Like a Kick to the Head

Every now and then, after teaching a Girl Instinct Self-Defense Workshop, I receive a query or two about why there aren't more kicks included in my techniques. I get it - if you're a teenage girl participating in a self-defense workshop, you want to practise a few perfectly-executed kicks to the head - preferably in mid-air. I love martial arts and action movies as much as the the next karateka - but I teach realistic, effective techniques for real-life scenarios. And Hong Kong action movies just ain't real life, kids.

The kicks I teach in self-defense workshops are pretty simple: stomps to the feet, front kicks - which can be aimed at the shin, knee or stomach, and groin kicks - which are aimed at the obvious. Even in my dojo, I emphasize that Goju Kensha generally doesn't feature flamboyant high kicks (the closest we get to something a bit fancy is mae tobi geri, a jumping front kick, which, if you have the flexibility, can be aimed at the head. This kick however, doesn't feature until the very last kata of Goju Ryu: Suparinpei. So you have to be working towards 3rd Dan... yes, many years of training before one reaches that stage!)

Even these pros are keeping it simple - and only kicking to the head because they are on the ground!

There are three very important reasons why I don't include high kicks in my self-defense techniques:

1. High kicks may look impressive, but they are impractical in real-life scenarios. The main reason for this is that if we were attacked, we probably wouldn't be warmed up to deliver a roundhouse kick to the temple, let alone any aerial feats. Imagine the situation: "Wait Mr. Attacker, I know you're about to grab me and drag me behind the bushes; to defend myself, I've learnt this really great kick to the head, but I'm not warmed up yet so give me a second while I stretch my hammies..." Um, yeah. Not going to happen.

2. It's all in the range (distancing). After a while (say twenty years), qualities such as range and timing becoming so innate to the martial artist that one doesn't even think about it. I teach girls self-defense: I estimate that about 90 - 95% of attacks against females are grabs. They might lead to punches, but the first point of contact will most likely be a grab. By nature, grabs are usually close-range; an attacker simply cannot grab your collar to hoist you against a wall, or bear hug you to drag you away, without close physical contact. Fancy kicks on the other hand, are generally long-range. If an attacker was to try to kick me, yes, I would block and counter with a roundhouse kick to the temple or front kick to the face. But this isn't common, and in a two hour workshop (sometimes less!), I've got to focus on practical and realistic situations... and this means teaching students how to disengage from grabs - and get away quickly.

3. Powerful high kicks require balance, flexibility, strength and skill... all of which require a lot of practice. This is simply not achievable in a short workshop. If students are really keen on kicking, they should enroll into a good martial arts school so they can build foundations in order to develop strong, flexible legs for powerful high kicks.

Lastly, as Kyoshi James Sumarac likes to point out, Goju Kensha is all about minimum effort for maximum results. Why kick to the head when you can deliver a powerful palm-heel strike or punch instead? Why kick to the head when a strong kick to the shin or groin will still force an attacker to buckle? No warming up needed for those techniques... perfectly practical for real-life scenarios.

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