Horse stance
Posture in Asian martial arts
马步
- Type
- Stances
- Martial arts
- Karate
- Japanese
- 騎馬立
- Meaning
- Horse stance/side stance
- Classified as
- stance
- Listed in
- Stances (Shotokan karate), Low frontal stances (karate stances), Gallery (karate stances)
The horse stance is a common posture in Asian martial arts. It is called mǎbù (馬步) in Chinese, kiba-dachi (騎馬立ち) (or shiko-dachi (四股立)) in Japanese, and juchum seogi (주춤 서기) or annun seogi (lit. sitting stance) in Korean.
This stance can be integrated into fighting or during exercises and forms. It is most commonly used for practicing punches or to strengthen the legs and back. The modified form of horse stance, in which heels are raised, is a fighting stance in International Karate Tournaments. The Chinese form of horse stance is a fighting stance which changes into front stance while using hip rotation to develop punching force.
Kanji in 騎馬立
Other Karate stances
- Front stance
- Hachiji dachi
- Moto-dachi
- Musubi-dachi-heiko
- Neko ashi dachi
- Sanchin dachi
- Kōkutsu dachi
- Renoji Dachi
- Zenkutsu-dachi
- Fudo Dachi
- Uchi Hachiji Dachi
- Sagi Ashi Dachi
- Chokusen-seisan-dachi
- Han Zenkutsu-dachi
- Han-Kokutsu-dachi
- Kosa dachi
- Seisan-dachi
- Sōkutsu-dachi
- Musubi dachi
- Hangetsu dachi
- Heikō dachi
- Heisoku dachi
- Karate stances
- Iaigoshi Dachi
- Shiko dachi
- Naihanchi-dachi
- Katashi Dachi
- Yama Dachi
- Teiji Dachi
- Tsuru Ashi Dachi
Japanese terms for stances
| Term | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 大上段 | daijoudan | holding a sword above one's head (kendo posture) |
| 二枚腰 | nimaigoshi | posture in which the legs are firmly planted (in sumo and judo) |
| 死に体 | shinitai | losing posture; falling position from which it is impossible to recover |
| 変わり身 | kawarimi | change of attitude (stance, position) |
| 騎馬立ち | kibadachi | horse stance |
External links
Facts from Wikidata Q1882229 (CC0); text quoted from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); kanji data KANJIDIC2 and KanjiVG. Data retrieved 2026-10-22.
Data: Wikidata (CC0 1.0); Wikipedia (English) (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.