Thursday 18 September 2014

Koshi

“Feet first” is good advice in karate, as without a firm foundation most techniques will lack real power.  But when moving, it is very important that it is done with the “koshi” rather than the feet.  As this site states, “All good martial techniques arise from the koshi.”

Koshi” is the Japanese term for the hips, roughly the pelvic region between the abdomen and the top of the thighs.  It includes the seika tanden described in a previous post and is essentially the body’s center of gravity.  When moving, the “koshi” should be tensed and lead the way - the legs will automatically follow.  

One way to practice this, for example, is in shikodachi, by first turning the waist toward the front before moving forward; this can be most easily practiced at the beginning of both the Saifa and Seiyunchin kata. 

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