Do a Front Kick
A front kick is one of the three basic kicks of most martial arts—typically Tae Kwon Do and Tang Soo Do. It is a powerful kick that is generally very easy to perform and, when executed properly, can quickly bring down an assailant. Here is how to perform the front kick.
Contents
Steps
- Get into proper stance. Many schools will have you execute a front kick off a front stance. To perform a front stance, lean forward while bringing one of your legs forward and bend your front leg at a near 45º angle. Straighten out your back leg. If done correctly, you should appearing to be leaning forward, and you should feel a slight stretch in your back leg muscles.
- Naturally, this stance is mostly used in martial arts schools. In practical cases, such as defending yourself out on the streets, you will probably want to execute a front kick from a Get Into a Fighting Stance.
- Lift the knee of your back leg up as high as you want to aim. This is called a chamber. To do a chest-level kick, bring your chamber up to your chest. To do a low-level kick [as in toward your opponent's knee], lift your leg and chamber it toward his or her knee.
- Snap your leg out with your toes facing up. Strike your target using the ball of your foot or instep. The ball of your foot is located just underneath your big toe. Curl your toes back as you kick to ensure that you don't accidentally hit with your toes. If you want to kick with your instep, point your toes instead.
- Rechamber your leg. Curl your leg back to the same location that you originally chambered your leg.
- Return your leg back to where it was or if it's easier land on the foot that you kicked with, then slide your foot back.
- If you are performing "line drills" in a school, you may want to drop your front foot down to the front into a new front stance, so that you can execute the next kick with your other leg.
Tips
- Don't get lazy when chambering your kicking leg! Not only does the chamber help you aim at your target, but it also builds up much more power in your kick.
- If this is your first time attempting a front kick, try to maintain a momentum. If you jerk or slow down in between kicks, you'll likely lose your balance.
- Don't let your arms swing away to the side—this will make you an easy target for a counterattack. Keep them up to protect your head and the rest of your body!
- Some targets for the front kick include the knee, groin, solar plexus (located just under the ribs), chin, and face area.
- If you really want to become good at kicking, you might start studying a martial art.
Warnings
- To prevent muscle injury, always stretch before performing any physical activity.
- Don't strike with your toes—you can break them easily if you are kicking hard enough! Remember to strike with the ball of your foot, located just underneath your big toe.
Related Articles
- Choose a Martial Art
- Defend Against a Front Kick
- Counter a Frontkick
- Do a Roundhouse Kick
- Snap Punch (Kickboxing)
- Do Tang Soo Do Basic Form Two
- Do a Front Kickover
- Do a Front Kick in Kickboxing
