Moving While Marching?

Question

My upper body moves a lot when I march. Our opener is going at 192 on a metronome and I having a hard time marching perfectly at 150. I need a few tips on how to keep my upper body from moving. I play alto sax if that makes a difference.

Answer 1

lots of comments already about foot technique (roll foot, hype the toes etc,...) but it sounds more like your issues are upper body & posture related.

1. tighten your glutes (butt muscles) while marching---this corrects alot of posture & wiggle issues

2. have somebody film you so you can see how bad it is & whether the posture trick helps

Answer 2

Extend with toe up and then glide step

So stick out your leg with toes all the way up

Gently land your heel on the floor

Fall down on the heel you just planted gently and roll your body forward at the same time

As your body is rolling forward, use your other foot to push off the ground so you keep your momentum without bouncing up and down

Practice makes perfect :)

If you're going at 192, then your distance from one spot to the next drill spot shouldn't be that far right?

It should be pretty easy to keep your head steady

If you are going a short distance, you would do a slight variation of the above. Your feet ( just the feet part) will move like it's pedaling a bicycle

Answer 3

Ditch the core band and join a marching band

Answer 4

You need to roll your feet.

From Heal to toe all the way. this should steady your upperbody.

Which is called "ROLLING FEET" =]

You need to start at a steady pace and then go up to tempo. Once you have mastered the set tempo for the first movement, by the third (which is usually faster because it's the closer) you will be ruler of all woodwind instruments. =]

Answer 5

watch "the music man," there is marching in that movie- and you can learn techniques from them.

Also, drumline is good for marching. But most importantly, have fun!

Answer 6

That's way fast.  If you marking time, don't lift your legs too high.  Try to minimalize all body movements, especially your legs.  In short, less flailing, more 'tone it down.'