13
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To what extent does height give an advantage in any type of fight?
Height gives a considerable advantage to striking martial arts. The first and most obvious advantage is that height means you can reach out further than your opponent, meaning you can hit him before ...
- 4,158
13
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Why do people use the horse stance? Won't it expose you to groin shots?
The question asks why horse stances exist in martial arts in general.
The horse stance gets a lot of bad press. Lots of people just make fun of it, saying that it leaves people vulnerable to kicks to ...
- 17.3k
12
votes
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How to effectively defend against a boxer with kicks
The subject of "puncher vs. kicker vs. wrestler" comes up a lot in martial arts. The general philosophy that's put forward is: "Don't box a boxer. Don't kick a kicker. Don't wrestle a wrestler."
The ...
- 17.3k
10
votes
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How to train for improved balance?
Improve your leg Strength.
Do this first because it feeds into any activity requiring balance.
Try:
Hindu squats. These are great because they have you coming up on the ball of your foot while ...
- 4,081
10
votes
Accepted
How to do a good yoko geri (side kick)
You didn't give a specific problem you're having, so, it's hard to say what might be the problem.
There are two primary elements to the kick: the chamber and the thrust. There is your starting ...
- 3,851
9
votes
Only one ankle weight when kicking
The speed increase from kicking with ankle weights and then removing them doesn't demonstrate any improvement. It demonstrates that it's easier to kick correctly and quickly without adding resistance. ...
- 21.2k
9
votes
Low kicks vs high kicks in street fight
Unfortunately, some martial arts as practiced in the training hall are unsuitable for general use in street fights.
The danger with high kicks is not just the surface as mentioned by cs1971, there ...
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9
votes
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Why doesn't Muay Thai use the Karate/Taekwondo front snap kick?
It comes down to the same reasons which hold for the different roundhouse kick: power and dmg vs. speed and predictability. Thai fighters have a different goal compared to karate and TKD fighters as ...
- 5,825
9
votes
Why do people use the horse stance? Won't it expose you to groin shots?
If you are doing the horse stance, doesn't it just expose you to groin kicks?
Yes.
So why do people use the horse stance if it is just going to leave them exposed for groin shots?
The purpose of ...
- 13.6k
8
votes
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Is Kicking with Shin is a weakness / advantage in Muay Thai?
Your shin can break if you kick someone very hard and they block just right and all conditions align against you. You can break your hand punching someone, even aiming to soft targets like the ribs. ...
- 21.2k
8
votes
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Taekwondo tornado kick defense
Is there a way to escape/ defend yourself from tornado kick?
Ummm... yes. If there wasn't, all martial arts would only practice tornado kicks, but in fact relatively few martial arts use the ...
- 4,210
8
votes
Any conditioning exercise that can prevent concussion caused by a punch or kick to the head or neck?
My first piece of advice is to see a doctor. If you are suffering something other than a concussion, that's important to know. However, if you are suffering concussions, you are risking your health ...
- 8,533
8
votes
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Is the Push Side Kick a Taekwondo technique?
In the official Kukkiwon (WT/WTF) Taekwondo Terminology guide published in 2012 the listing is:
Mireo-chagi(밀어차기): Pushing Kick
A technique of pushing the opponent with the foot
This is a ...
- 1,081
7
votes
How can I speed up the recovery of a bruised leg?
Despite ice's enduring popularity and former recommendations for its use in RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) treatment, ice is no longer recommended for reducing inflammation or bruising. Gabe ...
- 13.6k
7
votes
could someone name some weird looking martial arts
There are no such things as "street fighting" martial arts. Each martial art has its own story for how it came to exist and how it has evolved over the years.
Wing Chun kung-fu, for example, is often ...
- 17.3k
7
votes
Proper Foot Orientation on Spinning Back Kick
While "back kick" is mostly synonymous with "side kick" in most martial arts, there are styles that do have a back kick that is subtly but very significantly different than a side-kick. This is ...
- 17.3k
7
votes
Accepted
What does it mean to "chamber a kick"?
Chambering is an analogy drawn from firearms. In firearms, you chamber a round (put a bullet in the chamber). In the same way as you chamber a round in firearms, you can chamber a kick to "fire" it. ...
- 4,081
7
votes
Some crazy kick identification
One name it goes by in Japanese martial arts is Do Mawashi Kaiten Geri, sometimes known as the "forward roll axe kick". It does appear in other styles. In Capoeira, it's often referred to as an Aú ...
- 10.9k
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votes
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Some crazy kick identification
ROLLING THUNDER
Kyokushin competition is also the home of the rolling thunder, or Do mawashi geri / Kaiten geri. Because of the rules it is relatively low risk, but tremendously high reward. Bouts ...
- 21.2k
7
votes
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Is there any practical use for high kicks (e.g. Jodan Mawashi Geri)?
"what's the point in high kicks if you can't use them in real life"
Just because you can't - currently - doesn't mean others can't, or that you couldn't.
It can vary a lot by kick - for example, ...
- 4,210
7
votes
Are thugs more likely to kick or punch?
I take your premise to be that low kicks are the standard attack of thugs in assault situations.
An extensive quantitative study on injuries from assault in the US suggests otherwise:
Most injuries ...
- 5,825
6
votes
How to train for improved balance?
A simple practical exercise that will improve your kicking balance: Do straight leg kicks without ever setting the kicking leg down.
You don't have to do them aggressively or high at first. Even a ...
- 1,609
6
votes
What is the biggest force ever produced by an impact from the human body?
National Geographic did a fight science segment on martial arts kicks, featuring karate, tae kwon do and muay thai against capoeira.
I was a little disappointed, in that they had Simon Rhee (karate) ...
- 4,520
6
votes
Best moment to land a low kick?
The short answer is that you should land it when all your opponent's weight is on that leg. Either while kicking, or leaning forward. Just know that kicking close to the knee while your opponent is ...
- 4,158
6
votes
The 180 degree leg split
Your master has been doing this stuff for several years (hopefully), so obviously he'll look better at it. It took me a good 6 months to be able to kick above my head and 2 years before I could do a ...
- 4,158
6
votes
Accepted
The 180 degree leg split
I've covered this briefly in another answer, but splits don't help kicks.
You should, in around 6 weeks be able to achieve your maximum kicking height doing dynamic stretches (leg swings).
Each ...
- 480
6
votes
The 180 degree leg split
FWIW, after struggling similarly (and being given many different stretches and training methods to "fix" it) I had an MRI done and found out that my hips are formed in such a way that it is ...
- 849
6
votes
Accepted
Taekwondo training to help Karate-do kicks
Karate and Tae Kwon Do have a lot of overlap. So many of the techniques will be very similar.
However, the slight differences cause more issues as you get to a higher level.
The best way to improve ...
- 2,699
6
votes
Taekwondo tornado kick defense
The setup for one of these kicks is ridiculous, and I question if there is even a significant power difference between one and a well delivered roundhouse or side kick. I feel good footwork is the ...
- 1,673
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votes
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What kind of kick is this?
It's definitely not a tornado kick (dolgae chagi, 돌개 차기). It has a number of names, Americans tend to use wheel kick, in Korea it's more commonly known as a back whip kick and in the UK we tend to use ...
- 1,081
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible