Xu Bu
虛步
Literally: empty step
Also known as: Empty Stance, Xuan Ji Bu
Xu bu (虛步) is an empty wushu stance in which the entire weight rests on the back leg while the front leg only lightly touches the ground.
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Xu bu (虛步), known in English as empty stance, is an empty stance of Chinese wushu, also listed as xuan ji bu. The full body weight rests on one bent leg, while the other extends forward and only lightly touches the ground. Because the front leg carries no weight, a fast kick can be thrown from this stance. This is how xu bu differs from gong bu (70/30) and from ma bu (even 50/50). It is one of the five basic stances of contemporary sport wushu, set by the People's Republic of China, along with ma bu, deng shan bu, zuo pan bu, and fu hu bu. We have not been able to document who included the stance in the basic set of five.