Chikara Kan, Inc. :: Alan Cranford FRONT KICK Review

This is Volume Six of ten books devoted to mastering kicks. Shawn Kovacich devotes this book to the Front Kick. This review examines Shawn's book from a practical stand point--how well does this book enable me to learn the front kick?

I'm 50, 6'3" tall and 220 pounds, but I'm not an athlete--just healthy. I cannot perform the Back Kick higher than my own waist right now--I'll need to improve my flexibility. It isn't too much of a handicap for self defense--or active military service--but for those of you involved in karate matches, you need the high kicks for the match-winning points.

My two favorite kicks are the Side Kick and the front kick. I find them to be the most useful in real-world personal combat, though Shawn's book on the Back Kick did raise my appreciation for the back kick. The front kick is like a boxer's jab punch--quick in and out. A series of front kicks can be delivered rapidly with just one leg, or a flurry of front kicks from alternate legs can be delivered. The striking surface is the ball of the foot and targets are precision spots such as the face, neck, kidneys, solar plexus, arm pit, groin, knee, and nerve bundles on the thighs. Shawn lists a variety of targets much longer than my list--and has a useful target area diagram on page 29. The front kick must be precise, and because the front kick is less powerful than other kicks, you must kick THROUGH the target to deliver maximum punch.

I have training prejudices: I like to employ mirrors, a video camera or two, a minimum of one sparring partner, and at least one referee when I train. Multiple sparring partners are to keep me from getting stuck kicking at the same height each time, and because in the real world, my problems usually come in bunches. Often, I must train alone or not train at all, so I have to limit my training intensity for safety. A second set of eyes can help spot flaws--and prevent injuries. It is very hard to dial 911 when one's back is thrown out. These kicking techniques can injure the practitioner if done incorrectly.

I like both mirrors and video because when I initially practice, I can watch myself in the mirror. For realistic practice, I need to concentrate on technique and the target instead of watching my own reflection--instant video playback aids me in spotting what happened. I can even figure out if my kick was in the right place or not! Shawn wrote about the "crawl, walk, and run" phases of training and the basic and advanced kicking techniques are covered in detail. Exact detail.

Train at your own risk. I perform a risk reduction prior to training--assess the risk level and employ risk reduction techniques to make training safe. Remember that training is synthetic reality, intended to be less expensive than gaining real-world experience.

I think that "Achieving Kicking Excellence: Front Kick” is well organized. There are ten chapters. The introduction defines the kick and advises how to use the book. Chapter One is kick anatomy: bones and muscles. Chapter Two recommends warm up and stretching exercises. Chapter Three is Basic Principles: striking surface, target areas, and 11 other key points. Clear graphics left me with little doubt about what part of the foot to apply and where to hit my opponent. Chapter Four covered the primary kick technique. Again, the graphics are very clear. They include "dance step diagrams" showing where the feet go--footwork is critical to effective kicking.

The photos have numbered labels stressing correct positioning of each part of the body. Chapter Five is variations of the primary technique. Chapter Six covers training and practice techniques to achieve skill, strength, speed, and power. Chapter Seven is a trouble-shooting guide. Chapter Eight is applications: how to use this in competition or combat. Chapter Nine is Shawn's awards and accomplishments. Chapter Ten previews the next volume in the series. There are a table of contents, a recommended reading list, and an index.

This is an excellent study guide. I can train some now, on my own, and when I find training partners (sparring partners and a referee) I might even get proficient!

Alan Cranford
Carson City, Nevada