Hello everyone!
Thank you for reading the following blog post! I'm Kota Suzuki from Japan. I've been practicing kendo since I was seven years old in Japan－I am currently 3rd Dan. Right now, I am studying abroad in the United States and regularly practice at the university kendo club here.
Today's topic: Basic Footwork. Footwork is one of the most important elements in kendo. Kendo beginners practice footwork very frequently since they start to practice because footwork is the foundation for every parts of kendo. There are many kind of footwork in kendo, but I will focus on suri-ashi and okuri-ashi which are common footwork. Now, I'm going to write about important points of these footworks.
1. Pulling your left foot quickly
First, you should pull your left foot toward right foot quickly when you move forward. This is the most common point of kendo footwork. In kendo, your right foot should be in front of your left foot, and it doesn't change anytime in general. Thus, you cannot move anywhere if your left foot doesn't be close to right foot.
What I mean here is that pulling left foot toward right foot becomes a preparation for the next motion. If your left foot is always placed at the correct position, you are able to react any kind of movement of an opponent immediately. Therefore, it is important to pull your left foot toward your right foot quickly when you move forward.
2. Left foot not crossing over right foot
Second, your left foot should not cross over right foot. As I mentioned in the first session, your right foot is always in front of left foot in general. Even though there is a exception which is okuri-ashi, walking footwork, it is important to keep your left foot behind right foot.
Many kendoka cannot do that especially for okuri-ashi. Okuri-ashi is a footwork that you use after striking and going through. That is because okuri-ashi is the very fast movement among kendo footwork. However, it is important to follow this basis in order to move more smoothly.
3. Foots not rising up from the ground
Third, your right foot and left foot should not rise up from the ground. This point apply especially to suri-ashi which is a tiny footwork during seme. It is slightly harder that the other two points, but it is actually very important. If your foots rise up from the ground, your motion would not be smooth and your reaction to an opponent would be late.
Some kendoka struggle in moving on the ground smoothly because the foots don't slide on the ground well. It really depends on the groung condition because it is hard to slide on the sticky floor. However, you should try not to rise up from the ground as much as you can when you practice suri-ashi.
If you would like to learn more about the basic footwork, I recommend you watch this video on my youtube channel. I've added English subtitles on the video, so I hope you can enjoy watching!
Thanks for reading this blog post! I believe that footwork is the most important in kendo, so remember the three points that I explained today when you practice footwork next time. If you have any questions, please leave comments below. Make sure to give me a thumbs-up and subscribe to this blog!
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