A roundhouse kick (also known as round kick or turning kick) is a

kick A kick is a physical Strike (attack), strike using the leg, in unison usually with an area of the knee or lower using the foot, heel, tibia (shin), ball of the foot, blade of the foot, toes or knee (the latter is also known as a knee (strike), ...

in which the practitioner lifts the knee while turning the supporting foot and body in a semicircular motion, extending the leg striking with the lower part of the shin and/or the instep (top of the foot). The ball of the foot can also be used to strike the target and is preferable when power breaking thick boards. This type of kick is utilized in many different

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

and is popular in both non-contact and full-contact martial arts competitions. The kick has many variations based on stance, leg movement, striking surface, and the height of the kick.

Semi-circular kick

A semi-circular kick is a round kick to ''forty five degree roundhouse kick'' (or "diagonal kick"). Most popular in

kick-boxing Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general ...

lethwei Lethwei ( my, လက်ဝှေ့; IPA: ) or Burmese boxing, is a full contact combat sport from Myanmar that uses stand-up striking including headbutts. Lethwei is considered to be one of the most brutal martial arts in the world, * * * a ...

, and

muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

, it can be used in almost every situation. With this

, all parts of the opponent's body can be attacked and every kind of attack can be countered. File: semi1.jpg, Low kick outside File: semi2.jpg, Low kick inside File: circulaire10.jpg, Middle kick File: contre5.jpg, Low kick in counter

Karate methods

Karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

has many different methods of delivering the roundhouse kick (

mawashi geri can be translated as "spin kick", although it is also sometimes referred to as a roundhouse kick. It is a kick used in Japanese martial arts. Technique Mawashi geri may be executed from a variety of stances, and there are several methods of prop ...

). The original method involved bringing up the knee, and then swiftly turning the hip over and snapping the leg outwards from the knee to deliver a strike with the ball of the foot. The ball of the foot was believed to be more effective and less dangerous than other methods. As the years have gone by, some karate schools also practice kicking roundhouse kick with the shin, another point of contact is with the instep (for safety). There are now more and more karateka practicing the 'cutting roundhouse kick'; this is where the karateka will lift the attacking leg higher than the intended target, and then execute the kick in a downward cutting movement. Practitioners consider it a very effective method against the thigh. This was later supplemented in

Masutatsu Oyama , more commonly known as Mas Oyama, was a karate master who founded Kyokushin Karate, considered the first and most influential style of full contact karate. A Zainichi Korean, he spent most of his life living in Japan and acquired Japanese c ...

Kyokushin is a style of karate originating in Japan. It is a style of stand-up fighting and is rooted in a philosophy of self-improvement, discipline, and hard training. Kyokushin Kaikan is the martial arts organization founded in 1964 by Korean-Ja ...

karate with a similar technique, using the instep and using more rotation of the hip, as well as sinking the weight of the kicker into the target, to create more bludgeoning power. The target of this kick is primarily the neck. Oyama also taught roundhouse kicks to the thigh and ribs, using the shin as the point of contact. File: circulaire9.jpg, Middle-kick with rotation of the hips and body in the direction of the kick File:circulaire11.jpg, Middle-kick in

counterattack A counterattack is a tactic employed in response to an attack, with the term originating in "war games". The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy during attack, while the specific objectives typically seek ...

File:couverture_high.jpg, High-kick with the right leg With the blurring of modern martial arts differences, many other variations of the roundhouse kick are now practiced in traditional karate schools. Besides the traditional Full Roundhouse Kick and the sports Small Roundhouse Kick variation, the kick sometimes uses the heel to connect (heel roundhouse kick). The Roundhouse kick is also often executed with a surprising downward tilt from high up, in what has been often called "the Brazilian kick" (downward roundhouse kick) because of influence from Brazilian Kyoukushin Karateka, such as Ademir de Costa, and notable students such as Glaube Feitosa and Francisco Filho. The kick is regularly practiced with a straight leg as a "low kick" because of muay Thai and kickboxing influences (straight leg roundhouse). The kick is also executed in several different ways after a full spin-back (spin back roundhouse kick and 360 spin back roundhouse kick), due to Taekwondo influences. It is executed with exaggerated tilt of the upper body (body bent roundhouse kick and hand-to-floor roundhouse kick), as derived from Capoeira influences.

Muay Thai method

As with many other

techniques, the roundhouse kick has gained wide popularity, being used extensively in K-1 kickboxing and

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...

