the front kick

[Manny]

I feel the front kick is not taken seriusly in TKD. Last tournament I saw the kick the competitors used 97% of the times was the roundhouse kick to the chest protector. The other day talking with a classmate he told me front kick scores cero points in tournaments for that matters it is not used. Don't know if this is real but I think the front kick is very good one and I'm talking about the trusting front kick.

With a well placed trust front kick you can send the foe to the ground easily and if target is the solar plexus a good KO is achivied, the false ribs can be broken and a gut kick can explode the viseras.

In SD a good front kick can be devastating.

Manny

 

[terryl965]

Manny we use the fronk kick in tournaments and score all the time, maybe because we practice the kick alot for power when delivering it. I would keep this kick open and in your training.

 

[Kacey]

I use front kick all the time... granted, I use turning (roundhouse) kick as well, but the two kicks are used for very different openings. People who rely too heavily on any one kick are limiting themselves severely - as they usually learn the first time someone who understands how to apply different techniques uses them!

 

[Windsinger]

The front kick, imho, is probably one of, in not the, most under-rated attacks. Why? Because it's so simple, anyone with an IQ high enough to allow breathing can do it

But that's me...

 

[Deaf Smith]

The sad thing is, most kicks have many variations. And the front kick is one of them.

The front kick can be done for speed or power (and really you can have both.) It can be done in a punch fashion or in a whipping upward stroke. It can be done from the front leg or the rear. It can also be done retreating (or as Patton would say, just fighting in another direction) on as part of a side step.

The real problem is many a martial artist do not really study a particular kick. They do not spend the time to see all the permutations the kick has to offer. They like the flashy kicks. The cool kicks.

You can get a person, train them to use just the snap kick and roundhouse (either leg, any angle), strait punch (and it's brother the reverse punch) and a backfist, and the four basic blocks, and if they really put forth time and effort over a year I bet they an win most tournaments.

You get back what you put into it. Put 110 percent, and in time you will see the payoff. The snap kick is a fine kick. Put 110 percent into learning it.

Deaf

 

[estranged13]

imho front kicks are more used by the bigger people in tournaments, a lot of heavyweights use front kicks, and axe kicks more then roundhouses

 

[Loomie]

I personally love using a front kick on someone who does a jump kick at me.Doesn't require much power but they end up on their butts.

 

[zDom]

The front kick, imho, is probably one of, in not the, most under-rated attacks.

I've been saying the same thing for YEARS.

I absolutely LOVE the front kick. I believe it to be probably the single most viable kick for self defense.

Easy to do at any height. Executed from a natural, upright position that allows you to keep your hands in guarding/striking positions. Fast. POWERFUL if done correctly.


On one of those "exploring martial arts shows" a bodyguard company claimed the most effective combo they have found to work on the job is the front kick + jump front kick.

 

[newGuy12]

On one of those "exploring martial arts shows" a bodyguard company claimed the most effective combo they have found to work on the job is the front kick + jump front kick.

When I saw this thread, that section of that tvshow is the first thing that I thought about. How that combination was used -- the first kick pushes the opponent backwards a little, as he bends forward -- the result of the first kick.

The second kick, to the head, well... its a very effective combination.

As was said above, if you are freesparring someone who tends to keep far away, and you are not familiar with the way that they freespar, the front kick can be so useful to get some kind of "back and forth" going, I think.

Because it CAN be done with minimal motion of the waist, you do not have to commit as much, and you can give a lean back and make the kick into more of a "pushing" motion (with the ball of the foot though) to get reach -- "reach out and touch someone AT&T style, haha".

 

[PEP-REP]

Ok Guys since your all praising the lovable front kick LOL I will be the one to tell you how impractical it really is... LOL

Now speaking from Olmpic Style sparring only!!!!

using a TRADITIONAL Front snap kick you will find yourself on the ground looking at the lights ... lol wondering why everything is spinning.. your body comes square when doing it which leaves you the perfect target for a spin side or spin hook kick! A well trained fighter will see you wanting to do this and will bait you in to using it and BAMN!!! LOOK AT THE PRETTY LIGHTS LOL..

Now for street self defense ... sure not bad.. a well delivered front kick to the groin knee and other targets is fast and a great option.

Round house kick is the Jab of boxing in a olympic TKD match..

Glenn

 

[FearlessFreep]

your body comes square when doing it which leaves you the perfect target for a spin side or spin hook kick!

Not really.

On one hand, many back legged kicks share this tendency, you are essentially shifting your shoulders so for an instant you will be squared to the opponent, so it's a wash on that. And you can traing the spin back or spin side as a counter to the rear-legged roundhouse just as effectively as a rear legged front kick.

