Mechanics / Kicks / Shadow

Low, body, high

The round kick at three heights in a row: the same turn, a different knee.

The same round kick at three heights in a row, to see what stays the same and what changes. Low, body, high in a row is the fastest way to see that the round kick is one movement with one variable. The support foot turns the same way every time. What changes is how high the knee is carried on the way, and the study lets you watch that one thing change while everything else stays.

The actions, phase by phase

Rear low kick

1. Stance. Same start as the body kick: hands up, chin down, weight ready to move.
2. Turn support. The support heel turns out and lifts so the hip can come over.
3. Chop down. The shin arrives at thigh height and angles down through the target, the foot relaxed behind it.
4. Recover. Let the leg swing back to the stance rather than stopping it dead.

Watch for. The study shows the angle of the shin and the turn of the support foot. It cannot show the thigh it lands on, the check it might meet, or how much to commit. Do not throw this at full power into air.

Rear round kick

1. Stance. Use a range and contact method already taught in class.
2. Turn support. The support heel turns first and the hip follows it around.
3. Swing through. The shin is the surface that travels through, not the foot; the knee keeps a little bend.
4. Recoil / reset. Recover your stance under control.

Watch for. The study shows the support heel turning and the shin leading. It cannot show the depth of the turn, the timing or the contact force, and it has not been checked by a coach. Review a coach demonstration before contact practice.

Rear high kick

1. Stance. The same turn as the body kick, with the knee carried higher on the way up.
2. Knee up. The support leg extends and the trunk leans away so the hip can rise.
3. Whip through. The shin travels through at head height; the arm on that side swings down for balance.
4. Recover. Bring the leg back under you before the hands come down.

Watch for. The height here is the model's, not yours. A high kick needs the flexibility and the set-up that a coach builds over months; the study shows the shape and nothing about whether you should be throwing it.

Muay Thai guard

1. Base. Keep a stance from which either leg can lift.
2. Hands ready. Bring the hands into your coach-taught guard.
3. Balance. Keep the torso upright enough to manage kicks and checks.
4. Reset. Re-establish the base after every action.

Watch for. This illustration does not show clinch posture or an opponent.

Same turn, different knee

1. The support foot turns the same way at every height.
2. What changes is the knee: how high it is carried on the way.
3. Reset the guard fully between heights.

Three faults a pad holder sees

1. Different turn at different heights. the support foot turns out past 55 degrees on all three.
2. Height from the back on the high one. the trunk leans away; the lower back does not arch.
3. No reset between heights. the guard is rebuilt fully between kicks.

A starting prescription

3 rounds of 60 seconds with 45 seconds between them. Three sets of low, body, high per round, slow. Load the study into the session builder with these numbers and change them to suit the round you are preparing for.

What this loop is, and is not

Solo rehearsal of a shape you have already been taught. No partner, no contact, no pad impact, and no coach has reviewed this loop. It shows where the joints go, not whether they should go there for you.

Where it sits

Stage: Mechanics. Before it: Rear uppercut / short rise. Sessions that use it: Low kick round. See also the glossary, the warm-up and the method and its limits.