Jeet Kune Do's Bi-Jong

[JKDfreak]

Yeah it's me again!!!
I know I have to look for a school but the problem is there is no school where I live.So the only way I can learn a few things about JKD is to buy books and VHS or DVD's about Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do.I already bought 2 books and I'm looking for others but I think I can find a few informations here???
So my question today is the Bi-Jong.I already know how to stand in the Bi-jong.But I don't know the feet positions:the rear foot has it's heel raised and angled at a 45° angle to the outside?
My problem is the front foot:it stays flat on the ground but light ready to kick.The thing is in my books it is written that while in the Bi-Jong my front knee should be turned inwards as well as my hips.It is also written that the front foot should be angled at a 25°angle but should it be angled inward like in the Wing Chun Yee Gee Kim Yeung Ma stance or slightly outward.As well my left shoulder should be pushed back.
So I hope any feedback on this.
Thanks.

[Brokenmace]

Sometimes, things are described more precisely than necessary. The angles aren't all-important. That's one of the reasons instructors are so helpful. Everyone's body is different. If the bi-jong feels totally uncomfortable, you are doing it wrong! The common problem I find with students is that they are too lined up. Step out with your rear foot a little, so your feet are shoulder with (or ever-so-SLIGHTLY more). Bend your knees. The tip of your front toe shouldn't go past your groin, and your weight should be almost even on both feet (a little more on your rear, but not to the point of discomfort).

The angle of the front foot should be such that your foot is flat and your knee isn't strained to keep it that way. Once you find that you are straining your knee, turn your foot back out on the ball of the foot, not the heel. The edge of your foot should be almost aligned with your thigh.

Relax. If you find friends to spar with, the feeling will become natural.

Hands up, chin down, elbows in, and you're good.

[JKDfreak]

Thanks Brokenmace and thanks for your reply on the footwork board.What you said is true:I will find my stance by study it and spar with it.It helped a lot.My Bi-Jong feels natural when my front foot toes point to my opponent.I think this is where I am the most comfortable.

[terry]

The bi-jong that Si Jo Lee used evolved quite a bit over time. When he first got to the U.S. and was teaching in Seattle the stance was heavily influenced by western fencing, i.e., front foot straight forward and the back foot facing 90 degrees to the side like riding a skateboard. You can see this among the people trained by Taky Kimura and Jesse Glover. Note: Even these guys were trained differently.

Lee continued to modify the stance--sometimes on a weekly basis according to Sifu Dan--when he got to the Bay Area, so the guys there do it a little bit differently. By the time he got down to L.A. he had a heavy boxing influence in his stance, such that the movement and foot positions changed a lot.

However, that isn't the end of the story. After Lee's death Sifu Dan changed it again when he met Ajarn Chai. (This really pisses off the traditionalists--if there can be such a thing in JKD.) Ajarn Chai could kick him at will any time he did the slide-and-step footwork to bring his legs together. In fact, Ajarn Chai's students further proved the vulnerability of the slide-and-step launch to kicks when (ahem) we [sic] broke the fibula at the ankle of several senior JKD students at the old Torrance Academy. So, Sifu Dan modified the stance to a more Thai-based approach in which the feet are more at 45 degrees and the legs rarely come together.

Having lived in all three cities and trained with people in all these places I much prefer the newer L.A. approach with the Thai influence. It is interesting and beneficial to research the old training methods, especially because some of those guys got a lot of stuff out of a much smaller body of material. But if you do this you'll soon realize that the May, 1963 curriculum is different than the August 1963 curriculum, and that is a whole lot different than the June 1969 curriculum, and totally different than the April 1979 curriculum. There is something to be learned in each of these curricula. But things kept changing and evolving--as they were meant to.

Terry

[Brokenmace]

No problem. One thing, though. Your front foot turns inward slightly because your knees tend to follow your toes. You want your front knee bent toward the opposite side of your body slightly to protect your groin.

It should be impossible for some one to throw a kick directly to you groin without zoning left or right, unless its an arching kick, like a hook or savate kick. That's why the knee/shin kick is so effective against many fighters.

Don't let anyone fool you: the force of a whole body torquing into a knee is no joke! Even in the Thai boxing stance severe damage can be done if the kick lands squarely.

Your knee is vulnerable, unless you know how to zone, shield, and replace-step, but better the knee than the groin.

[JKDfreak]

Thanks a lot for the story and the explanations.I'll simply spar with my friend in my original stance and tell him to kick me in the groin."OUCH!!!!"Then I'll see what's wrong with my stance and modify it.

[Fighter]

Sparring is one of the most important part of training to fight, good for you that you are experimenting with training.

You may have read this in another of your posts but have you got all the LEE books yet. Id like to discuss them.