Huh, I don't buy the fully extended leg argument, as far as I can tell a man of Brennus' height would cover about two feet with his arms, allowing for his sword to reach about two feet (probably more), that leaves a maximum of three feet (in the farthest example) to cover with his step in order to reach his opponent with the tip of his sword. That's hardly fully extended.

I also don't understand the 'charged' foot thing, unless there's something wrong with me I actually find it somewhat easier to bounce backwards when I've stepped as far forward as possible (which for me is like four feet) I'm not trained or anything, but I'm still able to perform the action quickly.

Maybe the issue here is I'm imagining the distance from my own perspective, seven feet is negligible to me because it's only just above my own height, especially when holding a big stick. I should point out though that on the flip side I can measure six/seven feet very easily, it's basically just me lying down. That's NOT a very far distance, especially with a tool.