Jump to content

The Golden Kick - Why Most May Be Kicking the Thai Kick "Wrong"


Recommended Posts

I don't know where to put this. This needs lots of documentation and analysis, and this is just a start, only notes on something important that Sylvie discovered (and I guess I discovered in watching and talking with her) about the "Thai Kick" that simply evaded our perception for years. 5 years in Thailand Sylvie's been working on her kick, she didn't see it. Years before that, didn't see it. But then in two Patreon Muay Thai Library sessions, neither of which have been published yet (one with Karuhat, one with Sagat) it rang like a big bell. And it became incredibly obvious. Sylvie talked about it a little bit on the Patreon Supporters Facebook Page, and a commentor called the kick the "Golden Kick", so I'm going with that, as it's reflective of a lot of the technique of the Golden Age of Muay Thai. And, as I've begun training in Muay Thai I've been working with it myself, as a knowledgeable beginner, I'm interested in this kick as some of principles below have definitely changed my own training and though process. In any case, here are some starting notes. Hopefully this will be built out by Sylvie herself, and maybe some more film study:

Thai-Kick-vs-Western-Thai-Kick-e15098075

 

The above is a big exaggeration of how the "Thai Round Kick" has been, I believe, distorted in its translation to the west. Part of the problem perhaps is that it is often referred to as the "round" kick which certainly triggers us to think of roundness in the kick. The name inspires us to think about how it goes 'round the opponent, from the outside, at least in certain teaching contexts. Also, there is something of an optical illusion in the Thai kick itself. Because it has that swerve after forward momentum I believe it kind of looks like it is going "around" or outside the opponent, when seen at full speed, when instead it is often much more running up the frame of the opponent, and then veering through. First of all though it should be said: there is no absolute "right" kick. There are innumerable Thai techniques for kicking, and there are kicks for different purposes and situations. And there are many other ways of kicking as well, developed throughout the world. All that being said, The Golden Kick, as it's been christened, is very distinct in one way. It tends to move upward, and relatively straight-forward, and, to some degree then makes a hard turn when it accelerates through the opponent, at the end. Its upward, straight-ahead approach to the opponent makes it extremely fast, and also hard to see. If you think about it, anything that breaks your "frame" visually the eye, just by how it has evolved, will pick up as anomalous movement. The wider, early acceleration kick that westerners tend to use is quickly seen in its arc. By keeping the kick closer to the frame it is detected much later, often too late.

Below is a rough cut of various Thais kicking across decades. Keep a close eye on the early trajectory of the kick. In all these variations it comes up and forward, even though these kicks are thrown in differing circumstances and tactics by very different fighters. The misses and pulled kicks are sometimes even more telling so they are included. Once you start looking for this you see it in lots and lots of kicks of the Thais, especially in the Golden Age. What's even more incredible is that these aren't "cherry picked" kicks, trying to illustrate a principle. I just looked through fights of well-known fighters and grabbed any round kick that had a clean, visible or instructive angle. The compilation creates the principles.

I know Sylvie has experimented with this already in the last few weeks and has suddenly been able to kick one of her trainers who she never could kick before. He used to taunt her and say he'd give her money for any kick she would land. Now they land at will.

In any case, this isn't an expert's post. This is really an enthusiast who is simply suggesting a change in how you think about your kick. In the graphic everything is exaggerated. More important perhaps is how you think about your kick. Don't think about it going "out" as if you are starting an arc. I believe part of the problem with teaching the Thai kick came from very helpful analogies to swinging a baseball bat or an axe. I know we really fell victim to this.

baseball-bat.jpg

above, not like this

This image is helpful when thinking about how clearing your hips generates power. But the way it is not helpful is that it creates an arc that isn't true to how many of the Golden Age throw their kicks. You don't want to "swing" your kick as if you are hitting a baseball or chopping a tree. The kick comes directly upward, straight to the target (in some fashion, there are variations), getting as quickly to the hitting zone as possible, and then swerves, accelerating to do damage. It's one reason why Thais are so hard to read and seem like they can land kicks through the guard at will. There's a lot more to dig into here. The forward trajectory allows Thais lots of nuances in how and when they decide to swerve the kick over and through the opponent, ways of generating power with hip angle, choices in how to combine or vary the rising vs the cutting action, games they can play with timing and perception (the coming Karuhat Muay Thai Library session is incredible in this). This is just the beginning.

 

If you want a good example of the opposite of this kick, a much more western style kick, look at the kicks of Ramon Dekkers.

