WNY MMA & Fitness: All leg kicks are not equal

WNY MMA & Fitness: All leg kicks are not equal

Leg kicks; if you are on the receiving end of them, then they are the bane of your very existence. They hurt bad and linger, slowly giving you lead feet as a fight goes on. When people hear about leg kicks, they immediately think about muay thai, can't blame them. I'm here to show you some very interesting variation to the low kick and how they can add some deceptive touches to your arsenal. Think of this as a favor from your friendly neighborhood WNY MMA & Fitness. 

I will only be highlighting the kick from two striking styles in particular; muay thai, and kyokushin. Don't underestimate kyokushin style leg kicks, those things can do some damage and at close range aswell. Besides, kyokushin has laid the ground work for some very vicious kickboxing styles. This style is the Dutch style, most notable for their powerful punching combos and vicious leg kicks. Some notable people of this style are: Ramon Dekkers, Rob Kaman, Allistar Overeem, Andrew Souwer, etc. 

watch this guys fight reels, scary!!!

Muay thai style:

If you ever took a leg kick from a muay thai guy without shinguards, you definitely identify with this poor guy. People that train styles like muay thai, kyokushin and other styles of the like; are accustomed to getting a shin to the leg. It's an everyday occurrence. But for those who have not, you will be put on your keister. People have compared getting hit by a thai style leg kick to someone swinging a baseball bat at their leg. I for one, am not gonna ask how they know what it feels like to take a baseball bat the leg. Ill ask one of the guys at WNY MMA & Fitness

With the muay thai leg kick its rotation of the hip all the way, that's where the money is. That and the stationary foot has to rotate to allow the hips to open up completely, this also helps turn the kicking leg over so that the shin will land correctly on the thigh maximizing its effectiveness.

THE LEG KICK:

• Start from your Muay Thai fighting stance.
• Step forward and slightly out of the center line.
• Kick with your back leg and twist on the ball of the foot of the front leg (standing leg). The knee of the standing leg is slightly bent.
• Kick with the bottom of the shin and not with the foot. The foot of the kicking leg is extended but relaxed. Turn your hips with the kick.
• At impact, the kicking leg is 80 percent extended.
• Don’t bend the kicking leg too much at the beginning. Muay Thai roundhouse kicks are not snapped.
• Extend one arm, keep the other hand close to your head and don’t lift the elbow. Make sure both sides of your head remain protected.
• Go back the same way and plant the kicking leg at the exact same spot where you started.
• If you notice that your opponent keeps looking at your head, attack him with low kicks.
• The cut kick is an even lower roundhouse kick variation than the thigh kick. Thigh kicks are usually easier to apply.
• Practice the Muay Thai thigh kick on a high heavy bag.
• Exhale as you kick.
• Keep your chin down

THE CUT KICK:

The cut kick is a variation on the muay thai leg kick. It's used to unbalance someone by intercepting an on coming kick; when someones weight is on one leg. This is done by kicking along the line of an incoming kick, the target is right below the hollow of the knee. This kick will put your opponent on his or her side if performed correctly. You will hook your foot above the calf of your opponent, following through with a closing of the hip and pulling your foot across your body. With some practice you will catch this thing like crazy, train with the WNY MMA guys to get it. Need more clarification, here's a video. Don't worry, there are English captions. 

Kyokushin leg kicks and set ups:

Now before you start bashing me for posting karate here give me a minute to show you that there is something valuable in this styles kicks. Kyokushin is known for its knockdown format; what that means is that they get into a ring or on a mat and go balls to the wall with nothing but a mouth guard and groin cup. Because of the bare knuckle aspect of the style; no punches to the face are allowed, but you will take a foot or shin to the mouth or face. Its not like the point karate that you are used to seeing, you win by beating the crap out of the other guy. Because the distance for this style is so close, it doesn't leave alot of distance for kicks. So you be creative with them. There are a lot of tactics of making someone miss a leg kick to get your own in. 

The kick is similar to the muay thai in the fact that there is dependence on the hip for the deliverance of power; but before the kick lands, there is a snapping of the leg near the end of the kick to deliver the power. There are a few set ups for the kicks, but they are to get the clearance for a clean leg kick. Mostly movement of the legs. Here is a video of the mentioned kicks below: 

Like those?

This has got to be the longest article I have written for you guys, hope you enjoy it. But what is a usual article from me without extra videos for your viewing pleasure. I've got a good mix of them for you today; leg kicks, lovely leg kicks. Enjoy and come train with is, the door says WNY MMA & Fitness. See you soon!!