(MMA) competitions due to its effectiveness in inflicting damage to the opponent. A properly executed muay Thai roundhouse kick has been compared by many martial artists to being struck by a baseball bat. Most Western muay Thai clubs and practitioners avoid the term roundhouse kick, instead using the term angle kick (or side-angle kick and occasionally rising kick). The muay Thai roundhouse (or angle) kick is generally used in varying levels (low, middle, high) to inflict damage to different parts of the opponent's body. Low (or lowpoint) kicks generally target the

thigh In human anatomy, the thigh is the area between the hip (pelvis) and the knee. Anatomically, it is part of the lower limb. The single bone in the thigh is called the femur. This bone is very thick and strong (due to the high proportion of bone ...

just above the

knee In humans and other primates, the knee joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints: one between the femur and tibia (tibiofemoral joint), and one between the femur and patella (patellofemoral joint). It is the largest joint in the hu ...

joint for the purpose of weakening the leg, limiting the opponent's mobility, reducing their ability to use it for forceful kicks, or potentially rendering them unable to stand on the leg altogether. In more recent times many MMA fighters such as

Justin Gaethje Justin Ray Gaethje (; born November 14, 1988) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Lightweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a former Interim UFC Lightweight Champion. As o ...

Edson Barboza Edson Barboza Jr. (born January 21, 1986) is a Brazilian-American professional mixed martial artist and former Muay Thai kickboxer who competes in the featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship and has formerly competed at li ...

Benson Henderson Benson Henderson (born November 16, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist who competes for Bellator MMA, currently competing in their Lightweight division. He is a former UFC Lightweight Champion and WEC Lightweight Champion. As of Novembe ...

, and Jeremy Stephens utilize effective low kicks. This can target the

peroneal nerve The common fibular nerve (also known as the common peroneal nerve, external popliteal nerve, or lateral popliteal nerve) is a nerve in the lower leg that provides sensation over the posterolateral part of the leg and the knee joint. It divides at ...

rendering the attacked leg numb and paralyzed. Muay Thai practitioners are taught to repeatedly strike the same point on the thigh to increase the cumulative effect of low kicks as a match proceeds. Some Thai camps emphasize targeting the inner thigh to compress the

femoral artery The femoral artery is a large artery in the thigh and the main arterial supply to the thigh and leg. The femoral artery gives off the deep femoral artery or profunda femoris artery and descends along the anteromedial part of the thigh in the fem ...

and to shock the opponent weakening his or her fighting ability. Middle (midpoint or midsection) kicks target the area above the hip bone and can damage the opponent's

ribs The rib cage, as an enclosure that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum in the thorax of most vertebrates, protects vital organs such as the heart, lungs and great vessels. The sternum, together known as the thoracic cage, is a semi- ...

and

liver The liver is a major Organ (anatomy), organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the Protein biosynthesis, synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for ...

. High (or highpoint) kicks target the opponent's head or neck; they are often responsible for knockouts in competition. Some Thai camps emphasize targeting the side of the neck with the high angle kick cutting down from its highest point to compress the

carotid artery Carotid artery may refer to: * Common carotid artery, often "carotids" or "carotid", an artery on each side of the neck which divides into the external carotid artery and internal carotid artery * External carotid artery, an artery on each side of t ...

and so shock the opponent, weakening his or her fighting ability or knocking him out. There are several traits which give the

roundhouse a very different feel and look. The main methodological difference is that the

hips In vertebrate anatomy, hip (or "coxa"Latin ''coxa'' was used by Celsus in the sense "hip", but by Pliny the Elder in the sense "hip bone" (Diab, p 77) in medical terminology) refers to either an anatomical region or a joint. The hip region is ...

are rotated into the kick in order to convey more moment of inertia in the kick, and the abdominal muscles are strongly recruited in the act of rotation. Instead of a snapping kick, the combined action of the leg and hips creates a kick that is much more devoted to its momentum. The person delivering the kick will also raise up on the ball of his or her foot while he or she kicks, mainly to allow for greater pivoting/turning speed, and increased power. Muay Thai roundhouse kicks use the

shin Shin may refer to: Biology * The front part of the human leg below the knee * Shinbone, the tibia, the larger of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates Names * Shin (given name) (Katakana: シン, Hiragana: しん), a Japanese ...

to make contact with the target instead of the ball or

instep The foot ( : feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is a separate organ at the terminal part of the leg made ...

. This further adds to the structure of the kick, as the shin is more durable than the foot. Using the shin reduces the kick's reach, but allows it to be thrown within punching range. Virtually all muay Thai camps teach the roundhouse or angle kick with the striking leg remaining passive (mostly with the leg allowed to bend slightly but some camps teaching that the knee should be locked except to close range kicking) and not using the pivot of the lower striking leg around the knee found in most other martial arts. The power is instead entirely created by the rotation of the supporting leg and hips; akin to swinging a baseball bat. The practical difference is the objective of the kick. A standard

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...

roundhouse kick has one snap the instep at the objective, but a Muay Thai roundhouse uses the combined momentum generated by the leg and hip for more power.

Taekwondo method

The

roundhouse kick, known as ''dollyŏ chagi, ''is performed by first drawing the knee straight up in a "chamber" position. This chamber, identical to the chamber of many taekwondo kicks (front kick, side kick, etc.) is utilized so that the opponent cannot guess which kick will be thrown. This differentiates it from muay Thai and other roundhouse kicks, which tend to incorporate rotation ''before'' or during the rising of the knee. The knee is then rotated so that it is nearly parallel to the ground (counterclockwise for the right leg roundhouse) and the kicking hip is simultaneously rotated towards the opponent. The rotation of the hip, combined with the snapping of the leg forward, gives the kick its power. The striking surface is the instep or the ball of the foot. In this way taekwondo differs from Chinese sanshou, where the striking surface is the shin. This is also called an "off the line" or "rear leg" roundhouse kick. The roundhouse kick can also be thrown from the rear leg towards the target and strike with the lower shin or the instep. This method is to get a quick strike on the opponent before they see it coming. The kick is swung and then snapped in front of the practitioner to give them more power and velocity. The taekwondo kicking method is unique on its own. This makes the Taekwondo version of the kick much faster than the Muay Thai version. A similar kick is the front leg roundhouse, or "fast kick." To begin the front leg roundhouse kick, the leading leg is chambered, then rotated and snapped towards the opponent in the manner described above. The fast kick version is done by skipping forward with the rear leg, moving the kicker towards the opponent while simultaneously chambering and snapping the front leg roundhouse. This method was used by early American full-contact karateka Bill Wallace, a student of taekwondo as well as karate, to great effect. The front leg kick is generally weaker than the rear leg roundhouse because the hip does not rotate as far; however, it is also generally faster because the leg travels a shorter distance before striking the opponent.

Chinese wushu: sanshou/sanda method

The variation of the "roundhouse kick" or 鞭腿 found in Chinese wushu's full contact portion of sanshou/sanda impacts with the ankle or instep. Description:flashmavi
/ref> *Lift the knee and let the foot follow. *Standing leg: Twist on the ball of the foot, until the toes point away from one's opponent. *Kick: Extend hip and hit opponent with straightened instep of foot. *Pull the foot back in a straight line, so that your opponent can't grab your leg.

Name by martial art

The same or a similar move can receive different names according to the martial art. *

: Mawashi geri (回し蹴り) *

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

: Te Tat (เตะตัด); also known as "''angle kick''", "'' side-angle kick''", or "''rising kick''" *

Lethwei Lethwei ( my, လက်ဝှေ့; IPA: ) or Burmese boxing, is a full contact combat sport from Myanmar that uses stand-up striking including headbutts. Lethwei is considered to be one of the most brutal martial arts in the world, * * * a ...

: Wide Khat (ဝိုက်ခတ်) *

Capoeira Capoeira () is an Afro-Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics, music and spirituality. Born of the melting pot of enslaved Africans, Indigenous Brazilians and Portuguese influences at the beginning of the 16th century ...

Martelo Capoeira has always been an eclectic martial art with a variety of different techniques that make use of the hands, feet, legs, arms, elbows, knees, and head. Some techniques are used for moving along the ground while others are used for evading at ...

, or literally "''hammer''" *

Jeet Kune Do Jeet Kune Do is a primarily wing chun kung fu inspired eclectic martial arts philosophy heavily influenced and adapted by the Taoist personal life philosophy and experiences of martial artist Bruce Lee. Overview and philosophy Jeet Kune ...

: O'ou tek or "hook kick" *

Taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...