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is also a very good example of the not-the-Golden-Kick kick:

Bas Rutten, a much higher level kicker than Aldo. But you can really see the "baseball bat" analogy in his kick. Interestingly, the outward pointed foot, or the foot swing/pivot that he uses is something that many of the Thais in the compilation use to create the end acceleration. They just are not swinging in a wide arc, at all. Sagat in particular, when teaching Sylvie (that video will be up on Patreon next month) really used that foot plant angle to create the later whip.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 years later...
  • 1 month later...

My gym in Japan teaches this 'straight up' kind of kick and I struggle with it through flexibility of body (and mind I guess).  They also encourage a 'snap' of the knee at the end in addition to the hip rotation.  Is that how the Thais are creating the final acceleration?   Thanks for the compilations and comparisons!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Most Recent Topics

  • Latest Comments

    • Here are some thoughts I had today regarding padwork which made me think about your question. It doesn't connect directly to your question, but it does open up thinking about padwork in different ways. (Also, thank you for your kind words - I realize that I neglected thanking you as it means a lot when people learn these deeper qualities, can feel that "language" element, and its bothered me that I didn't respond to what you said). If you click the top banner of the below you'll be taken to it. It is somewhat advanced stuff though, not easy to do or get to, but it does open up different ideas about what padwork is for, and what you can get out of it.  
    • Muay Khao in Padwork - note a little bit advanced stuff Talking a little more about Muay Khao training (and padwork), beyond some basic things like the padman doing rounds of "latched on" work where you trailer hitch and continuously knee or work into knees, there is a shape to Muay Khao that involves building up the fatigue in your opponent, which involves continuous pressuring and tempoing early on, nothing rushed, importantly with the mentality of depositing fatigue. Even if you don't have a padman aware of this, you can do this on your own, of your own device. People do not think much of manipulating or effecting your padman, but taking cue from David Goggins trying to mentally break his SEAL Team trainers, you can use your padman's energy managements to become aware of their fatigue, tempoing up or displacing them when they start to manage. This builds up your own sense of perception, becoming acutely aware of its signs, and developing responses, things that will serve you well in fights. This doesn't mean going HARD, like 200%. It means managing your own fatigue while you work that edge and tax your padman. The purpose of this is to slow reaction times and decision quality in later rounds in fights. You don't win fights early in Muay Khao work, you prepare the material so you can work late. A great padman will see and help you train this shape of the rounds, even as they manage their own fatigue. It goes without saying this involves not just "following along" with called strikes, which I believe is detrimental on a deeper level, because what you are training in those cases is "being dictated to". Lots of fighters have this problem, they have spent countless hours of (unconsciously) learning to be steered, so when their opponent looks to dictate timing, space or rhythm they have years of being comfortable being dictated to. This though is a subtle line to walk, and it depends a great deal on the experience of the fighter and the quality of the padman. Ideally, you want padwork to gravitate towards a dialogue, a back and forth, which mirrors the dialogue of fighting, accepting dictated tempos and spacing, modifying them, shaping them in return. Good padmen (who aren't just burning you out with kicks or holding combos over and over, largely ex-experienced fighters) will recognize this dialogue dimension, and you'll bring out more of their "fighter energy" and creativity, which is Golden stuff. Lesser experienced padman, or padmen who are just grinding, may not respond well, but you want to get into that zone of your 5 rounds being shaped like a fight...and for a Muay Khao fighter that means depositing fatigue in your padman early, if you can. Even if you can't, the aim of recognizing stalls, energy management, gatherings, and working on them yourself (not being passive) is a perceptual skill set you want to develop. For Muay Khao fighters though, you want to get to that clinch, or those finishing frames in the later rounds. You have to feel those angles of dominance, the cherry of what you built in previous rounds. Great padman know this, and develop pathways later where your body can sense, can experience those finishing elements. Femeu fighters, other style fighters, have other shapes in their fights. This is specific to Muay Khao.
    • Watched Sylvie's padwork today, something new I really have encouraged to happen and that she has been doing daily for a few weeks (?). Tons of in-the-pocket rhythms and improvisations, space management. I can see lots of growth, creativity, enjoyment. Good, good stuff. Unfortunately just like everyone else who has trained her for maybe 4 years now, they all want to take away her clinch. Nobody likes her clinch because it feels reductive. Hey, nobody respected the muay of Samson, Langsuan, even Dieselnoi either, this is a long story with the style. They don't care that she can beat 60 kg girls with it, and is hell for pretty much anyone to face, and has won nearly 200 fights with it (almost every win a direct result of her clinch), its an anti-style especially to the contemporary eye (which has been shaped by Entertainment Muay Thai). This is really good work, but its been years since she's trained with anyone who loved her Muay Khao stalking style and developed her into a clinch demon. All of her clinch dominance in the last several years, pretty much since COVID, has been pretty much kept on life-support by her alone, every clinch partner much bigger than her, stronger, Thai, so she just is managing controls, never being able to experience dominance in the grab, that taste of blood in the water with the lock, every kru in their own way discouraging her from the one thing she has been the best in the world among female fighters at. This is just the morphing of the opportunities of muay in Thailand, and something that has to be lived through. I'm excited for the in-the-pocket work, it fits nicely with what she's been developing with Chatchai. It's very good stuff. But ideally, all that pocket work should be used to pressure and punish the pocket so her clinch is even more unstoppable. Not sure how to get there, giving the state of Muay Thai and the place clinch has within it now. It's been sheer willpower from Sylvie that she is even the clinch fighter she has been over the last several years. Clinch is a vulnerable skill, it erodes quickly, and true clinch requires all kinds of rhythms and set ups to make it effective in the later rounds. It's a very complex, systematic approach to fighting. It's not just about winning clinch positions. It's the culminating persistence of them, using fatigue as a weapon so mistakes get made, positions neutralized too slowly, a bit late, windows getting bigger and bigger. I'm hoping this all comes together. If it does, and Sylvie can regain that late locking effectiveness, watch out. It will be quite a combination. This difficulty though, in the wide view, is that proper Muay Khao training likely does not exist as a whole any longer in Thailand, and that we've had to piece together elements of it even to get this far. There is an incredible bricolage to training in Thailand if you want to reach back into what the Golden Age was, because so much of the methods of muay have changed. Not only is the sport fought differently, and trained differently, its also thought differently even among Thais.
  • The Latest From Open Topics Forum