On the other hand, if you are executing a front kick "form style" meaning with square hips and square shoulders like in Taeguek Il-Jang, etc..., well yeah, but that's not a good (effectove) front kick. Ideally (and I know I'm being very general here) but a good front kick should have the kicking hip coming forward with this kick as well. This turns your hips and shoulders which keeps you from being square. Not as far as a roundhouse or sidekick for sure, but a well executed front kick for impact will not leave you square open to the opponent

 

[PEP-REP]

On the other hand, if you are executing a front kick "form style" meaning with square hips and square shoulders like in Taeguek Il-Jang, etc..., well yeah, but that's not a good (effectove) front kick.

this is what I was speaking about

Ideally (and I know I'm being very general here) but a good front kick should have the kicking hip coming forward with this kick as well. This turns your hips and shoulders which keeps you from being square. Not as far as a roundhouse or sidekick for sure, but a well executed front kick for impact will not leave you square open to the opponent

this shows you are knowledgeable on TRUE kicking!!!! not many are this detailed..

also given olympic sparring style in WTF your openent being not square limits the true target ares for a front kick.. again going back to the fact that I am throwing low roundhouse kicks to get your attention so I can hit you with something else.. that is why I said the roundhouse is the JAB of Olympic stlye fighting..

Glenn

 

[Kacey]

Not really.

On one hand, many back legged kicks share this tendency, you are essentially shifting your shoulders so for an instant you will be squared to the opponent, so it's a wash on that. And you can traing the spin back or spin side as a counter to the rear-legged roundhouse just as effectively as a rear legged front kick.

On the other hand, if you are executing a front kick "form style" meaning with square hips and square shoulders like in Taeguek Il-Jang, etc..., well yeah, but that's not a good (effectove) front kick. Ideally (and I know I'm being very general here) but a good front kick should have the kicking hip coming forward with this kick as well. This turns your hips and shoulders which keeps you from being square. Not as far as a roundhouse or sidekick for sure, but a well executed front kick for impact will not leave you square open to the opponent

You beat me to it; simply because a technique is performed a particular way in a form doesn't mean it has to be performed that way in sparring.

Front kick can be delivered from a variety of stances - and I am most likely to use it as a lead leg kick from L-stance (back stance? Fighting stance?) - if you line up properly, your opponent's front arm will block sight of your front leg, and the kick will be in motion before your opponent sees it move, making it much harder to react. Also, from a good front kick, it's easy to throw another kick (front, turning, twist, etc.) from the retraction of the kick, as that is a starting point for a wide variety of kicks, once you understand the kicks well enough to throw them from something other than the "ideal" starting position (the one you learn for forms).

 

[PEP-REP]

I am strictly talk from a WTF Olympic sparring point of view.. You will never see a national level fighter throw a front snap kick...

you will also never see a national level fighter fight out of difference stances for different kicks.. every kick comes from the same stance..

speaking again for olympic sparring ...

Glenn

 

[FearlessFreep]

if you line up properly, your opponent's front arm will block sight of your front leg, and the kick will be in motion before your opponent sees it move, making it much harder to react.

Never thought of that...thanks!

 

[PEP-REP]

Front kick can be delivered from a variety of stances - and I am most likely to use it as a lead leg kick from L-stance (back stance? Fighting stance?) - if you line up properly, your opponent's front arm will block sight of your front leg, and the kick will be in motion before your opponent sees it move, making it much harder to react. ).

guess he doesn hide his kick well enough?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsfbPsvOY_4&feature=related

LOL

Glenn

 

[PEP-REP]

not to mention the guy who hits him isn't a national level fighter LOL everyone on the planet should have been able to tell he was wanting to spin.. LOL

GLenn

 

[zDom]

What makes you think a front kick can't hit before a back leg roundhouse?

Midway through the kick, they are giving a full-frontal target.

FWIW, you don't want to hear my opinion on "national level" olympic style TKD.

 

[PEP-REP]

What makes you think a front kick can't hit before a back leg roundhouse?

Midway through the kick, they are giving a full-frontal target.

FWIW, you don't want to hear my opinion on "national level" olympic style TKD.

Never said it couldn't hit before a roundhouse kick... I simple said if you use it normally what happens is the video I posted.. lol

and I would love to hear you take on a national level competior.. and would love to hear your experience fighting in that type of a venue..

Glenn

 

[FearlessFreep]

Well, the stance in the video was not the setup that Kacey was mentioning. (I would argue that if you want to get nit-picky that the first kick through was not a front/snap kick) but you're not going to be able to disguise your kick behind your opponents arm if their hands are at their sides like that, which is what Kacey was talking about.