How’s it going?
Ando here from SenseiAndo.com.
You know, I wasn’t going to make a video about the round kick or turning kick because
there are so many ways you can throw it.
I do not have the time to get sucked into a comment war about which is the best way
or which is the right way.
I mean, look-- you could throw a round kick standing right where you are or you could
step out and make an angle.
You can throw it leading with the knee and chambering or you can just throw that hip.
You can throw it with your hands up, a hand out, or throwing a hand back.
You can hit with the ball of your foot, the instep, or your shin.
You can hit upwards, sideways, or cut down.
You can snap it, you can stick it, or you can spin all the way around with it.
AGH!
So, which is the right way?
Which is the best way?
Whichever one works for you.
That’s the answer.
For me, these are totally different tools for different times.
But there is one thing that all round kicks and turning kicks have in common, at least
good ones, and that’s the pivot.
So, today, no matter how you throw that round kick, let me give you one simple drill to
help you add a little more power to your pivot.
Okay.
Here’s the drill.
First, yeah.
Well, make sure your hair looks good.
Now take your stance.
I’m just going to pivot on the ball of my foot and drop it down.
Pivot, drop.
You’ll notice that I’m not actually throwing the kick.
That’s because when you throw the kick, it’s natural to put your focus on your kicking
foot, but I don’t want to focus on my kicking foot right now.
I want to focus on how I set up my kicking foot.
That means paying attention to how you initiate the movement and how you’re using your core
to power the kick.
Once you feel good pivoting slowly, now you can add some pop to it.
For this drill, my goal is to pivot a full 180 degrees on each rep.
So, just keep turning around, over and over.
You’ll also notice that I’m leading or chambering with the knee, but if you’d rather
step out a little and throw the hip, you can do that, too.
No matter what, like I said, make sure you’re always pivoting on the ball of your foot and
not your heel.
And don’t even think about pivoting on a flat foot.
I mean, unless you want to jack up your knee and walk funny for the rest of your life.
Just like that.
Not that.
If you want to kick it up a notch, now try this… pivot in the air.
Now, don’t get crazy, it’s just a quick hop.
Stay as close to the ground as you possibly can.
Just a quick, explosive turn.
Your toes are facing forward, then BAM, they’re facing backward.
Hey, let’s kick it up another notch.
This time, try keeping your leg in the air the whole time.
Just pivot and stop.
Pivot and stop.
Pivot, stop.
This one will really challenge your balance, especially if you’re on mats.
Cool.
Once you have that, try pivoting without stopping.
This is a killer.
The only downside is that you look like a one-legged meth addict trying to see the back
of his own head, but it’s worth it.
All right.
I saved the best, or maybe it’s the worst, for last.
Okay, this time, start down in a squat.
Squatting will force you to drive off that back leg and push that hip forward.
Really feel your foot on that ground, then you can explode off the line and add more
power to your round kick.
I should point out that some people really like to rise up when they throw their round
kick, some people don't.
I personally don't.
But as an exercise, I think it’s important that everybody be able to do it low and slow.
So, challenge yourself as an exercise just to stay low in your stance and without using
too much momentum, see if you can still control your pivot.
If you can do that, you can always add more speed, add more power, then you can throw
the round kick pretty much any way you want.
Okay, that’s the drill.
Pivot and drop.
Then add some pop.
Now try a hop.
Leg up and stop.
Leg up, no stop.
And for a real hardcore burn, pivot with a jump.
Oh, yeah, and don’t forget to do all that on your other leg, too.
If you liked that tip and you don’t want to miss the next one, don’t forget to hit
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That way, you won’t miss a thing.
Until next time, keep kicking, my friend, and keep fighting for a happy life.