Hit a plateau? Check your footwork

Sometimes the answer isn't a new action. It might be that your footwork breaks down before your opponent's does.

Fencing is starting to get better at measuring what happens on the strip. We're seeing more data visualizations on blade movement, footwork, distance and the actions fencers actually take during a bout are being measured more.

And I suspect some of that data will put numbers around something coaches have been saying for years: footwork isn't just something to practice. It's most of the game.

As someone who came to fencing from running, it seems long overdue. To improve, runners have been measuring pace, cadence, stride length and heart rate forever. Fencing is just starting to catch up.

I've watched fencers with running backgrounds leapfrog more technically polished competitors because they could keep moving. Not necessarily better. Just longer. Their footwork in bout nine still looked like their footwork in bout one. Same cadence, same capability to execute.

The next time you watch a bout, count the steps.

Not scientifically. Just notice. Who moves constantly? Who moves deliberately? Does their footwork change as the tournament goes on? What happens when they get tired?

One action this week: Watch one bout and ignore the blades. Watch the feet instead. Count the steps and see what you notice.