How to Do a Side Kick in Taekwondo Martial Arts

Video Transcript

"Hello! My name is Sid Nelson, master instructor in Martial Arts. I'm representing expertvillage.com. Okay, the next kick that we're going to learn in the class is the side kick. The sidekick is the most powerful kick in the martial arts. We're going to be using the hamstring muscle to push the heel onto our target. In doing so, we've got to follow a few steps. The first step to prepare for this kick is to first pivot the back foot away from the direction in which you'll be kicking. This will allow you to use some good groups of muscles to stretch the sidekick out and use its optimum power. Then we'll bring the knee up really tight to our chest. We want the heel and the knee to be on the same line. Over our shoulder we'll push out, lock, and pull back. Again as we talked, slow practice equals fast progress. At home you can use the back of a chair or table counter to hold your balance when developing this kick. Again, we'll pivot, tuck, and then push and come back. Try to keep your guards up and maintain a well-guarded position. Sidekick again accompanied by a yell is the strongest kick in the martial arts. The next we'll do is a crescent kick. The crescent kick is one of the few kicks that can be used as a block and a kick. We'll use the leg in the back. From a front stance, we'll lock the leg straight. It'll come up to the opposite side in which we'll be kicking. We'll stretch the leg up and go across in the shape of a rainbow. The power on this kick is coming from our hips. We'll go a little faster. Again, we want to keep our guards up. The crescent kick can be used also in another way to come into the inside. This first kick I showed you was an outside crescent kick; it's going to the outside. The next one we'll be using is an inside crescent kick this way."