Leg Trapping

[YouKnowWho]

When your opponent runs in toward you and tries to knock your head off, a toe push kick on his chest or belly can not only stop his forward movement but also hurt him badly.

When you move into your opponent, you have to enter the kicking range before you can reach to the punching range. When you do that, you have to be sure not to be kicked by your opponent.

We have talked a lot about "arm trapping" in this forum. We don't have much discussion on "leg trapping". When your leg touch your opponent's leg, you can sense his leg intention. If you feel safe, you continue your advance movement. If you don't, you back up and start all over again.

The leg trapping principle is 100% offensive. IMO, there are many ways that you can do this:

1. Step on your opponent's leading leg knee (or upper leg).
2. Low roundhouse kick below your opponent's knee.
3. Low side kick at your opponent's leading leg knee (or shin bone).
4. Low reverse side kick at your opponent's leading leg knee (or shin bone).
5. Foot sweep at your opponent's leading leg.
6. Shin bite on the inside or outside of your opponent's ankle.
7. ...

As long as you can put your opponent in defensive mode, let him to worry about your kick, he will unlikely think about to kick you. As long as you can prevent your opponent from doing that single kick, you will have chance to pass the kicking range and get into the punching range. Whether your kick can hurt your opponent or not is not that important.

One of my friends likes to use 45 degree downward "flying side kick" to kick on his opponent's leading leg knee. When a 180 lb weight tries to drop on your knee joint, you will worry about your knee instead of how to counter attack your opponent at that moment.

Here is a short clip for "double leg trapping - knee step, foot sweep":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9W5hxUupbJ8

Please share your favor leg trapping move during entering.

[-N-]

The leg trapping principle is 100% offensive. IMO, there are many ways that you can do this:

1. Step on your opponent's leading leg knee (or upper leg).
2. Low roundhouse kick below your opponent's knee.
3. Low side kick at your opponent's leading leg knee (or shin bone).
4. Low reverse side kick at your opponent's leading leg knee (or shin bone).
5. Foot sweep at your opponent's leading leg.
6. Shin bite on the inside or outside of your opponent's ankle.
7. ...

[...]

Please share your favor leg trapping move during entering.

Those big motions are ok, but not the first ones that come to mind when I think of leg trapping or controlling motions.

They do control the other person's legs to a degree.

I like the type that is shown in this clip of your teacher. Contact and press.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xbloSsKEm0

It's a more subtle method that can be used as part of footwork. Done properly, it is quick, deep, has no gap, and is hard to detect until it's too lste.

It can trap or block the other person's attack or escape, or it can just control for a split second.

That method can be used with inside or outside of upper leg or more shallow with lower leg. And it can be with lead or back leg depending on how you step.

It can be combined with upper attacking motions, which Mantis likes to do.

I was looking for a sc clip for an example of no gap, but happened to find that one which was even better for this discussion.

[-N-]

Most students are too gappy or too rough and crashing when they try to do that type of trap.

They don't have a feel for dominating the other person's space. They are flinchy, and try to control from outside the fighting space.

They need to engage like a ba-wang. Just walk right in like kicking ass and taking names.

I do use it in a defensive way too. Or maybe counter attacking.

For example, if the other person gives me a shin kick, I can step into the kick and leak my step along one side or the other of his kick. Then I step down and into his center of balance the way your teacher did. As my foot lands, the weight deflects and destabilizes the other person.

If I leak and control to his outside, I can also trap and attack at the same time with hands.

If I leak and deflect from his inside, I can just use groin kick up the center with the same leg on the rebound.

[YouKnowWho]

I was only talking about kicking range leg trapping. You are talking about punching range and clinch range leg trapping. In punching/clinching range, almost all your leg skill such as cut, hook, spring, scoop, break, block, ... can be used for leg trapping. The close range leg trapping is very complicate and one can write a book about it.

Here is another punching/clinching range leg trapping (the shin bite and reverse shin bite).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2TmvH5gQuA

[Vajramusti]

[QUOTE=-N-;1188605]Those big motions are ok, but not the first ones that come to mind when I think of leg trapping or controlling motions.

They do control the other person's legs to a degree.

I like the type that is shown in this clip of your teacher. Contact and press.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xbloSsKEm0
-------------------------------------------------
That is a good demo my Master Chang.

]

[-N-]

Here is another punching/clinching range leg trapping (the shin bite and reverse shin bite).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2TmvH5gQuA

I really like that one.

If you can do it with running footwork while throwing jab-cross-whatever, and connect with shin bite without crashing the legs, it is a thing of beauty

[-N-]

I was only talking about kicking range leg trapping. You are talking about punching range and clinch range leg trapping.

Right. Well from the longer range, I just think of it as kicking. We try to close quickly, then the close range is more important for us so the other person can't recover.

