Kick
This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
Kick | |
---|---|
taekwando match |
A kick is a physical
. Kicks are a universal act of aggression among humans.Kicking is also prominent from its use in many
History
The English verb to kick appears only in the late 14th century, apparently as a loan from Old Norse, originally in the sense of a hooved animal delivering strikes with his hind legs.[citation needed]
Kicks as an act of
The history of the high kick in Asian martial arts is difficult to trace. One theory was that it was developed in
-
A kick delivered to a downed or falling enemy (a demon), Angkor period (c. 13th century) bas-relief at Banteay Chhmar in Cambodia.
-
A kick used in armed combat as a means of displacing the opponent's shield in historical European martial arts (Hans Talhoffer 1459)
-
A kick to the knee as depicted in a Baroque Ringen treatise (Johann Georg Passchen 1659)
-
Bas-relief at the Banteay Chhmar(12th/13th century).
Applications
As the human leg is longer and stronger than the arm, kicks are generally used to keep an opponent at a distance, surprise them with their range and inflict substantial damage. Stance is also very important in any combat system and any attempt to deliver a kick will necessarily compromise stability to some degree. The application of kicks is a trade-off between the power and range that can be delivered against the cost incurred to balance. As combat situations are fluid, understanding this trade-off and making the appropriate decision to adjust to each moment is key.
Kicks are commonly directed against helpless or downed targets, while for more general self-defense applications, the consensus is that simple kicks aimed at vulnerable targets below the chest may be highly efficient, but should be executed with a degree of care. Self-defense experts, such as author and teacher Marc Macyoung, claim that kicks should be aimed no higher than the waist/stomach. Thus, the fighter should not compromise their balance while delivering a kick and retract the leg properly to avoid grappling. It is often recommended to build and drill simple combinations that involve attacking different levels of an opponent. A common example would be distracting an opponent's focus via a fake jab, following up with a powerful attack at the opponent's legs and punching.
Further, since low kicks are inherently quicker and harder to see and dodge in general they are often emphasized in a street fight scenario.
Practicality of high kicks
The utility of high kicks (above chest level) has been debated.[1] Proponents have viewed that some high front snap kicks are effective for striking the face or throat, particularly against charging opponents and flying kicks can be effective to scare off attackers.[citation needed] Martial arts systems that utilize high kicks also emphasize training of very efficient and technically perfected forms of kicks, include recovery techniques in the event of a miss or block and will employ a wide repertoire of kicks adapted to specific situations.
Detractors have asserted that the flying/jumping kicks performed in synthesis styles are primarily performed for conditioning or aesthetic reasons, while the high kicks as practiced in sport martial arts are privileged due to specialized tournament rules, such as limiting the contest to stand-up fighting, or reducing the penalty resulting from a failed attempt at delivering a kick.
Although kicks can result in an easy takedown for the opponent if they are caught or the resulting imbalance is exploited, kicks to all parts of the body are very present in mixed martial arts, with some fighters employing them sporadically, while others, like Lyoto Machida, Edson Barboza and Donald Cerrone rely heavily on their use and have multiple knockouts by kicks on their resume.
Basic kicks
Roundhouse
The attacker swings their leg sideways in a circular motion, kicking the opponent's side with the front of the leg, usually with the instep, ball of the foot, toe, or shin. It can also be performed is a 360-degree kick where the attacker performs a full circle with their leg, in which the striking surface is generally either the instep, shin or ball of the foot.[2]
There are many variations of the roundhouse kick based on various chambering of the cocked leg (small, or full, or universal or no chambering) or various footwork possibilities (rear-leg, front-leg, hopping, switch, oblique, dropping, ground spin-back or full 360 spin-back). An important variation is the downward roundhouse kick, nicknamed the "Brazilian kick" from recent K-1 use: A more pronounced twist of the hips allows for a downward end of the trajectory of the kick that is very deceiving.[3]
Due to its power, the roundhouse kick may also be performed at low level against targets, such as the knees, calf, or even thigh, since attacking leg muscles will often cripple an opponent's mobility. It is the most commonly used kick in
Front
Delivering a front kick involves raising the knee and foot of the striking leg to the desired height and extending the leg to contact the target. The strike is usually delivered by the
Side
A side kick is delivered sideways in relation to the body of the person kicking.[6] A standard side kick is performed by first "chambering" by raising the kicking leg diagonally across the body, then extending the leg in a linear fashion toward the target, while flexing the abdominals. The two common impact points in sidekicks are the heel or the outer edge of the foot, with the heel is more suited to hard targets such as the ribs, stomach, jaw, temple and chest. When executing a side kick with the heel, the toes should be pulled back so that they only make contact the heel and not with the whole foot as striking with the arch or the ball of the foot can injure the foot or break an ankle.
