How to increase Power In your kicks?

[Yoshiyahu]

How do you increase your kicking power?

My Wing Chun Uncle told me years ago when He was alot younger Senior students use to be able kick people off their feet an have them travel in air literally.

I was woundering What exercises are drills do you do to increase kicking power?

Some people say doing squats with weights!

Whats your opinion?

 

[Xue Sheng]

I will go with the advice of my Sanda sifu

Throw about 300 kicks per leg per day for starters

 

[Yoshiyahu]

Is that 300 kick per leg different kicks or just one kick?

Also is it done in the air or also a heavy bag?

 

[mook jong man]

Apart from doing many repetitions as Xue Sheng outlined you should also practice your forms so that you have a good foundation to kick from .

There is one exercise that was shown to me by one of my instructors years ago that helps and that is to get in front of a heavy bag in your stance and raise your knee so that it is barely touching and thrust your knee into the bag from the hip .

Only a very slight movement is needed , don't make it over committed , capture that feeling in your mind of using the hip.

Now when you start doing your normal kicking try and reproduce that feeling of using your hip . Also a correctly timed pivot on the support leg at the moment of impact will add more body mass into the kick and give slightly more range .

I do squats and other weight training exercises and I'm of the opinion that it doesn't do anything to significantly help my kicking ( I do it for medical reasons , weights and cardio to keep my blood pressure down) .
To be good at kicking you have to kick and preferably a lot of em .

 

[Yoshiyahu]

Please elaborate more on how you increase your power in kicking.

Like the karate guys from 70's and 80's could kick someone off the ground and send them flying like six feet? How does one achieve this?

Apart from doing many repetitions as Xue Sheng outlined you should also practice your forms so that you have a good foundation to kick from .

There is one exercise that was shown to me by one of my instructors years ago that helps and that is to get in front of a heavy bag in your stance and raise your knee so that it is barely touching and thrust your knee into the bag from the hip .

Only a very slight movement is needed , don't make it over committed , capture that feeling in your mind of using the hip.

Now when you start doing your normal kicking try and reproduce that feeling of using your hip . Also a correctly timed pivot on the support leg at the moment of impact will add more body mass into the kick and give slightly more range .

I do squats and other weight training exercises and I'm of the opinion that it doesn't do anything to significantly help my kicking ( I do it for medical reasons , weights and cardio to keep my blood pressure down) .
To be good at kicking you have to kick and preferably a lot of em .

 

[mook jong man]

Please elaborate more on how you increase your power in kicking.

Like the karate guys from 70's and 80's could kick someone off the ground and send them flying like six feet? How does one achieve this?

I don't think i can elaborate any further mate , these karate guys were they perhaps taking a bit of a run up before they kicked to get that sort of power .
Personally I want them to only go back a little bit so they are in perfect range for another kick , and maybe another after that until I close in on them and showcase my breathtakingly deadly hand techniques . :BSmeter:

 

[Yoshiyahu]

Well, My Sifu's Sihing spoke of when he was younger how the Elder students in Karate classes could kick people across the room from standing still. No running up. An also My Sifu Sihing did the same thing to people when he started learning Wing Chun in the 80's. His Sifu said you already mastered the internal side. When they would do Table fighting he would be able to propel people from his internal power. But it came with practicing!

I don't think i can elaborate any further mate , these karate guys were they perhaps taking a bit of a run up before they kicked to get that sort of power .
Personally I want them to only go back a little bit so they are in perfect range for another kick , and maybe another after that until I close in on them and showcase my breathtakingly deadly hand techniques . :BSmeter:

 

[profesormental]

Greetings.

Kicking power comes from practice... of what you ask?

Stances for one. There are other mechanics to powerful kicking, yet too high a number of kicks, if not done correctly, can actually injure you.

Why do you think many kickboxers and kickers have had to have hip and knee surgeries? Unoptimal kicking technique that relied too much on muscular power and not enough on structure.

I've reliably taught students how to kick people and make them move back... or penetrate so that they just crumple down. Much fun!

Hope that helps.

Juan M. Mercado

 

[Natty]

when you do your kicks, make sure you are in good stance. Also, use your hips when you kick. It will give you power and prevent injury. I do a variety of stretches mainly for my hips, groin, hamstrings, and quad muscles. you want your body to be loose from the waist down so you are more flexible. Your kicks will improve over time.

 

[Yoshiyahu]

All very excellent Post thank you Natty & profesormental

Wounderful.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Is that 300 kick per leg different kicks or just one kick?

Also is it done in the air or also a heavy bag?

in the beginning one kick, you want different kicks another 300.

