Feet no higher than the knee

[yat_chum]

In many Southern Styles there is a saying "feet no higher than the knee" does this mean that your feet should not go higher than your opponents knee when kicking? Or does it mean that your foot should not go higher than your own knee? For example in a front kick would mean that you can only kick to about waist height as to kick higher would mean that your foot is higher than your knee (if that makes sense?).
:confused:

[brothernumber9]

I'm just guessing, but I think it would refer to the foot position at the beginning of a side kick and would reflect more about the knee pointing down than the foot coming up. In otherwords, pick the knee up. I guess technically the same could be said for the start of all leg bending kicks from a ready/fight standing type of position/stance.

[Shadow Skill]

what is ment by this is U shouldn't kick above your opponents knee. Higher kicks are more easily blocked and more teleghaphed. kicks to the ankle, shin and knee are favored

[SevenStar]

yeah, southern styles tend to be low kicking, with lots of hand strikes. northern styles tend to have more flamboyant kicking.

[brothernumber9]

I don't agree entirely. I do agree that low kicks are favored, but there are too many southern long arm and some short arm systems that kick often waist high. Push kicks, roundhouse, side kicks, I most often see waist high or even higher.

The southern fists, northern kicks saying has already been dispelled. I guess a better perspective may be drawn by knowing the style of the person who presented the prose to this thread's initiator. I think translations of the same phrases may be different when interperated from different disciplines.

[SevenStar]

I consider a waist level kick to be low...