Kick to the head?

[pgm316]

A survey to get a general consensus on the already big thread! ;)

Entitles “Whats wrong with high kicks?”

[Cain]

High risk move use carefully, but don't ignore it :D

PS - Good idea :D

|Cain|

[TkdWarrior]

high risk move
-TkdWarrior-

[Mike Flanagan]

Aw shucks, there isn't an option saying "kick him in the head, but only when its below your waist"

Mike

[KickChick]

YAY!!!
(whatta relief)... Yes it is a high risk for sure but don't dismiss the high kick entirely!!
Yes good one! :)

[pgm316]

I didn't say the person was stood up! :D

If its high risk, is it worth the risk?

[Cain]

There's a difference between high risk and too risky :p

|Cain|

[Joe karate]

Only if his head is on the ground. I'd rather use kicks for other things, the knees! Besides high kicks really expose your groin ALOT.

[grandmaster mat]

is this in sparring or a real fight? in sparring yea all the time i do tae kwon do lol, in a real fight only if they r hurt and i have enuf time to get it in!, an axe kik to the bak is good when they r goin down

[c_storm51]

I think while sparring, it's fair game - all padded up etc. I would be very wary about using it in a street situation - could land you in serious trouble if you pull off a clean hit....

[darlph]

I keep my kicks about mid-range and then fake and surprise the he-- out of them. Alot of people can't believe my flexibility with cresent and from kicks off the front leg.

[Phi Nguyen]

I have to really stop myself from doing this when I play scoccer, because when the ball is in mid-air, I have the urge to jump up, and kick the ball before the other guy gets it, but if I do this, I'm afraid I might kick the other guy in the face. If only....

[KarateKid1975]

I like high kicks, just to know I can ;) I didn't used to, so I came a long way. But in a real fight, no. Too risky.

[Sweeet]

2.

It really depends on the situation, as any question involving a particular technique would.

For me, being 6'2 and fairly flexible really helps. That tips the scales of probable situations in favor of me being taller than the other person and likely being able to throw in a quick kick should the opportunity present itself.

My crescent kicks can be quite quick, powerful, and low risk in a sense - even if they're blocked, they are powerful enough to do a fair bit of damage to the arm. As well, a good snapping side-kick to the head (not a fancy, distanced, properly postured one) could be wicked - and done in less than a second with great effect.

I doubt I'd try it myself in a fight, but I can scare people with it when I'm sparring :)

[Jamo]

Hello All,

Bruce Lee never used high kicks until Chuck Norris taught him the importance of having that 'tool' in his repertoire. Head kicks are great...dangerous to use ad nauseum, but great! I usually use one or two in a five minute spar session, but I usually do a lot of setting up to have my opponent get comfortable (or nervous) enough to drop their guard and start blocking their body...then I get it there and out as quick as I can. Getting your leg swept out from under sucks, and getting caught in a single leg takedown sucks even more.

Be careful out there.

Jamo

[Shadowchild]

I used to kickbox, and then went over to ju-jitsu... I $hit myself the first time I was taken to the ground!!! Kick to the groin on solar plexus, fine. Anything above that is too difficult to land, let alone get enough power behind it.

[Jamo]

Yep...I believe what it boils down to is, "don't use what you can't perform with absolute physical and mental assurity. If your body is not flexible enough, or if a head kick opens you up too much, or if you have any fears about ending up on your butt, back, etc., then don't do it...otherwise, throw with extreme caution.

Jamo

[Sonshu]

And most people I know, I find it offers nothing a low kick or middle kick cant do.

Too much to set up and if it goes wrong its all over - for me anyway.

SONSHU

[Knight_Errant]

A good 'surprise, surprise' tool for if you've somehow managed to get onto his rear blind side.

[Kwan Jang]

-For the street, can be good if used well with caution. It gives more options. If you are a Bill Wallace-level kicker, you can pull this off under many conditions. If your high kicks are not rock solid, don't even try. Even if you are a world class high kicker, the low line kicks still should be your main line of kicking attack.

[Zen Master]

I prefer shin blasts, safer an easier

[oneil357]

Great for showing off even better for getting shown up!

"Violence can only be stopped by greater violence" Bruce Lee

[thiaboxr2]

High risk.

It can leave you off balance IF you are not carefull. But its still good to know how to do them. Because you never know what to expect from your opponent/ attacker.

[Topher]

What about the back kick, either in sparing or street.

[tai-gip]

Great fun when your in elbow range striking to the body and kicking in the head..... though not my first option its fun to play with

[Kof_Andy]

Lol. You actually believe that crap? I never met Chuck Noris in person, but I seen his kicks and footwork in Bruce Lee's movies and is awful. I just cant stand him on screen or Taxes Ranger. Is bag of lies. The guys totally mocking Bruce Lee by saying stuff like that. If only Bruce Lee's still alive to back that up.:Angel:

[Kat]

Combat situation
Total waste of energy and movement.Would much rather spend time training alternative methods.Would stomp/ knee the head if they are on the ground.

Comp: totlally different,up to the rules,but usually they are a good tool given the opportunity timing distance.

[chaozkingz]

very risky. i have pulled off a few good ones though, but only if it is really really there. again, it all depends on the situation.

