We already knew the Japanese were ahead of their time.

For instance, centuries before absurdities like OnlyFans existed, Eastern cultures had already developed an almost obsessive attention to feet. In ancient China -and not only there- the female foot was forced to remain small.

In Japan, particular care is given -like with the rest of the body- to keeping it clean. In some way, it represents a clear boundary between a public and a private space. For this reason, the barefoot step on tatami carries not only a hygienic meaning. In a culture where people not only remove their shoes before entering private spaces but even change slippers to enter their own bathroom, accepting to place one’s body and face where someone else’s foot has passed is a powerful act of trust and acceptance.

But we are Martial Arts practitioners, and today we share a reflection on the role of the foot, comparing Aikido, Karate, and Judo.

In Aikido, the foot is essentially the base for evading an attack and then completing the action. Its main function is not to strike, but to enable body movement (tai sabaki), define clear lines, rotate around an axis, and dynamically manage space and timing (ma ai) in interaction with a partner. From proper grounding, the foot also becomes the root of the energy from which techniques emerge.

Karate, on the other hand, has developed a wide range of striking techniques using the foot -front, side, instep, and heel. Kicks allow for a very different management of distance and timing compared to closer combat systems. Grounding is still essential for transferring power, but it is built on a smaller base of support, often limited to a single foot.

Judo, by contrast, shares with Aikido an approach where the foot is not a striking weapon but a tool to break the opponent’s balance (kuzushi) through sweeps, blocks, and hooks. The “major outer reap” (o soto gari) is a clear example.

Ju Jutsu spans across these three domains depending on the family of techniques, though it tends to lean toward an Aikido-like approach, typically suited to absorbing incoming energy.

So the foot is not just support, but the very frame within which the deeper nature of a martial system takes shape. It plays a central role in the study of any martial discipline.

When observing someone with great mastery of integrated movement -whether a dancer or a Martial Arts teacher- it is always interesting to watch their feet. You will usually notice mature grounding, the ability to make subtle conscious adjustments, and the skill to combine lightness, speed, and power.

This is why a dancer would have little difficulty learning the movements of a Martial Art, just as someone highly skilled in Martial Arts would easily navigate the initial challenges of dance. But it is also exactly why a dancer usually remains a dancer, and a Martial Arts master remains a Martial Arts teacher.

It is extremely rare -almost unique- to find individuals with the same high level of competence across multiple martial disciplines. Not only because of the time required, but above all due to the fundamentally physical foundations on which each system is built. It is no coincidence that the founders of modern Budo ultimately focused on a specific path of research, however broad.

In short: if you want to understand whether a Martial Arts teacher is truly skilled, watch them closely. If they are practicing on their feet, it means they have understood everything.

Disclaimer: Picture by Arti Kh from Pexels