But from kicking range, I use your #2 method a lot, and continue into what you called "shin bite".

Also shin kick, jump front kick, running step, low roundhouse sequence.

Another opening that works well for me is jump midlevel roundhouse with the back leg, running step, jump grab and punch downward from high position. That worked so well that I made myself stop using it in sparring.

In punching/clinching range, almost all your leg skill such as cut, hook, spring, scoop, break, block, ... can be used for leg trapping. The close range leg trapping is very complicate and one can write a book about it.

That's why I said you should start this thread, haha. Much more interesting than internet chi arguments.

Mantis likes to control and hit. It is aggressive, but in a cautious way. It stacks the odds in its favor. It doesn't attack recklessly. The leg control is a useful part of controlling the opponent.

Funny story when my teacher first taught me that. The class was working on attack combinations. Typical Mantis hand stuff. He checked to see if I was doing correctly. Then he did it to me and added a very sllght leg trap. He didn't say anything at all, and just looked at me.

He saw a flash of recognition in my eyes, and then he just turned around and walked away with a slight grin. He never did explain it to the class.

[YouKnowWho]

I really like that one.

If you can do it with running footwork while throwing jab-cross-whatever, and connect with shin bite without crashing the legs, it is a thing of beauty

I'll try jab and corss and see how it may work.

I like to use a right hook punch to set up the 1st shin bite. When my opponent dodge it, I then use my right forearm to push on his right upper arm. This will jam his right arm completely. Most of the time because the distance, I have to move my left foot next to my right foot (it's not done in that clip), so I can advance my right foot. When I do that, I'll extend my left arm across my opponent's neck.

[-N-]

The leg trapping principle is 100% offensive.

How would you call kicking the kick?

When the guy does shin kick, you do side kick or shin kick or roundhouse against his kick. Then you follow up.

Or like I said before, when he does shin kick, you leak and "shin bite".

Or he does low roundhouse, you leak and come back faster with your own low roundhouse when his leg passes.

[-N-]

I like to use a right hook punch to set up the 1st shin bite. When my opponent dodge it, I then use my right forearm to push on his right upper arm. This will jam his right arm conpletely. Most of the time because the distance, I have to move my left foot next to my right foot (it's not done in that clip), so I can advance my right foot. When I do that, I'll extend my left arm across my opponent's neck.

Nice.

You might like opening with the straight attacks. It has to be fierce so that the person is only thinking about getting the hell out of there. Most people start to get unbalanced backwards. Then you can chase with the 2 shin bite combinations.

If you control with one forearm as you punch with the other side, you have upper and lower 2 point control for your throw/trip. Not as solid as full grappling, but the entry speed is in your favor. The punch also creates split second mental control.

Your left foot shift to right foot afjustment is something that people will see in 2 person form vs. 1 person form. To revisit that whole discussion, haha.

[YouKnowWho]

The longfist, there is a very interest "chain kicks". When you use it on your opponent, not only you can step on his knee, if he pulls that leg back and kick you, you can step on his knee again.

In SC, there is a very important drill and that is to kick your foot back and touch your hip. When your opponent uses low roundhouse kick below your knee, you just bend your leg back at your knee joint to let his kick to pass through. You then sweep his kicking leg.

[YouKnowWho]

You might like opening with the straight attacks. It has to be fierce so that the person is only thinking about getting the hell out of there.

Agree! This is why in the 1st 10 second of the fight, you have to give 100% power and speed on your punches and kicks. After your opponent feels your power and speed and you have earned his respect, you can just wave your hand or leg, he may jump back.

[-N-]

In SC, there is a very important drill and that is to kick your foot back and touch your hip. When your opponent uses low roundhouse kick below your knee, you just bend your leg back at your knee joint to let his kick to pass through. You then sweep his kicking leg.

Useful.

I do a few different followup. Sometimes sweep. Sometimes kick the leg. Sometimes trip his leg as he lands, and make him take too big a step and get stuck so I can hit him.

[-N-]

Agree! This is why in the 1st 10 second of the fight, you have to give 100% power and speed on your punches and kicks. After your opponent feels your power and speed and you have earned his respect, you can just wave your hand or leg, he may jump back.

Haha. Train him to flinch.

When my sihing and I sparred people that stay far and don't engage. We would kick the fingers of their lead hand, or kick their elbow from underneath if their guard was too straight.

Made them flinchy

[YouKnowWho]

To a low roundhouse kick, sometime I like to turn my shin bone to meet his leg. If my opponent's shin bone is not as hard as mine, he won't kick again. The nice thing about it is when my opponent feels pain, I can use my back leg to hook his standing leg and take him down right at that moment. Of course I have to jam his arms when I do that.

I love to drop elbow on my opponent's kicking leg. It always has good result.