Historical Pedagogy

Footwork Drills You Can Do Alone

By HILT Official · Jul 06, 2026 · 8 min read

Six HEMA footwork drills you can practise solo, no partner and barely any space required, plus how to make sure you're not just grinding in bad habits.

Your Feet Lose Fights, Not Your Hands Ask any experienced fencer where beginners actually lose and almost none of them will say the sword. They'll say the feet. Wrong distance, late step, weight on the wrong leg, chasing when they should be holding. The blade gets all the attention because it's the shiny bit, but footwork is what puts the blade where it needs to be. Good footwork drills fix more of your fencing than any amount of cutting practice. The good news is that footwork is the one part of HEMA you can genuinely train alone. You don't need a partner, you don't need a feder, and you…

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