Should I be kicking this way?

Discussion in 'General Martial Arts Discussion' started by GoldShifter, Mar 25, 2013.

  1. GoldShifter

    GoldShifter The MachineGun Roundhouse

    In the school I train at, I am known to kick a huge amount, most of what I do is kicking, and I was just wondering if I should be doing this sort of kick. It is my personal variation of what to do for my (front leg and back leg) Roundhouse Kick. I like to throw the kick, and I usually make impact with my ankle, top of the foot, and the bottom part of my shin. I only throw this kick if I know it will hit the body. I am wondering if this is an okay kick to throw. I discovered this habit when I was having a friend critique me on my kicks, while I was kicking a heavy bag. He told me I was kicking with the ankle, and I was surprised. I never noticed I did, but I've been kicking this way for a good while now. I wanted to try to change it into a kick where I make impact with the shin primarily, but it is hard to get in that close, (I'm not a very tall person haha) and still be in good kicking range. Ever since I found out I was kicking with the ankle, top of the foot, and bottom of the shin, I have used it to tweak my power of the kick, and also have changed the primary part that makes impact. If I want to have a light tap, that wont hurt much for the other person, I hit with more foot than anything. If I want a balance, I hit with the way I described in my question, more ankle, top of the foot, and bottom part of the shin. If I want to do more damage or a more powerful kick, I hit with more shin.

    I am just wondering if there is any real problem with me kicking this way. I haven't hurt myself doing this kick *knock on wood*, but I am just wondering if there is anything that I shouldn't be doing regarding this way I throw my kick.
     
  2. Grass hopper

    Grass hopper Valued Member

    I tend to do the same thing, and I've had no issues kicking like this.
     
  3. GoldShifter

    GoldShifter The MachineGun Roundhouse

    Thanks for the answer, it comforts me that others kick like this and also have no problems.
     
  4. holyheadjch

    holyheadjch Valued Member

    People don't stand still like heavy bags do. If you do that in sparring (and especially in a full contact bout), it is only a matter of time before you misjudge a kick by an inch or so and bust a handful of little bones in your foot - you want to be minimising the chance of that happening by kicking with your shin.
     
  5. 47MartialMan

    47MartialMan Valued Member

    I agree.

    Try to study the mechanics of your kick and adjust.

    Practice a better way slow, as it will improve those mechanics as well as balance and set up

    Old habits are hard to break
     
    Last edited: Mar 26, 2013
  6. GoldShifter

    GoldShifter The MachineGun Roundhouse

    I usually come up with kicks that I do often during black belt testings, when I have a "captive audience" and I can go full contact, haha. I tried kicking with most of the shin, it didn't work very well for me. I started kicking the heavy bag because I was wondering what part of my leg I actually kick with with my roundhouse kick. I do this during sparring a lot and was just curious on where exactly I kick. I am good with distance but I was worried about the consequences of misjudging, hence I made the thread. It usually just goes in a diagonal from floor to target, instead of going up, then to target. Thank you for the advice guys!
     
  7. holyheadjch

    holyheadjch Valued Member

    It means relearning your range, but nothing will stop a fight faster than a broken foot. Unless you're Daniel LaRusso in a karate kid movie, in which case, there's always the crane kick to fall back on.
     
  8. GoldShifter

    GoldShifter The MachineGun Roundhouse

    Alright, I'll look into kicking with my shins. I'll put in some extra practice to work on that. Thanks for the feedback! Haha, I like the karate kid reference.
     
  9. Grass hopper

    Grass hopper Valued Member

    I think the more important thing is kick with the same part of the leg or foot every time. Don't try and futz around with it too much.
     
  10. aikiMac

    aikiMac aikido + boxing = very good Moderator Supporter

    It will depend on where the kick lands. On the neck, this is fine. (We've seen enough UFC/etc knockouts this way.) On something more solid you risk hurting your foot, because like HolyHead said if you're a little bit off things won't bend right.

    Different parts for different targets = good idea.
     
  11. aikiMac

    aikiMac aikido + boxing = very good Moderator Supporter

    Speaking of the right range + flash ...

    And we thought it only worked in movies
     
  12. GoldShifter

    GoldShifter The MachineGun Roundhouse

    Man, it was always my dream to land that kick, well first to learn it.

