Parallel feet

[everything]

In some styles or postures or qigong, why do the feet have to be parallel?

[Chris McKinley]

To keep optimum skeletal structure such that there is no lateral or medial torsion stress on the knees, no lordosis of the lower spine, and no contractile shortening/over-elongation of antagonist muscle groups of the hips, pelvic girdle, lower back and lower abdomen.

[everything]

Thanks. What if one has a mild "deformity" like bowed legs or opposite, pigeon-toed or opposite, such that the skeletal structure isn't textbook "normal"? Wouldn't this requirement vary? Anyone find anything wrong or weird about this requirement in your practice?

[Chris McKinley]

Your questions about skeletal deformities is certainly relevant to the mix, and yes, with enough deformity, the requirement might vary somewhat. As to your final question, the admonition to keep parallel foot placement is anything but wrong or weird.

[Dmitri]

It's also simple geometry, as most of the time that's your best bet for stability/balance.

[everything]

It feels a little weird to me, probably from lack of good hip ROM. But also, something like bow stance with 30-45 deg difference in foot direction seems more natural for balance and mobility - forward, lateral, backward, circular.

[Walk the Torque]

As far as "styles" go, Parrallel footing greatly influences, both the strength and economy of power generation; similar to the shortening of an arc. This is why a great deal of small frame styles use parrallel footing. The spiral component of the jin is achieved by the contra-directional opposition of joints, more commonly known as coiling,twisting or wrapping. When this is done with the legs, the stepping is very small and explosive.

[DeusTrismegistus]

I am duck footed. Always have been. Thats the opposite of pigeon toed for those who don't know. As my teacher put it when I asked him having parallel feet in certain stances is ideal. We should work on increasing our flexibility until we can do that, even with a mild deformity. When I stand with my feet straight and parallel it actually puts pressure on my knee as the leg is trying to rotate out on its own. It can also be difficult to get the 45 degree angle in the back foot with stances like san ti and bow and arrow. However it is well worth it to increase your flexibility to be able to do those stances correctly. I have been working on that more than ever lately and there is a noticable impovement in power when my feet are correctly aligned.

[Chris McKinley]

Being duck-footed or pigeon-toed is almost always the result of trained muscular imbalances in the pelvic girdle and between the lower spine and abdomen. Shortening of one set of muscles and excess elongation of its antagonist partner can result in all sorts of postural imbalances that eventually "feel" normal, making true balanced posture "feel" unnatural.

As DeusTrismegistus stated, it's worth being able to achieve and maintain correct posture.

[dragontigerpalm]

Being duck-footed or pigeon-toed is almost always the result of trained muscular imbalances in the pelvic girdle and between the lower spine and abdomen. Shortening of one set of muscles and excess elongation of its antagonist partner can result in all sorts of postural imbalances that eventually "feel" normal, making true balanced posture "feel" unnatural.

As DeusTrismegistus stated, it's worth being able to achieve and maintain correct posture.

Actually, there are many who are born duck-footed or pigeon-toed and have correction made with special shoes, contraptions or surgery.

[Doc Stier]

Being duck-footed or pigeon-toed is almost always the result of trained muscular imbalances in the pelvic girdle and between the lower spine and abdomen. Shortening of one set of muscles and excess elongation of its antagonist partner can result in all sorts of postural imbalances that eventually "feel" normal, making true balanced posture "feel" unnatural.

As DeusTrismegistus stated, it's worth being able to achieve and maintain correct posture.

Agreed. Additionally, it should be noted that such abnormalities can often be corrected through a combination of chiropractic or osteopathic adjustments, classical acupuncture treatments, and reiki healing or quantum touch healing sessions, even without surgical management.

Doc

[kreese]

According to Pete Egoscue, skeletal imbalance is more likely to be muscular and soft-tissue imbalance. After reading Pain Free, I went from a bad Chen style toe-out to parallel feet and fixed so many problems (hips, back, waist) by doing so. The benefits to basic structure and movement potential continue to reveal themselves.

[everything]

Thanks a lot for these insights. Personally, I'll just keep working at it. I'd say I used to walk duck-footed and now the feet are nearly parallel after 2-3 years of slight habit adjustments.

I also have a son who walks slightly pigeon toed but stands with parallel feet or slightly pointed out. I suppose it's good he can do all 3 directions easily but I'm trying to get his walking more parallel so unnatural won't be what feels natural later for him.

Circle walking is probably the rx we both need. No contraptions, thank you.

[Wuyizidi]

In Wu Style Taiji Quan form, the feet have to parallel at all times. This is to make sure the hip is square. Fixing the hip position that way makes sure all the rotation comes from the waist. Just like keeping the foot level at all times in Bagua walking, this is for practice. That doesn't mean your feet can never be in any other position in fighting. It's designed to build the habit in another area of your body - waist (in the case of mud step - levelness of qua). Once you have that habit, you can break the rule about foot but still be correct at the waist.

The other goal this achieves is what's called Zheng Jin - "wholeness of force", meaning if you don't do this, you will not generate as much power as you could otherwise. When you are doing the form slowly, or doing stationary push hands, moving while back foot pointing outward at an angle, and therefore opening the hip outward at an angle, does not make much noticeable difference. But in a real fight, when you have to move very quickly, having the hip sideways toward the direction you want to move noticeably reduce the force of the push in the feet, and therefore the speed of the movement.

Wuyizidi

[Walk the Torque]

In Wu Style Taiji Quan form, the feet have to parallel at all times. This is to make sure the hip is square. Fixing the hip position that way makes sure all the rotation comes from the waist. Just like keeping the foot level at all times in Bagua walking, this is for practice. That doesn't mean you can never break that rule in fighting. It's designed to build the habit of really using your waist. Once you have that habit, you can break the rule about foot but still be correct at the waist.

The other habit keeping feet parallel is what's called Li Zheng - "wholeness of force", meaning if you don't do this, you will not generate as much as you could otherwise. When you are doing the form slowly, or doing stationary push hands, moving while back foot pointing outward at an angle, and therefore opening the hip outward at an angle, does not make much noticeable difference. But in a real fight, when you have to move very quickly, having the hip sideways toward the direction you want to move noticeably reduce the force of the push in the feet, and therefore the speed of the movement.

Wuyizidi

QFT