[TheBorderer]

I voted for the 2nd one, granted being at the level in the art I study that I am, maybe I am not truly 'qualified' for an opinion, but seeing as I voted I shal express it nevertheless! :)

The way I see it tho, one could argue that in effect all moves in any art have an ammount of 'risk' to it, I know I'm being perdantic to a point, but true. Say for example you throw a 'safer' mid level kick, if you end up mucking up your balance, you'll fall over, or you throw a punch and someone is able to grab it and then force you to the ground, but then you train of course so that the liekly hood of that risk, is lessened.

As has been said it does depend on the situation (obviusly you could quite easily get away with a high kick and not be totally hurt due to the nature of the rules and so on), but also as to how well you can execute a move (in this case a high kick) and how confident you are in doing so if you have to (of course there are those who'd say that in a 'street' or self-defence scenario, the best defence is not to be in that situation in the first place!).

Just my thoughts there...

[johndoch]

Personally wouldn't use it myself. If I had time to kick someone on the head I would have more time to kick them to mid or low level and recover quicker.

[Spikedude]

i say use em but with less force Ive seen way too many shots to the face from UFC and Pride FC with shots to the head that ended wrong. this one guy got hit wit a roundhouse so hard that his two front teeth shot out his mouth into the crowd.

[shotokanwarrior]

definitely kick to the head, if you are swift and agile. i don't think they are high risk, i use them frequently in kumite.

[Anth]

I chose high risk. if i was sparring i would use it because it would mean that its harder for my oponent to get me above the belt but if it was in the street id just go for a punch to the solar plexus then get out of there.

[47Ronin]

I've done them a few times but I try to stick low. High risk for me.

[surgingshark]

Aw shucks, there isn't an option saying "kick him in the head, but only when its below your waist"


that poor little elf...

[Anth]

hey surgingshark, if your on about me only kicking to the head in competitions i find it a good way of keeping an opponents distance and getting a wazari or ippon before he/she can get me. like i say, if it was in the street, id just go for a gyakazuki (reverse punch) to the solar plexus, a lot less risky.

[Redhotdragon]

i'm not naturally flexible at all and in the street i dont think i'd be able to kick to the head.....in the dojo however, after a bit of stretching- roundhouse to head is always nice :-)

[surgingshark]

hey surgingshark, if your on about me only kicking to the head in competitions i find it a good way of keeping an opponents distance and getting a wazari or ippon before he/she can get me

I wasn't. Look carefully at my previous post and you'll get the joke ;)

[Topher]

Personally, in sparring as long as there controlled but in self defence, i'll think more about my safety than my attackers.

[Poop-Loops]

I only kick to the head when I see that my opponent is using one move over and over. Then I kick. He says "oh, I forgot we can kick to the--" BOOM! Again.

Other than that, I never plan it.

PL

[crovax612]

My teacher has taught me never to use high kicks in a streetfight, even mid level roundhouses are too risky in his opinion. I don't think most people would expect a roundhouse to the legs or be used to it (too worried about punches). "Openhand strikes/elbows to the face, punches to the body and thai kicks to the legs" He tells me, as well as knees, hammershots, forearm smashes etc..

[Grifter]

I say High risk but dont ignore them. Just look at Crovax sig and see how devastating they are. Sure in a street fight it would be more difficult to pull it off. But that just means you have to be more careful and only use it if you know you can do it. Wouldnt be something I frequently try to use though.


Hahaha I got the joke SurgingShark.

[Serpico]

First it all depends on how good you are with high kicks. Secondly, it's a risky technique no matter how good you are with it. It's a good tool to keep in your tool belt, but don't go swinging it around all the time or your gonna' hurt yourself. Third, I'm only five and a half feet tall, so high kicks can be very risky for myself, especially against a tall opponent.

[Albert]

Its not all that high risk if your a very very good kicker.
And yes, its much less of a risk if you throw your opponent onto the ground, and then kick his head.:)
Also, it has to do with height, if the person is at a good height for you to reach there face fairly easily, then its an intelligent move, rather than high risk.

[Paratus]

I kick to the head for me, isn't that high risk. This is due to my height, for me to kick face height for most people is not that much higher that my waist height kick

[grimel]

Terry O'neil. If you're in his class go for it. For us mere mortals - no thanks.

[Judderman]

Kicks to the head. In a self defence situation. Nope. Rather risky and silly thing to do. Why?

Where do you usually need these "self defence" skills? In a nice open street where you have the time and space to get your foot wrapped around someones jaw? Highly unlikely. If its not a criminal and just a fighter then you're more than likely going to come across them in a pub/club/bar with nice slippy floors and chairs/tables/people in the way. If its just outside one of these establishments then you still have obsticles to contend with not to mention the ground conditions.

If its a criminal and you haven't spotted them before you are attacked, then you are dealing with probably more than one individual who are up close and personal. Not ideal kicking range.

Next problem. The majority if not all street encounters are over within 3 seconds. If not then you have a stand up fight. In this fight the range you are defending from about a metre and reduces to a snotty mess on the floor within seconds. with your leg in the air, you are off balanced easily.

That said. IF you have the space. IF you have the time. IF you have the skill. IF you have the strength. Then sure go for it. I have seen some impressive high kicks in my time.

Budo.