Throwing a Round Kick (for Actors)

There are several ways to throw a round kick. In karate, it is very different from taekwondo. In taekwondo, the North Koreans do it differently to the South Koreans. Sometimes they mock each other at tournamnets about whether to strike with the ball of the foot or the instep. In Muay Thai, the round kick looks very different from karate and taekwondo.

All of those kicks are aimed at damaging the opponent with a foot strike to the leg, ribs or head, but they are thrown and delivered in very different ways. Their purpose is the same. But each way has advantages and limitations when it comes to fighting. The thai kick is very quick. It is a smashing tool, used to repeatedly hammer. The taekwondo round kick involves a flick on the ball of the foot and the hip which generates a huge amount of power whilst not committing the entire body into the kick. The karate ’roundhouse’ kick feels sharper, it has more snap. It is neither as artful as the taekwondo kick, nor as fully committed as the Thai boxer’s shin and instep kick.

The Kung fu kick is completely different from all three, yet is it better? No. It is a variation on a theme. Yet the philosophy, style and approach of the art may be completely different. In the end, it is not the kick. It is the person throwing the kick. It is whether the kick is thrown with speed, accuracy and catches the opponent.

“It doesn’t really matter which style or technique you learn. In fact, you could train in disciplines as different as aikido, judo, ballet, or mime, and gain equal benefit. This is because you are learning something beyond technique. When you study with your master, the skills are only the language of understanding, not the purpose.”

Japanese Actor – Yoshi Oida