Front Kick?

[rabid hamster]

hiya,

 

does anyone know which part of your foot you hit with when you do the front kick in WTF TKD? The instructor told me to kick with the top part of my foot, but on this book I got it said you hit with the ball of your foot. Which one is right?

 

thank you

 

-Hiya

 

:smile:

[spinninggumby]

I think different instructors or masters (even within the same federation such as WTF) will tell you different things, but I have been taught that it can go both ways. The top of the foot can usually be used for low targets (such as groin) while the ball can be used for the head and solar plexus and such. I would not be surprised if you heard otherwise from many many other people though

[Jack]

Interesting, at our dojang we are always taught to perform front kicks to strike with the ball of the foot, but I can see the value of striking with the top of the foot with a front kick to the groin. I'd imagine just about any other target however would be more effective with the ball of the foot.

[Bon]

Generally you use the ball of your foot.

 

If you wanna get mean, use the heel! REOW, I love the power you get when using the heel =)

 

 

[Joecooke007]

You are getting confused with two different kicks. One kick is a snap and you hit with the top of your foot. The other kick is a thrust and you push and make contact with the ball of your foot.

 

 

[KickChick]

The traditional front kick uses the ball of the foot to strike. The padding of the ball of the foot protects the bones of the foot from injury. Now as far as the snap and push kick go ... for the snap kick, the knee is pointed at the target and the lower leg is snapped into the kick. The knee must be raised high enough that the foot does not just slide up the surface of the target. For a push kick, the kick rises higher than the target and then drops as the foot extends and the hip is thrust behind the kick. Although the leg and knee may move in many directions, the foot itself moves in a straight line from the floor to the target.

 

I actually never heard of using the top of foot for front kicking (scoup kicks)and usually for groin kicks an upward shin kick is much more powerful! Yeouch! In Uechiryu, the big toe is used as a striking area for the front kick, but this is dangerous to the kicker also. The heel may also be used as the striking area. The toes point upward or outward and the heel is pushed forward.

 

_________________

 

1st dan Black Belt Tae Kwon Do (ITF)/ CardioKickbox/Fitness Instructor

 

[ This Message was edited by: KickChick on 2002-03-17 11:02 ]

[Bretty101]

I always do front kick with the ball of my foot. Unless i'm fighting someone who drops there elbow on all my kicks (elbow block i love it!) in which case i do it the way my Thai boxing instructor showed me using my heel.

 

I'm actually an ITF fighter but no noe has ever told me to front kick with my instep tho i can understand it being a good groin strike.

 

Bretty

[SBN Doug]

We use a combination of the two as well. Top of the foot for targeting the groin, and ball of the foot for all the harder targets.

[Kai_Jecht]

Really any part you want to hit with but its more commonly hit with the ball of the foot. O well

[karatekid1975]

I was taught (in TSD) to kick with the ball of my foot. When I started WTF TKD, I was told to kick with the top of my foot. Huh? Ok, so I tried it. Ouch! It hurts. After that, I never did it again lol. I would think it would be personal preference. I perfer to kick with the ball of my foot, because it doesn't hurt and it's more affective (for me, anyways).