: Dollyŏ Chagi (돌려 차기), "''Turning kick''" or "''Round kick''" *

Kūdō is a Japanese hybrid martial art. It is a full-contact combat sport that aims to achieve both safety and practicality, a style of mixed martial arts practised with headgear and gloves. It features stand-up striking, with throwing and grapplin ...

: is called mawashi Geri, but is more like a muay Thai kick *

Savate Savate (), also known as boxe française, savate boxing, French boxing or French footfighting, is a French kickboxing combat sport that uses the hands and feet as weapons combining elements of English boxing with graceful kicking techniques. ...

Fouetté In dance and gymnastics, a turn is a rotation of the body about the vertical axis. It is usually a complete rotation of the body, although quarter (90°) and half (180°) turns are possible for some types of turns. Multiple, consecutive turns are ...

or literally "''whip''" *

Sanshou Sanda (), formerly Sanshou (), also known as Chinese boxing or Chinese kickboxing, is the official Chinese kickboxing full-contact combat sport. Sanda is a fighting system which was originally developed by the Chinese military based upon the s ...

: Pinyin: Bian1 Tui3 Traditional-Chinese: 鞭腿 *

Yaw-Yan Yaw-Yan, also called Sayaw ng Kamatayan (English:''Dance of Death''), is a Filipino martial art developed by Napoleon A. Fernandez and based on older Filipino martial arts. Since its inception in the 1970s, it has dominated the kickboxing scene i ...

: Toblis Paloob Pataas *

Kuk Sool Won Kuk Sool Won () is a type of Korean martial arts. It was founded in 1958 by Suh In-Hyuk (서인혁), who also carries the formal titles of, ''Kuk Sa Nim'' (i.e. "national martial arts teacher") and ''Grandmaster''. This Korean martial art is ...

: Bahl Deung Cha Ki (발등 차기 - instep kick)

In other sports

Roundhouse kicks are utilized a lot in

puroresu is the predominant style of professional wrestling that has developed in Japan. The term comes from the Japanese pronunciation of , which is shortened to puroresu. The term became popular among English-speaking fans due to Hisaharu Tanabe's act ...

competition; better known as Japanese professional wrestling. Many of the athletes have knowledge in striking sports and tend to have the roundhouse kick in their wrestling style.

Toshiaki Kawada (born December 8, 1963) is a Japanese semi-retired professional wrestler best known for his work in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), whom he worked for from his debut in 1982 up until 2008. In All Japan, he was a 5 time Triple Crown Heavyweight ...

is known for his extremely hard hitting roundhouse kicks.

KENTA Kenta (written: , , , or in katakana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese baseball player *, Japanese film director *, Japanese kickboxer *, Japanese professional wrestler *, Japanese profession ...

is known for his powerful roundhouse kicks to the head and chest of his opponents.

Takashi Sugiura is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah). Sugiura, an accomplished amateur wrestler, joined Noah's dojo in 2000, making his professional debut on December 23, 2000, and thus becoming the first wrestler ...

often uses low roundhouse kicks to the back of his opponent. It is often utilized in shoot-style wrestling competition, leading to variants being called shoot kicks.

Federations

World Kickboxing Association The World Kickboxing Association (WKA) also known as World Kickboxing and Karate Association, is one of the oldest and the largest amateur and professional sanctioning body for kickboxing and Karate. History In 1976, the WKA was founded by Howa ...

– WKA – World Federation of

Kickboxing Kickboxing is a combat sports, combat sport focused on kicking and punch (strike), punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is pract ...

born in 1976 (Chairman, Howard Hanson, USA) *

International Sport Kickboxing Association The ISKA (originally International Sport Karate Association, later also called the International Sport Kickboxing Association) is one of the major international bodies regulating sport karate and kickboxing matches, and is based in the Unit ...

– ISKA – World Federation of

Martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

born in 1986 *

World Association of Kickboxing Organizations The World Association of Kickboxing Organizations (W.A.K.O or WAKO) is an international kickboxing organization counting over 120 affiliated countries representing all five continents. WAKO is a major governing body of amateur kickboxing and is ...

– WAKO World Federation of

born in 1978 (chairman, Georg Brueckner, German).

References

External links

{{Commons, Roundhouse kick
all-karate.com

* ttp://www.wikihow.com/Perform-A-Roundhouse-Kick How to Do A Roundhouse Kick from wikiHow.com Kicks Martial art techniques Kickboxing terminology