But then my Sanda sifu is rather traditional in his views of training even though Sanda is not exactly traditional CMA

EDIT

My first Sifu, back when he was actually training people for MA, before the change for the worse, use to have us do a series of exercise which included kicking a pad held by someone else (both stationary and moving), as well as, frog hops, one leg deep knee bends, stand on one leg and do a series of kicks very slowly (minimum 3 per kick and generally at least 3 different kicks but it could go as high as 12 per kick but he tended to stay with only 3 different types of kicks) and repetitive kicks "Over" a target. As many as 50 per leg times 3 or 4 different types of kicks. Basically someone held a staff at a little above waist height and you would start with sweep kicks over it, back and forth and the idea was to take your foot from the floor, go over it and go back to "almost" the floor (do not touch floor) and reverse, repeat about 25 to 50 times. He also would set targets rather high and have use work on touching or kicking them. Also there were all sorts of running drills aimed at strengthening the legs.

 

[matsu]

in karate we did lots of 4point kicks.
using a basic front thrust kick or round house for example we had to to break the kick into 4 points or positions and hold them in these positions for a period of time,say 10 secs then 20 secs etc building up to a minute..
then move on to the next position and work throught to its full extesion and back thru the points to basic stance....

it kills!....
and duck walking.
go down onto one knee,then lift that knee off the floor by an inch and "walk" to same position with other leg,never touching the floor. 5 steps forward 5 steps back, not touching the floor.... again a few of them and you got da burning thighs man!!!!


matsu

 

[Yoshiyahu]

Interesting. In my lineage we do something called the Down punch. Man that stance really wears the legs out. Your legs will feel like they are falling off when you get to ten. But thats only when you first start.

 

[Si-Je]

Killer!!
Hubbie holds a kicking pad to his chest and has student lift leg (usually in heel kick position) with the heel touching the pad. You hold your leg up and push the bag in heel kick fashion without pulling your leg off of pad to "kick".
Your foot is always touching the pad.
This while Hubbie pushes foreward with the pad.
Constant resistance, constant force from each end meeting eachother.
You do this until your leg falls off. Then do the same with the other leg.
I forget what this type of excersize is called, will ask.

As for hook kick, well, I just recently, FINALLY achieved power in that kick. But with both the major key is relaxation while kicking. And pivot (for heel kick).

We also tie up the kicking pads to a tree and kick them too.

 

[Yoshiyahu]

Si-Je that sounds like a killer exercise....

Thats pretty tight. What do you think about inch power in kicks?

Killer!!
Hubbie holds a kicking pad to his chest and has student lift leg (usually in heel kick position) with the heel touching the pad. You hold your leg up and push the bag in heel kick fashion without pulling your leg off of pad to "kick".
Your foot is always touching the pad.
This while Hubbie pushes foreward with the pad.
Constant resistance, constant force from each end meeting eachother.
You do this until your leg falls off. Then do the same with the other leg.
I forget what this type of excersize is called, will ask.

As for hook kick, well, I just recently, FINALLY achieved power in that kick. But with both the major key is relaxation while kicking. And pivot (for heel kick).

We also tie up the kicking pads to a tree and kick them too.

 

[Si-Je]

It's called isometrics, asked hubbie.

I guess you could and should have one inch power in kicking too. He's working on getting me to that range in kicking. That's when the JJJ sweeping, choking, throw stuff wants to mess me up. Still feels uncertian kicking so close.
But, it's definately a skill a gal should master. Fellas like to get up close and personal too often. lol!

Other than that, I don't know alot about generating one inch power in punching or kicking yet.
Learned the 6 inch punch with pretty good power, though.

 

[Yoshiyahu]

Well, Do you have a punching bag or wall bag?

One Ince punch is really using all your body in unison to release more power in shorter space.

Roots:
1.Ground at your feet(Rooted stance)
2.Energy travels up your ankles and knees
3.To your hips(Shake the hips) Like a wiggle
4.Rotate the torso for more extension
5.snap the punch while the shoulders and elbow push thrust your fist foward.
6.Throw your body weight behind the punch.
7.Stepping forward also increase power.
8.Don't forget the breath(Exhale upon impact)
9.Tighten fist on impact
10. Twitch the wrist upward upon impact.

Practice this on hanging heavy bag. After awhile the bag will move. Then it will move farther and father.

I usually practice it in the air or on trees or on wall pillar with pading.

Some people practice with phone books I also use a candle to guage my progress. If I can put the candle out in inch or less than I am doing everything in my body right.

Don't forget to breath. So much Chi in the air and the ground.