A Biomechanical Analysis Of The Roundhouse Kick
Anatomical Analysis
Tae Kwon Do is a Korean, unarmed martial art and is best known for its
kicks (Park, 2001). The roundhouse kick is a turning kick and happens
to be the most commonly used kick during competition (Lee, 1996). For
this reason, the roundhouse kick will be analyzed in reference to
sparring competition.
The roundhouse kick, a multiplanar skill, starts with the kicking leg
traveling in an arc towards the front with the knee in a chambered
position (Pearson, 1997). The knee is extended in a snapping movement,
striking the opponent with the top of the foot. One's goal would be to
make front torso contact with the kick, while avoiding leaving one's
self open to a counter strike.
The movements that comprise the roundhouse kick begin with a fighting
stance: both feet on the ground, toes pointing straight ahead, back
foot turned outside up to 22 degrees, front foot approximately 1.5 the
distance of one step from the back foot, both feet approximately one
length of one foot apart, extension of both legs, slight rotation of
the torso in the direction of the back leg, fists held in front of the
chest, flexion at the shoulders by about 45 degrees, flexion at the
elbow by about 60 degrees, and flexion of the fingers.
One initiates the preparatory phase of the roundhouse kick from the
fighting stance: rotation of the torso in the direction of the front
leg, flexion and abduction at the hip, flexion at the knee of the back
leg which brings the knee to the torso and maintains a minimal relative
angle at the knee to the thigh, plantar flexion of the foot, and
lateral flexion of the spine toward the ground away from the kicking
leg (Table 1).
The fighter is then ready to initiate the movement phase: extension at
the knee with a relative angle to the thigh of about 180 degrees,
lateral rotation of the grounded foot between 90 and 120 degrees, and
additional lateral flexion of the spine.
After...
Please login to view the full essay...