more beneficial?

[TjD]

well im bored and cant ask my sifu til monday,
so what do you guys think:

for one beginning to train in kicks,
1. would it be better to work front kicks or side kicks?
2. would it be better to work rear leg or front leg kicks?
3. on the wall bag, wooden dummy, punching bag. or in the air?


(i mean for actually praticing the kicks, other things like 1-legged SLT are good to help as well i know :) )

[anerlich]

The side kick is IMO less natural to most people and requires more skill than the front kick, so get some guidance on correct technique before pumping out the reps. If you have a reasonably good technical grasp, do all your kicks, with extra practice on the ones you are weak at.

Once your kicks are reasonably good technically, practice them in combinations with other kicks, steps, and hand techniques. Lots of people can do one good kick under demo conditions, fewer can kick effectively preceded or followed by other effective techniques. Remember the kick does not end when you hit (or miss :eek: ) the target, you have to retract the kicking leg and recover to an effective position to strike again.

You need a mixture of kicking in the air (better for fine tuning technique), kicking softer objects like bags or pads for power and occasionally kicking immovable objects to ensure you are properly balanced/rooted.

[TjD]

well what i've been training lately is on my hanging punching bag (its 45 kg or 100lbs, depending where you live)

i give it a good shove, and when its swinging back at me i throw my kick - this has really helped my root to say the least

for the most part, i know what my kick should feel like, and a good half the time they do and they give the bag a nice good dent/shock (so ive been working on getting that up to 100%)
i think once i get better/more flexible ill be folding it nicely with my side kick

i've been working the rear leg kicks more because they feel like they stretch me more, and the read leg side kick opens up my hip more, just because its got more momentum behind it :)

i think what my front leg kicks really need is more flexibility, and i think the mechanics behind them both are similar (the rear leg kicks just have more distance to travel)

[EnterTheWhip]

As a beginner, it is best to train getting the knee up. Forget about the foot aspect of it.

[Martial Joe]

Work on your front kicks with both legs, front & back.
Try and stay relaxed...it is just as important as your upper body.