Kicking Speed -- Some Tips for You

This article was originally posted to the USENet group "rec.martial-arts" back in July 1999, in response to a question sent to the group on how to develop greater kicking speed. Enjoy.
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Some tips for you on Speed in Kicking:

-- Key Muscle Groups for Speed in Kicking: Gluteus Medius, Hip Flexors, Lower Back, and Abdominal Obliques --

Develop these muscles with side raises (foot never goes below one foot off the floor) and side lockout extensions. Lack of development in these areas is the reason why most people kick slowly, as they are responsible for the raising of the kicking leg, and the arching and torquing the occurs in the back, counterrotation of hips to shoulders, etc. This is a weak area in most people (martial artists included), and development of these muscles will also enhance your ability to escape inferior positions in grappling (as a side benefit). Do the side raises in 3 directions: side, 45 front, and straight back -- while holding on to something at waist height with the opposite hand only (a table or counter)

-- Light target training --

Hang a towel or rag from the ceiling in your garage or living room. Vary the vertical level, and work multiple kicking angles in rapid succession

-- Side to Side Shuffle --

Do lunging side kicks in opposite directions (180 degrees apart), shuffling in one direction, and then in the other, without ever putting both feet on the floor. This will develop your lunging speed, penetration, and power for lead leg advancing kicks

-- Multiple 3 Kick Drill from Chamber --

This drill will develop the muscle groups mentioned above, and will also develop the ability to extend your kick with a twitching quality. This is very important. A kick -- start to finish -- should happen in an instant. No discernible set-up and follow-through. Just a very quick twitch that sets off an explosion (your hips are the powder keg). This is your goal once you have established good form in your kicks. From a chamber, throw round kick, side kick, and hook kick in rapid succession. This is NOT a drill which simulates how you would execute your kicks -- i.e. you wouldn't want to throw from a set chamber -- it is simply a way to develop your twitch movement in sending your kicks quickly and with authority at their weakest stages

-- Straight Line --

If you want a fast side kick, for instance, don't chamber up and back and then release. This is too slow, and you're apt to give up your back if he sidesteps outside of it. Think of a straight line which ascends into the target, whipping the hips at the end of it and counter-rotating your shoulders/arms. Same goes for the round kick, etc. When a person chambers his kicks before letting them fly, it is relatively easy to stop kick, block him with the knee, etc., or change range (either into boxing range, or out to let it go by)

-- Lunging Kicks, The Race --

The key to attaining speed in your lunging lead leg kicks is to make sure you land the kick before your weight settles on the supporting foot. This will also help your power. Think of it as a race. Your lead leg is trying to kick before your supporting leg can bear weight. But. Don't bob or bounce. There should be no up and down motion. That's the trick. When you can do this, you'll be able to lunge horizontally like lightning

-- Think Fast --

The key to being fast is to think "fast". This is something I've been telling my students for over 16 years. One of the first things I became known for in certain circles was my kicking speed. At tournaments, exhibitions, etc., people used to come up and ask me all the time how I could kick so fast. The easiest reply was, "Think fast, and you will be fast. Always insist of yourself that you move at top speed."

-- Start At Full Speed, and Accelerate From There --

Another important concept that I always tell my students. Your first movement -- at the very beginning -- should be full speed. From there, you should be relaxed, and accelerate from there. This goes hand in hand with the previous item above, and is very difficult to do. But, it will help your speed and power tremendously if you practice and apply it. Most people do not even realize that when they begin to move, they do so (either consciously or unconsciously) at a slower speed, so they can "build up" to top speed at full extension of a kick or punch. They do this so that their power reaches an apex at full extension. The problem, though, is that the opponent has eyes. He perceives this build-up, and makes it miss. Most people, if they start a kick at full speed, tend to peter out from that point onward, and the kick will have no power. This is why, once your kick starts off at full speed, it must accelerate from there -- so that it has power. When it is not accelerating, it is not *pushing off* of something. Acceleration is a major key to power (and some forms of leverage), since a kick when it is accelerating has mass behind it. When it is not accelerating, then it is out there on its own

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The above tips should help you out in developing faster kicks without compromising good technique or power (major problems if you are not careful). Five years ago, at the behest of some students and instructors I know, I put together the framework for a video series on kicking, one volume of which was devoted to speed in kicking. The above are a few items I covered in that material, which in turn came from my own notes and writings. In other words, what I'm getting at is that these tips should work for you if you apply them, as they have worked for me very well, in actual practice as well as in relating these concepts to others as a teacher.

Good luck.

Frank Benn
Integrated Arts
Austin, Texas