CrimsonPhoenix

Thank you all for the suggestions! I'm going to start working on those stretches and using a wall to check my angle. I had to look up what "Sokusen" meant. All I have to say is.... ouch! I jammed one of my toes by kicking my instructor's knee the other day, and just the thought of kicking with the toes makes me wince.

I'm having issues with the ball of the foot roundhouse kick. The instep kick is not a problem for me, nor is the setup. My issue is with getting the toes pulled back far enough so that I can hit with the ball of the foot. The kick isn't new to me. I've had both roundhouse kicks in my arsenal for several years, but we've never really spent much time on the ball of the foot roundhouse kick in class. This issue came up when I tried three times to break a single board and nearly broke my toes instead. Since then, one of my instructors has been working with me on the kick and he told me that part of the problem is the flexibility in my foot. He checked to see how far I could pull my toes back and told me to pull them back more. I couldn't. He pulled my toes back for me to where they needed to be, but I can't keep them there. He told me I have the stiffest toes he's ever seen. Trying to get better at this kick is driving me crazy and frustrating me to no end. Every time I practice this kick on my own on the heavy bag, I seem to hit with the toes. I need advise as to what I can do to get better form and flexibility.

My immediate goal at the moment is to earn my 1st gup red belt. I've been told that I'm testing this month, but I've had a set back by being sick the past several weeks, so I need to build up my stamina and get back into practice before I can hope to test. I also want to: Practice more and more consistently at home Get better at doing pushups Train for and enter a tournament later this year Get in better shape Get ready for my black belt test, whenever that may be. Could be 2012 before I'm ready for that though

Hi, everyone! I never know what to say in these introductions topics, but.... here goes! I'm a 20 year old from the southern U.S. and a proud female martial artist! I've been training in Tae Kwon Do for about seven years and I'm preparing to test for my 1st gup red belt in January. I assist in classes, but someday I plan to start a class of my own. For now, I'm concentrating on improving my TKD and becoming a better teacher. I've been lurking on the board for some time now and decided to join so I could start posting. Looking forward to being a part of this community!