Another way of doing the side kick is to make it a result of a faked roundhouse. This technique is considered antiquated[citation needed] and used only after an opponent is persuaded to believe it is a roundhouse (a feint) and then led to believe that closing the distance is best for an upper body attack, which plays into the tactical position and relative requirement of this version of the side kick. In Korean, yeop chagi and in Okinawan fighting, it is sometimes called a "dragon kick". Some have called this side kick a "twist kick" due to its roundhouse like origins. This side kick begins as would a roundhouse kick however the practitioner allows the heel to move towards the center of the body. The kick is then directed outward from a cross-leg chamber so that the final destination of the kick is a target to the side, rather than one that is directly ahead.
Back
Also referred to as a donkey kick, mule kick, horse kick or turning back kick. This kick is directed backwards, keeping the kicking leg close to the standing leg and using the heel as a striking surface. In wushu, this kick is called the "half-moon" kick but involves the slight arching of the back and a higher lift of the leg to give a larger curvature. It is often used to strike opponents by surprise when facing away from them.
Advanced kicks
These are often complicated variations of basic kicks, either with a different target or combined with another move, such as jumping.
Axe
In Japanese, kakato-geri or kakato-otoshi; in Korean, doki bal chagi or naeryeo chagi or chikka chagi. In Chinese, pigua tui or xiapi tui.
An axe kick, also known as a hammer kick or stretch kick, is characterized by a straightened leg with the heel descending onto an opponent like the blade of an axe. It begins with one foot rising upward as in a crescent kick[7] then the upward arc motion is stopped and then the attacking foot is lowered to strike the target from above. The arc can be performed in either an inward (counter-clockwise) or outward (clockwise) fashion.
A well-known proponent of the axe kick was Andy Hug, the Swiss Kyokushinkai Karateka who won the 1996 K-1 Grand Prix.
Butterfly
Flying
A flying kick, in martial arts, is a general description of kicks that involve a running start, jump, then a kick in mid-air. and Muay Thai for fitness, exhibitions and competition. It is known as tobi geri in Japanese martial arts and twyo chagi in Taekwondo.
Showtime
The showtime kick gained notability after being used by
Scissor
Several kicks may be called a scissor kick, involving swinging out the legs to kick multiple targets or using the legs to take down an opponent.
The popularized version of a scissor kick is, while lying down, or jumping, the kicker brings both legs to both sides of the opponent's legs or to their body and head, then brings both in as a take down (as the name states, leg motions are like that of a pair of scissors).
The scissor kick in Taekwondo is called kawi chagi. In capoeira it is called tesoura (scissors).
Scissor kicks and other variants are also commonly applied in Vovinam.
Spinning heel
A spinning heel kick is where the artist turns their body 360 degrees before landing the heel or the ball of their foot on the target. It is found in Muay Thai and is known in Capoeira as armada.
Vertical (thrust, push, and side)
A vertical kick involves bringing the knee forward and across the chest, then swinging the hip while extending the kicking leg outward, striking with the outside ("sword") edge of the foot. In karate this is called a yoko geri keage, in Taekwondo it is referred to as sewo chagi and can be performed as either an inward (anuro) or outward (bakuro) kick.
Multiple/machine gun
In Japanese karate, the term ren geri is used for several kicks performed in succession. Old karate did not promote the use of the legs for weapons as much as modern karate does, seeing them as being too open for countering, in modern sport karate (non-traditional) competitions, however, the ability to use multiple kicks without setting the foot down has become a viable option, not only for effectiveness but also for stylish aesthetics.
In taekwondo, three types of multiple kick are distinguished:
- Double kick (i-jung chagi): two kicks of the same type executed in succession by the same foot in the same direction.
- Consecutive kick (yonsok chagi): two or more kicks executed in succession by the same foot but in different directions, or with different attacking tools.
- Combination kick (honhap chagi): two or more kicks executed in succession by both feet.
