equaninimus Posted January 8, 2004 Posted January 8, 2004 There was an Uechi group in DC, and I was always amazed to see them conditioning their toes by bonking them with blocks of wood. They also conditioned the thumb knucle joint by smacking it against the wall. I hit the makiwara regularly with fists and knife hands, but I'm not that dedicated! There have always been Starkadders at Cold Comfort Farm!
Uechi Kid Posted January 8, 2004 Posted January 8, 2004 We strengthen our toes by kicking tires that are cut in half and mounted on the wall. We start by just pushing against the tire and work our way up to kicking it full-blown. We also condition our shins by kicking the tire with roundhouse kicks. More Practice
aznkarateboi Posted January 8, 2004 Posted January 8, 2004 i prefer the heavybag filled with sand, they have several at my school. they are much harder than normal heavybags
Sho-ju Posted January 9, 2004 Posted January 9, 2004 I wear light running shoes and kick a water bag with my toe. The shoe holds them nice and tight...give it a try.
ESA-Shotokan Posted January 9, 2004 Posted January 9, 2004 I use the ball of my foot with toes pointed away. You can always practice the mae-geri by lightly kicking or pushing against a wall or the such. Do it slowly and very deliberate - your toes will be pushed back should tyhey not do so sufficiently and you will then be training them to react as your kick lands. It wont be an over-night cure but time will be effective. As for kicking with the toes? Ouch! Now that must hurt!!
delta1 Posted January 9, 2004 Posted January 9, 2004 The ball, heel, knife edge, instep, or shin. Even with shoes on, curling your toes as much as possible helps protect them and strengthens the foot. Without shoes it is essential to hit with the ball to avoid injury. Instep is good for groin shots, or if closer the shin works. The outside/knife edge can be use for front slicing kicks. The heel works well for lower abdomen shots. I would not advise useing the sole of the foot or the toes unless you are fond of limping a lot. Your soles are sensative, a lot of nerves there, and protected only by the fact that they are usually kept on the floor. As for toes, they will break easier than anything you are likely to kick with them. Even in tournaments (the few I've been to anyhow) a lot of judges won't give a point if they see you kicking with straight toes. And they are right, in my ever so humble opinion. Oh yeah, the first part of a front kick is an upward knee strike. Can't forget the knee! Freedom isn't free!
equaninimus Posted January 9, 2004 Posted January 9, 2004 Toes (well protected in shoes) to the inner thigh can be devastating. There have always been Starkadders at Cold Comfort Farm!
Uechi Kid Posted January 9, 2004 Posted January 9, 2004 equaninimus That target can disable your opponent for as much as twenty minutes. Guess what?? Fights over!! More Practice
I-Self Posted January 9, 2004 Posted January 9, 2004 The ball, heel, knife edge, instep, or shin. Even with shoes on, curling your toes as much as possible helps protect them and strengthens the foot. Without shoes it is essential to hit with the ball to avoid injury. Instep is good for groin shots, or if closer the shin works. The outside/knife edge can be use for front slicing kicks. The heel works well for lower abdomen shots. I would not advise useing the sole of the foot or the toes unless you are fond of limping a lot. Your soles are sensative, a lot of nerves there, and protected only by the fact that they are usually kept on the floor. As for toes, they will break easier than anything you are likely to kick with them. Even in tournaments (the few I've been to anyhow) a lot of judges won't give a point if they see you kicking with straight toes. And they are right, in my ever so humble opinion. Oh yeah, the first part of a front kick is an upward knee strike. Can't forget the knee! No, the first part of the front kick is whipping the leg out, with an imperceivable chamber. That knee up stuff is for beginners and sport stylists. Remember you are speaking from a TKD or Kenpo perspective. How will you use the ball of your foot with shoes on? Why practice barefoot techs when 80% of the time people wear shoes? Toe kicks teach you the proper fundamentals AND conditioning to kick with shoes on or off. Using the edge of your foot with shoes on is good too. You can do this stype of kick either with a sidekick, or the more preferable and advanced front kick using the side of your foot. This one, like toe-kicking, takes practice. Advanced Okinawan principles for the modern stylist. Heel stomps can be good if kept pelvis level or lower. If you want to do a knee strike then do a knee strike. The chambering you've learned your entire MAs life is for little kids and schoolboy karate. Ball of the foot kicks are useless in real life. Bye-bye! Yes, there is a right and wrong way....There is no "Do" without "Jutsu"!
ESA-Shotokan Posted January 10, 2004 Posted January 10, 2004 Hmmm but a kick which is swung up is so easy to stop - no effort required. If lifting the knee first is school kid stuff then I guess we'd better let the many thousands of high grade karateka, "Oops! We got it wrong!" I have to disagree with that as my mae-geri is extremely fast but hey, so what? If what you do works for you then who am I to judge?
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