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How to walk (almost) without making noise

After having seen the introductory exercise for silent walking (read Stealth walking: an introductory exercise), we move now to the first practical technique (the one that, better than the others, describes the general method).

Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).

Before continuing it is important to stress that:

There are many techniques and variations for stealth walking, each of which adapts to different scenarios (and requires specific physical preparation)
This is the 6 Dragons Kung Fu’s “adaptation” of one of the most effective stealth methods used in Ninjutsu (read also Ninja (shinobi): who they were and how they acted)

The advantages

What we are going to describe allows at the same time:

To move at a good speed
To remain (relatively) less visible
To make a very limited noise
…

A note by Master Kongling – As we always say, in certain circumstances, it is almost impossible not to make any noise but the really important thing is to blend a limited sound impact with a harmonization with the natural dynamics of the environment.

The first stealth walking technique

Even if this is the first technique we describe, it is not easy at all. To catch all the details we have to strictly follow these learning phases:

Memorize the theory
Widely train the practice
Add one by one each detail
Merge all together
Make the execution a second nature through constant practice
Adapt the theory to us and to the scenario

The preparation:

Let’s read again the introductory tutorial quoted in the beginning (we will not repeat what we have already said)
First of all, let’s do a minimum of warm-up and stretching (read Basic warm-up and Basic soft stretching); in the most complete silence, even the best of the executions can be ruined by errors related to a cold body (like the noise of snapping bones, a sprained ankle, etc.)
Before starting, let’s prepare ourselves mentally, let’s imagine to have all the time we need, and let’s relax our body and our mind (we should not keep any physical or psychological tension / stiffness, read also Breathing for immediate relaxation)
Let’s introduce into our minds the idea that we should not try to move inside the environment as “foreign elements”, we are part of it and therefore, it is not hostile to us
Let’s choose a path from A to B (5-6m without obstacles are good to begin)
Before starting we always have to quickly plan which path is more convenient to follow (to avoid useless obstacles, dangers, forced passages, etc.)
We have to focus on the harmony of body and mind, constant balance and movements synchronized with totally noiseless breathing (let’s use silent diaphragmatic breathing, read Diaphragmatic breathing)

The stance:

Let’s imagine we want to move forward (the backward movement is a different technique that we will see)
Let’s lower our center of gravity slightly forward bending our knees, head and torso (read Kung Fu rooting: the pyramid concept)
The more we bend our knees, the more we are stable but at the same time, the more the effort will increase (read How to improve balance: tricks and exercises)
We should have one foot forward and one back (both completely flat on the ground, without folds)
90% of our weight must be on the leg behind; we must always be able to quickly retreat in case of error (eg. while leaning our foot on an unexpectedly unstable / noisy surface)
Let’s lengthen our arms gently forward, with the hands open and relaxed (the palms of the hands should be parallel to the ground)
The arms are not fully extended; our position is a mobile guard, ready to defend / attack but also to intercept eventual obstacles (eg. a branch in complete darkness conditions)
In terms of body states (read 6DKF’s interactions: from the strong blow to the light touch), our upper limbs should be fluid (ready to manage in the most silent way any contact)

The execution:

The foot that we want to move first (the one of the back leg) must be without weight even before it starts to move
The foot always raises starting from the heel to arrive then to the toes (in a natural and harmonic way)
While the foot lifts we inhale and we release our arms horizontally (to better distribute our weight in the space we are going to occupy)
During the step, the arms move in sync outward and downward, describing circles that return cyclically to the starting guard position
The foot moves with the tip inclined outwardly by 45° but trying to remain with its palm parallel to the ground (this is to say that the tip of the toes should not look upwards)
The foot goes then forward, in a quite central direction (towards our center of gravity, as if we were walking on a rope)
The length of the step depends on the type of speed we want to maintain, each situation is different (eg. in some cases is more dangerous to be slow than to make a small noise)
A long step imposes more inertia on the ground and this means more risks to make noise and more effort; in any case, it is important to always maintain the knee bent
The first part of the foot that gently touches the ground is the back-outside edge of the heel
After the heel (with a slow but gradual and continuous leaning) arrives the rest of the external edge (as drawing a half moon on the ground) until the entire foot has landed
Let’s remember that each step is always exploratory, the weight should remain on the other leg until we are more than sure that we are not risking to cause any audible reaction (or dangerous loss of balance)
If we are sure, we can fully and stably pull down the foot (only after having reached a balanced stance we can transfer our body weight)
To move the weight from the back leg to the front one we have to rotate the pelvis upward, “throwing” our torso and our arms frontward (until, from our view, we can see the knee of the advanced leg overlapping the line of the corresponding toes)
Only while we bring our body forward and we transfer our body weight on the front leg we can finally exhale (without making any noise)
When we are completely flat on the ground we have to follow the same instructions with the other foot

Important details:

Each time we execute a step sequence, let’s do it without simultaneously summing the weight of the landing foot to the one of the leaving (at least in the phase of study the 2 moments must be consequential but separate)
Let’s never load the weight of our body in the direction of the support leg; we should try to keep it in line with our center of gravity (this way we will have a better distribution of the pressure load)
The entire motion should be continuous and non-fragmented; at each step, we must start and arrive in a perfectly stable stance (ready to interact with the scenario, stand still, fight, step back, crouch, etc.)
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Final notes

As we always say, invisibility does not limit its focus on being not perceived by the senses but it extends to the idea of being mentally accepted (as much as possible) as a neutral element of the scenario (something so normal to be instinctively and logically ignored, read also Be invisible in the crowd: divert attention)
When we talk about invisibility, the implications related to each sense must be cured in detail and sight is the first one (read for example Invisibility: the best night stealth color and Invisibility: how to hide heavy breathing)
It is interesting to stress that contrary to what happens in most of the other 6 Dragons Kung Fu techniques (for movement, combat, etc., read for example How to punch (simple explanation)), the breath-out phase, is not synchronized with the landing movement, it starts only when the foot is well attached to the ground
Due to the number of details to be cured, this is not exactly a beginner-level technique; we should start to address the study of stealth walking, at least, at an intermediate level (we need for example basic standing stamina, read /// Subscribe (it's free!) or Login to see this content ///)
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In the next article of this series, we will see a few more details and fixes to solve the most common problems (read Stealth walking: tips and notes).

In-depth video courses

Basic stealth techniques – A video course about all our fundamental invisibility methods
Basic 6 Dragons Kung Fu exercises – How to bring our body to an optimal shape for stealth mobility and combat

In-depth articles

Invisibility: hiding in the shadow – How to “disappear” in low light conditions
9 teachings from the movie Batman Begins – Through a Hollywood movie, let’s learn a few stealth and self-defense tips

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

Have you tried? On the total number of steps, how many are actually silent?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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