Where does your left foot point in a right-leg roundhouse kick?

[Acronym]

Yeah, I know. It's complicated.
You don't have to pivot as far on lower kicks. Neither do you lean. If you're still leaning way back, then you're not pivoting enough.

People vary pivot and lean regardless of height, which is why this thread question is like asking how long a lace is....

 

[Dirty Dog]

People vary pivot and lean regardless of height, which is why this thread question is like asking how long a lace is....

Of course they do. And most people can be taught, which means their kicks will improve over time. Then there are those who may never get beyond the mediocre, simply because they've convinced themselves that they're perfect.

 

[Acronym]

Of course they do. And most people can be taught, which means their kicks will improve over time. Then there are those who may never get beyond the mediocre, simply because they've convinced themselves that they're perfect.

I wrote that my comment about perfect form was trolling (every joke has some truth in it though!!!)

It may seem obvious but I've seen my fair share of people who don't get kicking despite being taught it.. I had a buddy I trained TKD with as a teen who could do vertical high stretching on the wall as a beginner, as could his out of shape, truck driver father in his 60s!!!

My buddy could not however make explosive techniques.... It was like a yoga instructor kicking. He was not clumsy, just completely average.

I'm guessing it's an issue with a lack of fast twitch muscle fibers.

I base that on the fact that I outwrestled him easily, and I was a skinny 60+kg guy and he was 85+...neither one of us trained wrestling.

 

[Acronym]

[

Here are my 5 cents..


If all you care about is banging a target as hard as possible, then maximum pivot =6:00 is best.

If you care about recovery and mobility, 3 to 4 clock.

I pivot differently depending on how hard I'm going.

Since nobody noticed it I will correct it first. I meant 9 to 8 o clock for mobility, 6 for power.

 

[Mitlov]

This is something I've always wondered about too. (Apologies, I realise this is a TKD forum question)

Like DD, we were taught that the higher the kick, the more you should pivot. Lower kicks it's fine at 9:00. Head kick at 6:00.

I tend to pivot to about 9:00 or even 7:30. I try pivoting my foot to 6:00 (the full 180°) especially for high kicks, but I feel a little off balance, like @skribs said about the foot facing the direction of the kick.

Then I'm also wondering about knee health. I've always been told to pivot as much as you can to protect the knee from any torque. Would anyone say this is the case? Would pivoting to 9:00 be more 'damaging' to the knee than say 6:00? Juat wondering if this is a big reason why the big pivot...

I can't speak to knee damage from the 9 o'clock or 3 o'clock position as opposed to 6 o'clock specifically...but I did permanent damage to my knee when I landed from a double roundhouse kick (right-left) on my right knee and inadvertently grabbed the floor with my toes pointed to 12 o'clock. Everything above the knee rotated past 3 o'clock, everything below the knee didn't, and the experience was very bad.

 

[dvcochran]

This is something I've always wondered about too. (Apologies, I realise this is a TKD forum question)

Like DD, we were taught that the higher the kick, the more you should pivot. Lower kicks it's fine at 9:00. Head kick at 6:00.

I tend to pivot to about 9:00 or even 7:30. I try pivoting my foot to 6:00 (the full 180°) especially for high kicks, but I feel a little off balance, like @skribs said about the foot facing the direction of the kick.

Then I'm also wondering about knee health. I've always been told to pivot as much as you can to protect the knee from any torque. Would anyone say this is the case? Would pivoting to 9:00 be more 'damaging' to the knee than say 6:00? Juat wondering if this is a big reason why the big pivot...

I am not aware of any hard statistical data on rotation and knee damage. It is a very varied discussion between styles, instructors, and individuals.
I personally feel it is more about repetitions and impact more than rotation. I also think the hip joint is more exposed on certain kicks than any other joint. Granted, it is a very, very strong joint.
Runner are a great example. With the exception of the people who are anatomical anomalies most runners with a lot of miles of them have varying degrees of knee issues. Joint/muscle health plays a big factor.
If we are talking only about side kicks then the full rotation plays a huge factor in the power of the kick. Where it gets weird is in tournament sparring where speed it more important than power. Some people can throw a great side kick that is crazy fast without fully rotating.

 

[_Simon_]

I am not aware of any hard statistical data on rotation and knee damage. It is a very varied discussion between styles, instructors, and individuals.
I personally feel it is more about repetitions and impact more than rotation. I also think the hip joint is more exposed on certain kicks than any other joint. Granted, it is a very, very strong joint.
Runner are a great example. With the exception of the people who are anatomical anomalies most runners with a lot of miles of them have varying degrees of knee issues. Joint/muscle health plays a big factor.
If we are talking only about side kicks then the full rotation plays a huge factor in the power of the kick. Where it gets weird is in tournament sparring where speed it more important than power. Some people can throw a great side kick that is crazy fast without fully rotating.

Yeah that's a good point about repetition and impact, hard to find anything definitive about this... just want to preserve my joints as best as I can. Thanks appreciate that insight