The purpose of the stance is to teach musculo-skeletal alignment that adds as much mass of the earth to a strike as possible.

In Japanese martial arts, the front stance (前屈立ち, zenkutsu-dachi) is primarily practiced in karate and its variants.

The purpose of the front stance is to provide stability while projecting the body weight forwards, such as when punching.

The back stance is by contrast used when the body weight or center of gravity is positioned on the rear leg, such as when leaning backwards to avoid an attack.

The front stance is primarily practiced by students of taekwondo, where it is called ap kubi.