :)

    Joe Lewis had a funny story once (not all footware is equal) where he was playing body guard and had to fight some guys with sneakers on. He side kicked one of the guys hard and the guy got knocked over and came back up! He decided that the next time he'd wear boots. :)
  • "Those shoes look great on you!"
    Just kidding.
    Many, many moons ago, when I started studying Shotokan karate my instructor led all of us newbies out of the dojo with hardwood floors.
    We did a run around town on the sidewalks for about 20 minutes.
    30 white gi, made up of 29 white belts and 1 black belt.
    Sure got people turning their heads and new sign-ups for the next beginners' classes.
    All while running.... you got it: without any shoes.
    Still makes me chuckle today.
    Have a great Sunday!
  • hahaha. I'm glad SOMEONE appreciated my xray.
  • Hey Matt!
    It's been a while since I was able to look in last. I love this one about the differences between then and now on training methods. It has been a bone oc contention for a while between me and some friends who also train but in more "modern" styles and methods. I am a big believer in traditioonal karate training and that there is still great value in traditional methods even if the world has changed alot. And, while I agree minor adjustments should be made here and there to accomodate for these changes, I bristle when someone says the "old school" ways are outdated and a waste of time. This narefoot training arguement has always been the "go to" move for some who disagree with me. Yes I think shoes can be useful in a fight and some training should be committed to that end...social changes this slight are not a good reason to abandon a training methodology that (as a whole) has worked so well for so long. But, just my thoughts. Take care man!
  • Hey Marc, thanks for stopping in! Appreciate your thoughts, as always. Yea I definitely don't think the traditions of classical training should be abandoned. Especially if a person is able to make minor accommodations to prepare for modern circumstances. In that way you get the best of both worlds.
  • Stan
    Greetings, All!

    Two thoughts about shoes: My first instructor (TKD) also worked as a bouncer in a bar in Milwaukee. One night, when threatened by a pair of "gents," he warned one that "with one blow I will break 20 bones in your body." When the guy swung on him, my instructor stomped on his foot with the heel of his boot. The technique seemed to work, since the guy's buddy helped him limp away.
    Second point: Since I focus my training in DZR Jujitsu, I usually train barefoot in the dojo, but we will, occasionally practice in the park. I recently purchased a pair of VIbram "FiveFinger" shoes, which look like "gloves for your feet." The change in balance from wearing sneakers is very noticeable. They probably wouldn't add much advantage to my foot strikes, but they offer a more stable platform for stances and throws.
    Thank you for the blog. It's always nice to have a place to share information and insight.
  • Thanks for your input and for sharing your experience dragon! I've never experienced the Vibram's for myself but am hearing more and more about them.
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