![]() Therefore, Ishida sensei would always teach that the toes should be raised, especially the big toe, and the heels be attached to the ground. He went on to instruct that while keeping the toes down, raising the heels and bouncing on the balls of the feet to push off from or rotate from might seem natural, traditional Japanese swordsmanship stemmed from a battlefield art that required wearing of Yoroi (armour) that weighed from 20kgs (44lbs) up to 30kgs (66lbs). In fact when I asked Ishida sensei why raising the toes doesn't seem to be widely used in Japanese swordsmanship, he said it was not very common in koryū nowadays because of the influence of Kendō, Gendaibudō and other modern sports, and that particular way of moving was rarely taught anymore. Truthfully, until I met Ishida sensei I had never seen any shihan or practitioner, especially within Musashi's school of Niten Ichi-ryū, use this characteristic that Musashi admonishes, let alone any serious reasoning behind it that, in my view, had any merit. While these ideas may be true, they do little to explain how raising the toes affects the biomechanics of your body and movement, and its impact on important things like stability and weight distribution, and possible power generation through the heels. Such as, it may be easier to step on and trap an opponent's foot or to avoid stubbing your big toe on a rock when fighting outdoors. When I spoke with various senior practitioners and teachers in my early years of koryū kenjutsu training, about why Musashi instructs us to raise our toes, various theories were suggested to me. Now let's consider Musashi's comment "you slightly raise your toes and push off your foot from the heel". This is important when considering Musashi’s statement that "the way of moving is no different from normal walking on a road." The ipsilateral or namba-aruki movement has a profound impact on the human gait, and the way in which parts of the feet are used to maintain stability and generate power, that are uniquely suited to Japanese swordsmanship. ![]() This is why Bushi, centuries ago, learned to change their method of walking to an ipsilateral way, called namba-aruki, where the arm and leg from the same side of the body move together, rather than opposing sides using a natural contralateral way.Īdditionally, the contralateral movement includes a heel-to-toe walking motion, where kinetic energy transfers or rolls into the ball of the foot as the heel strikes, and then allows for pushing off the ball and toes of that foot, rather than the heel. However, within the use of weapons, especially Japanese swordsmanship, we seek to use and allow rotational trunk and aligned whole body movements to initiate and generate power, after which it's typically converted into forward momentum. It has also been shown that the contralateral arm swing has an essential role in increasing the stability of walking by preventing rotational trunk movements. The key feature is the contralateral swing of the arm and leg, along with a twisting of the waist, that results in reduced energy consumption while walking. So let's consider the second above-mentioned statement first.Ī universal feature of a human bipedal gait is an autonomic process consisting of coordinated movements of the upper extremities, lower extremities, trunk and pelvis. Musashi commented, "To move from one place to another, you slightly raise your toes and push off your foot from the heel, forcefully," and stressed "In my strategy the way of moving is no different from normal walking on a road."(1) Do not yank the line or reel too quickly, as this can cause the fish or bait to fall off the hooks.Collage of Nitō-ryū from a 1661 Denshō document Once you feel a fish biting, slowly and steadily reel in your line to hook the fish. You can also jig the rig up and down a few times to attract fish. Cast your line out into the water and let it sink to the desired depth. Shrimp and squid are extremely popular choices for most of the best bait fish to take. Make sure the bait is securely attached to the hooks. Thread small pieces of bait onto each hook, such as small pieces of squid, shrimp, fish, or other food items. ![]() ![]() Be sure to adjust the length of your leader to match the depth of the water you will be fishing in. Tie your Sabiki rig to your heavier main line using a swivel or other connector and a durable knot. Be sure to also consider the depth and water conditions where you will be fishing in case you need darker colors. Choose a Sabiki rig with the appropriate hook size and number of hooks for the fish you are targeting. Fishing with a Sabiki rig on your next trip is a fairly simple process that can be broken down into the following steps: ![]()
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