Fencing Training Tips

Fencing, a combat sport derived from classical European sword dueling, requires extreme control, strength, dexterity and timing to excel. Fencers use an epee, a saber, or a foil, each with their own attacking methods and target areas. To develop the qualities necessary to wield one of these swords, you need a strict training regimen, designed with special exercises and drills to teach you footwork and blade techniques.

  1. Footwork

    • Proper fencing footwork involves extremely linear movement; fencing matches occur on a strip that allows little horizontal movement. Therefore, all fencing movement is forward or backward. The en garde (on-guard) stance in fencing, according to the Amarillo College Fencing Club, requires you to remain crouched with your knees bent and feet one-and-a-half foot lengths apart at right angles to one another.
      Stand in the basic en garde stance and lunge forward by extending your rear leg, pushing your body forward so your weight moves to your front leg and bending your front knee. When practicing lunges, experiment with different depths to achieve a sense of how you move and recover when moving through different distances. If possible, work in a sequence of movements. An example: shallow retreat, deep lunge, feint, shallow lunge, second position, deep retreat, fourth position, sixth position, lunge thrust, return to en garde.

    Bladework

    • Bladework in fencing involves shifting through a series of defensive positions and lunging. In fencing, the body is divided into four quadrants with a line vertically down the center and with a line horizontally across the stomach. Each quadrant has two guard positions protecting it, one with your knuckles held upward and one with your knuckles held downward. This affects the angle of your blade. Practice moving your blade through these positions. The most common parries move between fourth position and sixth position--a lateral parry across the midline of the body. Employ advancing and retreating footwork as you practice parrying. Alternate parries with lunging footwork and thrusts.

    Conditioning and Precision

    • In addition to practicing your footwork and basic bladework, incorporate other drills into your practice to condition your body and perfect your blade precision. To strengthen your leg muscles and improve your posture, take the en garde stance with your knees bent at right angles and feet pointed outward. Hold the stance for five minutes, take a break and do it again. Repeat this twice a day. Fencing moves extremely quickly--matches can be decided in less than a second. In addition, you may only target certain areas. In foil fencing, the most commonly-used sword, you may only target the torso. Stand in front of a mirror in fencing stance and examine your reflection as though it were an opponent. Attack any open spots you see, parry an imaginary counterattack to your own openings. Pick a specific point you want to attack, focus your eyes on it and attack as close to it as possible. Focus on accuracy first, then build up speed.