Kyokushin karate stances are among some of the most common in karate. Some of the basic stances are done by:

• Taking a step forward and rotating inward the hips. Keep the rear foot a bit behind the front foot and about shoulder width apart. Fists should be raised to a specific position. The back fist should be by the person’s chin, while his front fist should be next to his cheek. This is an offensive stance.

• Change to defense. A defensive stance can be taken when a person opens up his or her hands from the fists that they were in at the starting stance. On defense, it is important to stay light on one’s feet and be ready to move. Shift your weight from one foot to the next as you keep hands open in front of you.
Then, the legs should be squared and the fists should be placed near the hips. A fighter should always keep the back straight and eyes moving to be alert to the surroundings.

• Another of these karate stances requires the fighter to stand with feet just a little less than shoulder width apart. Then, one large step should be taken with the left foot. After this is done, the fighter’s left knee should be bent so that it is in the same line as the toes. Two fists should be made. The first fist should be down, while the other fist should be brought around to the rib cage.
Learning each of these karate stances can help a person in a situation when his or her karate skills may need to be used.