Side Kick versus Thai Roundhouse Kick

That's true of doing any kick "right."

Care to offer up any evidence backed by the principles of physics? Because I'll be honest with you. I think the word "physics" gets tossed around a lot in these discussions without any really clear understanding of what the principles are. So can you explain, in physics terms, why one is more powerful than the other. Universally. So that no individual person can, as we have done here, said that my round kick is more powerful than my side kick?

No. No round kick with which I am familiar relies mainly on the leg. Especially not the dtae wiang from muay thai. It relies at least as much on the hip. And then again on foot placement and footwork.

No. Your whole body is in line with the kick. But often your body is leaning backward. For your whole body to go into the kick, it would have to be traveling in the same direction. Adding its momentum. And it simply isn't.

Torso leans back. Leg chambers back. Leg shoots forward. Leg recoils back. Foot returns to floor. Torso returns to upright. That is not the whole body behind the kick.

Nobody said they were. And it may well be the fastest kick you have. But there are all kinds of speed. One of the advantages of the dtae wiang, or muay thai round kick, is that it swings in from the side. So it comes in from just outside your opponent's field of perception if you're giving them enough else to think about. A side kick comes straight up the line of engagement that most everyone is already paying attention to. So in terms of the other guy's detection of the kick (and therefore their chance to react to it) the round kick has the advantage. The way I use it, in any event.

Again, I'm not making blanket statements about one over the other. I'm telling you what my experience is of each. Take that for whatever it's worth.


Stuart

 

What he said.

 

Cheers

 

I train both kicks as much as each other. When sparring i usually only ever use the side kick as a stop hit when my opponent starts to come in. Much in the same way as a front kick or a parry/jab. But overall i like my mawashis better.

 

Back when I was primarily training MT, I fought a TKD guy. He kept preventing my coming into my comfort range with a stop side kick. Drove me nuts, wasnt doing me any damage at all, just holding me back. Thankfully he wasn't powerful enough with it to do much damage, but he used it much the same way I would have used a jab.

So, when I started training TKD, I now do the same thing, front leg front or side kick as a stop, Turning kick as a cross. I dont really think I would get the same power into my side kick as I can muster in my turning kick. Unless of course Im crossing a ring and can throw in a step or a shuffle?

 

Ummm. . . . . NO. Pivoting on the balls of the supporting foot for a Muay Thai roundhouse is a HUGE part of the technique. You pivot so you forcefully bring your leg "through" the opponent, not a snap or a whipping motion.

You're using your hips, legs and full rotational energy to cut through the damned person.

 

and a side kick isn't supposed to go through a guy? just think of it more as a spike

 

Ideally, sure it is. But the question has never been "does the sidekick suck?"

The question was what preference people held and why.


Stuart

 

Alright, some decent replies!

I guess overall most people in this discussion prefer the round kick... interesting.

 

I use more my round kick, but side kicks are really handy, specially when your opponent isn't expecting it.

Sometimes a side kick is more useful, you can send your opponent right to the floor with an unexpected side kick.

 

Ill never see a video clip where a fighter's shin breaks after doing a side kick with his leg twisted into an unnatural position as he falls, and then finally grabs his head with both head as he squirms in pain on the ground with his broken leg at an odd angle.

No, i dont think ill ever see that from doing a side kick.

Even if our roundhouses are done by snap and hit with the instep. Ive limped weeks when ive misjudged the distance and hit the person with my toe instead of the instep.

Given equal opportunity, id side kick him. Its even worse if you wear shoes.

 

better not go outside either then, since you are more likely to be hit by lightning than break your leg doing a roundhouse kick.

 

I like round house, but when you get someone in the chest with a front leg side kick just as they are stepping in, it's priceless

 

Hmmm.........no.

 

err... yes. you are. go look at the stats on how many people are hit by lightning every year.

 

Wait until you meet someone who likes to defend their midsection by putting the point of their elbow in front of whatever you're throwing. The arch of your foot hitting the point of his elbow. His elbow dropping down on the side of your ankle. The elbow dropping on your tootsies.

Good times everybody.


Stuart

 

Stats dont mean much in this case. 6 billion peeps versus the population of pro fighters...

Give me the probabilities instead.

 

there has been something like 3-4 reported cases of people getting their leg snapped like that, out of however many sanctioned fights. of course, this doesnt count every fight in every dirt village in northern thailand. but the chance is exceedingly slim and is usually the result of a horribly performed kick hitting a very well performed leg check.

ive seen rugby players break their necks... better not play that either "just in case" eh

 

eh...lightning strike statistics aside:

I like thai style round kick over side for several reasons:

side kick is very powerful within an arc of a few degrees from the line of attack, but you can swat it just a little bit and deflect the majority of its power. The margin of error is much less to get off a good side kick, at least it is for me.

A thai style round kick, for me, is pretty much the nuclear bomb. I throw it with the intention of even if the guy manages to block it, I'm hitting hard enough to break through it and do damage anyways. But again, for me, I can't get a good round off as quick as I can a good side kick. And my front leg round kick has no power, which is something I need to work on for sure.

Uh...screwdriver

 

do you switch your stance before you throw your lead leg?