    In answering to where I usually aim for, I aim more for the body. Preferably the stomach and chest area. That is where I aim for, and where the kick normally lands. I usually hit ribs instead though so, since i hit the ribs, the ankle is the point of impact, the foot is pretty much behind the body, and the shin is hitting whatever the hell else it can hit haha. I do go for head kicks, but not so much because, taking from the late Chris Kyle, the navy seal sniper, center mass is a bigger target and thus easier to land a shot on, rather than hitting the head. (He was talking about with a bullet, but I believe this also applies to martial arts) We wear a helmet, sparring gloves, and foot gear. Shin guards are optional, I'm used to it without them. And chest protectors are way to cumbersome and also they offer TOO MUCH protection. Basically the gloves are to protect from wild fingers (they still happen sometimes) to the face, more to protect the user though. Helmet is to absorb a little bit of the impact, but most of the black belts, and competitors don't wear the helmet for the sake of comfort, and also because the helmet doesn't do much anyway. It is very annoying to fix. The foot gear is to keep the toes from going into the eye, and adding a bit of padding. They all add a bit of padding, about 3/4ths of an inch. But those who've fallen on a mat, or taken punches from gloves know that, that padding, is more for the user than it is for the receiver, the impact is still pretty flipping hard.
     
  13. aikiMac

    aikiMac aikido + boxing = very good Moderator Supporter

    Ya, no doubt, how in the world did that guy practice that kick? :eek:

    But as to your rib kick -- I'd be aiming with my shin, not the crook of my ankle. :dunno: It's too easy to be off by an inch or two, and then, pop, your instep hits and you've injured your foot. Me no like injured foot, you know? First rule of fighting: protect yourself. Much safer if shin hits ribs. (Plus, I bet it will hurt the other guy more! :D)

    You said in the OP that you're not a tall person. I am a tall person. I'm almost always the tallest in my class. I can tell you from experience that "short" people who know how to take advantage of their shortness, are very hard to fight. Learn to get inside the other guy's range, and then beat the crap out of his ribs with your shins (and punches, too), okay?

    Boxers call it "infighting." Granted, they're not kicking, but the principle applies. Body shots win fights, and a good shin to the ribs HURTS.
     
  14. GoldShifter

    GoldShifter The MachineGun Roundhouse

    You can try to read the manga Karate Shoukoushi Kohinata Minoru ... It has that kick in it, which is the only reason I recognized it. I read it a little bit just because I like the characters and the fights.

    Alright I'll try that, For some reason, I'm not comfortable infighting. I should try to practice that more. I'm more lenient toward outfighting. I like to keep my distance and wait for the prime opportunity to strike, a "predator of opportunity"? I'll try to integrate kicking with my shins and learn how to use it properly. Eventually I'll switch out my kicks for kicking with the shin instead of the ankle, unless I'm going for a headshot. I already kind of do this, but I'll try to make it go for more.
     
  15. Mitch

    Mitch Lord Mitch of MAP Admin

    There's a video in the karate forum showing how to learn it :)

    Mtch
     
  16. Smitfire

    Smitfire Cactus Schlong

    I try and use my "leg" to hit the other guys "leg", "body" or "head".
    I have variable levels of success with this approach. :)
     
  17. 47MartialMan

    47MartialMan Valued Member

    How about the occasional I try and using the "head" hit the other guys "leg"?

    On that note, improper area being used to a object different than a bag, can become catastrophic.
     
  18. aikiMac

    aikiMac aikido + boxing = very good Moderator Supporter

    Outfighting is the game for the person with more reach. Infighting is for the person with less reach.

    Oddly, I have exactly the opposite problem. I'm always stepping into infighting range where I don't have enough space to take advantage of my long arms. As a result, I'm not getting the proper "extension" (leverage) on my movements. Frustrating.
     
  19. GoldShifter

    GoldShifter The MachineGun Roundhouse

    Yes, I'm short but I tend to be an outfighter. It's wierd huh.

    On the kicking the bag, that was just to see where I actually make impact, I didn't think about how I was kicking, it was more of an on the whim thing. I gauged my distance from the target, and kicker how I normally do. I started kicking this way after a black belt testing (which was kicking at people, candidates to be exact, that reacted the way people act, and blocked, dodged, etc, like most would do.) because I wanted to try to get maximum impact, while still keeping a nice distance away. I always knew impacting hard with the foot is terrible and is more likely to break, so I guess I just used the next best thing, which was the ankle, and it fell into my arsenal. I was just kicking the bag to see where I actually kicked. I had a hunch it was the ankle, but I never knew exactly what made impact, aside from the ankle. I started off on people, still do on people, and just used the heavy bag to find out exact locations.
     
  20. 47MartialMan

    47MartialMan Valued Member

    Ankle? Do you mean the archilles heel or the in-step?
     

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