Navigation | Karate | Karate Stances

Kokutsu Dachi

Kokutsu dachi is a karate stance. Pronounced 'co-cut-so-datch'. Known more commonly as the Back Leaning Stance. This is quite a narrow stance because both heels of the foot are kept in line. The front leg is stretched out but with a slight bend of knee while the back leg is heavily bent at the knee and contains about 70-80% of your body weight. The length of the stance is that of at least two widths of the shoulders.

The back foot is pointed out to the side at a right angle to the front foot which should be pointing directly ahead. This stance is useful for pulling back on an opponent, or leaning away from an attack. Kokutsu Dachi is used across Asian Martial Arts systems and perhaps can be seen most in the style of Shotokan Karate, the back leaning stance can be seen in many of the shotokan katas and forms.

Remaining in this stance is a great way to help build strong muscles in both the legs and particularly the knees and also is good for building the lower back muscles.