What ever happened to Mae Geri?

Hanashiro Chomo

Good question one with lots of answers.

I’ve probably thrown more than 10 times the front kicks over the years than all the rest put together.  But a long time ago I observed nobody was using them in kumite [defined as intra-dojo, amateur sport, to PKA] (long being defined as more than 20+ years). The exception being those who always used them, an exceptional minority.

By observation I deduced most as white belts got their shins, ankles and toes blasted enough to mentally loose faith in the front kick for sparring. Once that was established in their minds they turned to other alternatives from that point forth.  I don’t believe it was a conscious decision to get scores, just a reaction to pain learned early and not overcome in subsequent training.

The handful I’ve faced with great front kicks (among my instructors, or friends or even a student or two) all had incredible discipline behind their use. Either they were drilled unsparingly, and driven with focus to nail their opponent when they moved with the front kick, or they were drilled and drilled in correct technique to overcome the opportunities bad front kicks present to the opponent. In my experience both schools work, and on rare occasions are combined reinforcing that point of view.

The reason as beginners we (myself included) got nailed was mostly we were throwing bad front kicks, with our knees rising as we kicked, or we were throwing them without opening techniques making it child’s play to nail them.

Once pain is established in a technique, without careful groundwork to counter its existence (such as when white belts are sparring without any knowledge or technique to begin with) avoidance to pain takes place on both conscious and unconscious levels.

In my efforts to work my students beyond this I took a several pronged approach. First I discontinued beginners sparring. They have no technique to talk about and I eventually realized having them spend the time sparring on increasing their technique was more important.  Then at intermediate beginner levels (say green belt) with the ability to execute technique, they are more likely to do so successfully in sparring, increasing the level of their art, and the attendant dings are more easily focused past.

The other detail is there are a heck of a lot of things called a front kick.

The front kick can be done with the ball of the foot, several different bare foot versions of the toe kicks, as well as done with the blade of the foot and with the heel (something my instructor experienced in Okinawa while wearing Kendo gear for sparring. Some of the Okinawan’s would blast their front kicks with the heel to try and drop their opponent). 

They can be done with the front leg or the back leg, alone or in combination with other techniques.

They can be directed to the head, the chest and abdomen of the body, or to the lower body.

There is more than one set of motion with it. It can be  a ‘snap’ kick, a ‘thrust’ kick or a ‘pawing’ kick., and even angled so its ½ front and ½ round in its execution. The kick can even be the return motion of the kick, too.

They can be used as a primary offensive technique or a secondary offensive technique, a primary defensive or a secondary defensive technique.

On the whole that’s a lot of things to consider when you talk about a simple front kick.

Sport versions tend to be to the chest and abdomen.   Rarely are they attempted to the head and the entire range of lower body versions. The head or the armpit (or even the entire side of the body) because of the great amount of set up technique require to score (and the dangerous results this kick can bring, too).  The back is actively discouraged because of danger to the kick-ee.  Likewise the lower body versions (the original Okinawan approach) to the groin, the hip joints, the back thigh, the inner thigh, the knees, the shins, the ankle and the foot are rarely attempted in sport.  The correct execution can be very dangerous to those kicked, the lower kicks are far more difficult to block (requiring body shifting and/or knee and leg checks).

The front kick contains hidden techniques. When jammed, the rising knee before the kick can become a knee strike. The front kick can blast past the leg and its returning motion can smash a heel into the back of the leg as the real target.  The shin to the inner thigh or groin is likewise a possibility.

Presenting dangers against grappling, leaving only one leg on the ground with its attendant un-stability, at the same time a low focused kick into the ankle or the side of the knee can likewise pass that un-stability to the opponent.

An exceptional Chinese version is found in the form Tam Tu’ie (Tom Toy), often used by many systems as a beginning form. With origins in China’s Islamic culture, it is also an entire system in its own right.  Other systems (such as those associated with the Jing Mo association) have also incorporated its abilities into their system, too.

Tam Tu’ie’s kicks are issued (often) at about ankle height with the tip of the toes (clad in shoes or boots).  A more advanced version is done with the tip of the toe sliding across the floor to gather momentum and sling shot forth into the opponent.

I would suggest the front kick in all its versions haven’t gone away, but many of them may not fit into sparring practice for safety reasons.

Effective inclusion of the front kick in any program ought not pass away, IMVHO.