One such multiple kick commonly seen in taekwondo, is a somewhat complex side kick where a high side kick is followed by a low side kick which is in turn followed by a more powerful side kick.[27] This combination is done rapidly and is meant not for multiple targets but for a single one. A multiple kick usually targets the face, thigh and chest, but in turn can be a multiple chest attack which is useful for knocking the breath out of an attacker. A multiple kick is usually involves shooting the leg forward as in a front kick and then pivoting and turning so as to actually deliver a side kick. That style has far less power but is much faster and more deceptive, which is what the multiple kick was designed for. The multiple kick, unlike some side or side blade kicks, never uses the outer edge of the foot; it is intended solely for the heel to be used as the impact point. Depending on the strength and skill of the attacker and the attacked, the combination can be highly effective or highly ineffective when compared to more pragmatic attacks. In some encounters with highly trained and conditioned fighters, multiple side-kicks have seen disastrous results against the abs of their target.
See also
- Dynamic stretching
- Stomp
References
- ^ "Kicking is starting to impact MMA striking". Bloody Elbow. 13 May 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "UFC 143 Judo Chop: The Instep Roundhouse Kick Of Stephen Thompson". Bloody Elbow. 6 February 2012. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ The Essential Book of Martial Arts Kicks: 89 Kicks from Karate, Taekwondo, Muay Thai, Jeet Kune Do, and Others by Marc De Bremaeker and Roy Faige
- ^ Breen, Andrew (2013-04-29). "The Front Kick: How to Do It, When to Use It, What to Destroy With It (Part 1) – - Black Belt". Blackbeltmag.com. Archived from the original on 2014-01-12. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "Judo Chop: Front Kicks With Lyoto Machida, Anderson Silva, Josh Thomson". Bloody Elbow. 19 March 2012. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "UFC Macau Judo Chop: Anderson Silva, Cung Le, Bruce Lee and the Side Kick". Bloody Elbow. 27 October 2012. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "Judo Chop: Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic Unleashes an Axe Kick on Pat Barry". Bloody Elbow. 16 June 2010. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "Shaolin Kung Fu Stretches & Moves : Butterfly Kick in Shaolin Kung Fu". YouTube. 2008-04-10. Archived from the original on 2010-10-03. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "Getting Technical on Calf Kicks". m.sherdog.com.
- ^ "Dossier: Anatomy of the Calf Kick". Sherdog.
- ^ Dundas, Chad. "Rise of the calf kick: How a forgotten technique became MMA's hottest strike". The Athletic.
- ^ "Kicks Aren't Going Anywhere Part 2: Katsunori Kikuno". Bleacher Report. 2014-01-02. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "Judo Chop: Katsunori Kikuno Puts the Crescent Kick To Work on Kuniyoshi Hironaka at DREAM.13". Bloody Elbow. 5 April 2010. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "Technique Talk: Henri Hooft on the rise of spinning kicks and attacks in mixed martial arts". MMA Fighting. 21 July 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "Taekwondo Kicks : Taekwondo Reverse Hook Kick". YouTube. 2008-06-24. Archived from the original on 2014-06-24. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "UFC 165 Judo Chop: Chris Clement's Spinning Sweep Kick". Bloody Elbow. 24 September 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "Hook Kick - Martial Arts Technique".
- ^ "UFN 31 Judo Chop: Rustam Khabilov's Spinning Hook Kick". Bloody Elbow. 11 November 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
- ^ "FightBack Live with Bill Wallace". Black Belt Magazine. 2020-05-06. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
- ISBN 9780897501293.
- ^ "Black Belt". Active Interest Media, Inc. October 17, 1988 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Black Belt". Active Interest Media, Inc. October 17, 1986 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Black Belt". Active Interest Media, Inc. February 17, 1991 – via Google Books.
- ^ Martin, Damon (September 23, 2010). "HENDERSON VS. PETTIS OFFICIAL FOR WEC DEC 16". MMAweekly.com.
- ^ Ciccarelli, Mitch (December 17, 2011). "Anthony Pettis' Kick and the Best Finishing Moves in MMA History".
- ^ "Watch: UFC Prospect Hits Sensational 'Showtime Kick', Scores Finish, Calls Out Artem Lobov - Pundit Arena". www.punditarena.com. September 3, 2017. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
- ^ "Black Belt". Active Interest Media, Inc. October 17, 1988 – via Google Books.