I was motivated to start this thread by some recent comments in another thread about wearing shoes while training. I brought up at least one kick (the so-called 'toe-rip kick') that can't be easily performed whilst wearing shoes, and Victor Smith mentioned that the variety of kicks available in traditional Okinawan karate is often discounted, which even given my limited knowledge, I still agree 100% with. And defensive application of a foot technique is not always a 'kicking' motion, but I'll use the term 'kick' here to generically mean foot techniques (other than perhaps sweeps).
When I think about the hand, and the huge variety of methods it is used in self-defense, I am somewhat surprised at the limited uses the foot is put to. Granted that feet lack the dexterity of hands, most notably due to the lack of an opposable thumb. Also, we typically cover our feet, and most of use don't use our feet for anything much other than a means of propulsion.
However, we know that feet can be quite a bit more useful than we generally suspect; people who have been forced to use their feet as grasping and manipulating appendages due to the loss of hands or arms have proven that such things can be done.
So, I'm curious about the ways that various martial arts use their feet and toes in self-defense. There are many ways in which feet are used that are common to many martial arts; while some are more typical of one art than another.
In my own art, Isshin-Ryu, typically the foot is used as a club or a punch, taking into account the way the knees and ankles and hips move that are either similar or different from elbows, wrists, and shoulders.
Our primary kicks are these:
Mae Geri - a front snap kick delivered with the ball of the foot. Clubbing / chopping motion.
Mae Konate - a front push kick delivered with the heel of the foot. Punching motion.
Shoba Geri - a front snap kick, but delivered to the side. Same as Mae Geri otherwise.
Shoba Konate - a low kick delivered with the blade/heel edge of the foot at a slight angle to the front; also known as a 'knee crusher'. A chopping motion.
Hiza Geri - not really a kick; it's a knee thrust to the groin.
Fumi Komi - A cross-over stomp kick delivered with the heel. And interesting kick designed to deliver a raking downward kick with or without a terminating stomp to the inside or outside shin and foot of a person standing too close. Delivered by raising the foot over the knee of the other leg, and then stomping straight down with the edge of the foot/heel advanced.
Otosihi Geri - Similar to what others call a Mawasha Geri; a squat kick delivered to the hara area of the opponent with the ball of the foot in a clubbing/punching manner. The karateka steps to 45 degrees, leans hard to the side they are stepping, and raising the opposite foot at about a 45 degree angle in the air, delivers a kick using a full chamber snapping motion. Almost a mae geri as if done while leaning over to one side.
Yoko Geri - Side kick delivered with the edge/heel at about obi high, with the hips pivoted/opened to allow force generation and extension.
We have other kicks as well, but those are the basics. What are yours?
In what ways do you use the feet defensively that are similar to hand techniques? In what ways are they different?
Are there hand techniques that could be adapted to the foot?
I think that the founders of various arts spent a lot of time thinking about how the various parts of the human body could be used defensively, including the foot and toes. They also extensively tried what ideas they came up with to see how and if they worked. Some of the things they did then might not work in today's environments, given that we don't generally toughen our feet or work on the flexibility and capability of our feet as anything other than things to use for walking, but are there any neglected techniques that could be put back into service with some training?
Interested in your thoughts.
When I think about the hand, and the huge variety of methods it is used in self-defense, I am somewhat surprised at the limited uses the foot is put to. Granted that feet lack the dexterity of hands, most notably due to the lack of an opposable thumb. Also, we typically cover our feet, and most of use don't use our feet for anything much other than a means of propulsion.
However, we know that feet can be quite a bit more useful than we generally suspect; people who have been forced to use their feet as grasping and manipulating appendages due to the loss of hands or arms have proven that such things can be done.
So, I'm curious about the ways that various martial arts use their feet and toes in self-defense. There are many ways in which feet are used that are common to many martial arts; while some are more typical of one art than another.
In my own art, Isshin-Ryu, typically the foot is used as a club or a punch, taking into account the way the knees and ankles and hips move that are either similar or different from elbows, wrists, and shoulders.
Our primary kicks are these:
Mae Geri - a front snap kick delivered with the ball of the foot. Clubbing / chopping motion.
Mae Konate - a front push kick delivered with the heel of the foot. Punching motion.
Shoba Geri - a front snap kick, but delivered to the side. Same as Mae Geri otherwise.
Shoba Konate - a low kick delivered with the blade/heel edge of the foot at a slight angle to the front; also known as a 'knee crusher'. A chopping motion.
Hiza Geri - not really a kick; it's a knee thrust to the groin.
Fumi Komi - A cross-over stomp kick delivered with the heel. And interesting kick designed to deliver a raking downward kick with or without a terminating stomp to the inside or outside shin and foot of a person standing too close. Delivered by raising the foot over the knee of the other leg, and then stomping straight down with the edge of the foot/heel advanced.
Otosihi Geri - Similar to what others call a Mawasha Geri; a squat kick delivered to the hara area of the opponent with the ball of the foot in a clubbing/punching manner. The karateka steps to 45 degrees, leans hard to the side they are stepping, and raising the opposite foot at about a 45 degree angle in the air, delivers a kick using a full chamber snapping motion. Almost a mae geri as if done while leaning over to one side.
Yoko Geri - Side kick delivered with the edge/heel at about obi high, with the hips pivoted/opened to allow force generation and extension.
We have other kicks as well, but those are the basics. What are yours?
In what ways do you use the feet defensively that are similar to hand techniques? In what ways are they different?
Are there hand techniques that could be adapted to the foot?
I think that the founders of various arts spent a lot of time thinking about how the various parts of the human body could be used defensively, including the foot and toes. They also extensively tried what ideas they came up with to see how and if they worked. Some of the things they did then might not work in today's environments, given that we don't generally toughen our feet or work on the flexibility and capability of our feet as anything other than things to use for walking, but are there any neglected techniques that could be put back into service with some training?
Interested in your thoughts.