One of the core elements of our art is body structure. It sounds esoteric, but it really isn’t. It is just learning how to align the bones, the structure, of your body so it can absorb and transmit force. Two examples might be 1) if your hips and shoulders are out of alignment (your frame is broken) pushing with your legs won’t transmit force well to your arms and energy taken by your arms can’t be absorbed by your legs, or 2) if your elbow is out in a straight punch you won’t be able to transmit the force from your torso and legs, and when you hit the energy will be taken into your shoulder joint. The maximum power will be at the weakest connection point. With weapons the idea is the same; for example if you don’t have your elbow and body behind a gedan uke with a bo it will be pushed aside by a strong hit.

So structure is important for generating and controlling power. But to me it also does one other very important thing. It makes you faster. Not physically faster in the sense of who can run the 50 yard dash faster but martially faster, in the “leave later but arrive earlier” sense of faster. When your structure is good you don’t have to engage your muscles as much to do whatever you are trying to do, the proper structure and the mechanical advantage that confers essentially amplifies your strength. Of course this can help a smaller person be functionally stronger, but more importantly it limits extra tension in your body. When you are tight, you don’t move fast. To move in a different direction you have to first loosen the muscles in question then tighten them again to start the new movement. When they are relaxed you can just start the movement. Try it. Tighten up your arm and shoulder and then try punch as fast as you can. Now relax your arm and shoulder and do the same thing. Which happened sooner? Was faster? (Which more powerful?)

Now, taking that gedan uke with the bo example: when your structure is out of alignment you need to use whatever muscle you can to hold off the incoming strike, as getting hit would be bad. So you are tight, probably throughout much of your body, certainly your arms and core. Assuming the block works, to counter strike you then need to relax the muscles you have engaged and get them started on the strike. Your body goes from tight to loose to tight, and most likely with a broken base and from a bad position. If your alignment, your structure, is good, you just have to move from loose to tight to strike, and likely with a strong base. Fewer motions, less time, faster.

So sure structure is about balance, strength, absorption, but for me it is also about relaxation and speed. At least it should feel that way to my opponent…