Stepping (Omgyo Didigi)

The basic principals of stepping are:

• The body must always be half facing the opponent when stepping forwards or backwards

• Both knees should be slightly bent during stepping

• The foot should be moved smoothly, not dragged or lifted up, leaving the floor by around 1 cm.

• The toes/ball of foot should always land first to aid control of the movement

• We follow an “out curve” foot motion , in which the stepping foot reaches its destination passing though the centre line between the feet.

The same concepts hold true for L-,rear foot, fixed and low stances as well.

When moving sideways, in say sitting stance (which we often call a foot to foot move) transfer the weight to the supporting leg, move the free leg, as the feet come together, keep the heel of the first foot slightly off the ground, then transfer the weight to this foot, allowing the second foot to move in arc (allowing for the use of hip twist and knee spring to increase the power).

Turning 180° (Step turn or Spot turn, (Gujari Dolgi))

To turn 180° we use a two part movement. First the pivoting foot is placed on a point that joins an imaginary heel line of the pivoting foot with the centre line between the feet. This is the step part, note that the front foot is now at a15° angle, then you pivot on the ball of the foot (the turn part), and then you complete the movement allowing the hips to generate the direction of travel.

Turning 90°

When turning through 90°, the rear foot is usually the pivoting foot. The front foot traces an arc as the body rotates through 90°. As always, pivot on the ball and keep the knees bent to maintain good balance.

Turning 270°

When turning through 270° (what we call the special turn when we are teaching the children), it the front foot that usually acts as the pivot point. The rear foot goes around behind you, tracing an arc as the body moves through the 270°.

Sliding (Mikulgi)

The aim here is to covering a reasonably long distance (1 shoulder width) in one smooth motion.

Shifting

Here we are dealing with much smaller distances than a slide. The idea is just to create enough room for the movement that follows. The distance shifted is usually only around 2 inches (5-6cm).

Consecutive kicks

Consecutive kicks refers to a situation where a sequence of two different kicks are performed with the same foot with a very brief intermediate time that does not cut the continuity of the movement. One breath for each movements and normal sine wave at the end of the sequence.