    • Hi, i have a general question concerning Muay-Thai training camps, are there any serious ones in Europe at all? I know there are some for kickboxing in the Netherlands, but that's not interesting to me or what i aim for. I have found some regarding Muay-Thai in google searches, but what iv'e found seem to be only "retreats" with Muay-Thai on a level compareable to fitness-boxing, yoga or mindfullness.. So what i look for, but can't seem to find anywhere, are camps similar to those in Thailand. Grueling, high-intensity workouts with trainers who have actually fought and don't just do this as a hobby/fitness regime. A place where you can actually grow, improve technique and build strength and gas-tank with high intensity, not a vacation... No hate whatsoever to those who do fitness-boxing and attend retreats like these, i just find it VERY ODD that there ain't any training camps like those in Thailand out there, or perhaps i haven't looked good enough?..  Appericiate all responses, thank you! 
    • In my experience, 1 pair of gloves is fine (14oz in my case, so I can spar safely), just air them out between training (bag gloves definitely not necessary). Shinguards are a good idea, though gyms will always have them and lend them out- just more hygienic to have your own.  2 pairs of wraps, 2 shorts (I like the lightweight Raja ones for the heat), 1 pair of good road running trainers. Good gumshield and groin-protector, naturally. Every time I finish training, I bring everything into the shower (not gloves or shinnies, obviously) with me to clean off the (bucketsfull in my case) of sweat, but things dry off quickly here outside of the monsoon season.  One thing I have found I like is smallish, cotton briefs for training (less cloth, therefore sweaty wetness than boxers, etc.- bring underwear from home- decent, cotton stuff is strangely expensive here). Don't weigh yourself down too much. You might want to buy shorts or vests from the gym(s) as (useful) souvenirs. I recommend Action Zone and Keelapan, next door, in Bangkok (good selection and prices):  https://www.google.com/maps/place/Action+Zone/@13.7474264,100.5206774,17z/data=!4m14!1m7!3m6!1s0x30e29931ee397e41:0x4c8f06926c37408b!2sAction+Zone!8m2!3d13.7474212!4d100.5232523!16s%2Fg%2F1hm3_f5d2!3m5!1s0x30e29931ee397e41:0x4c8f06926c37408b!8m2!3d13.7474212!4d100.5232523!16s%2Fg%2F1hm3_f5d2?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MTAyOS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D
    • Hey! I totally get what you mean about pushing through—it can sometimes backfire, especially with mood swings and fatigue. Regarding repeated head blows and depression, there’s research showing a link, especially with conditions like CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy). More athletes are recognizing the importance of mental health alongside training. 
    • If you need a chill video editing app for Windows, check out Movavi Video Editor. It's super easy to use, perfect for beginners. You can cut, merge, and add effects without feeling lost. They’ve got loads of tutorials to help you out! I found some dope tips on clipping videos with Movavi. It lets you quickly cut parts of your video, so you can make your edits just how you want. Hit up their site to learn more about how to clip your screen on Windows and see how it all works.
    • Hi all, I am fortunate enough to have the opportunity to be traveling to Thailand soon for just over a month of traveling and training. I am a complete beginner and do not own any training gear. One of the first stops on my trip will be to explore Bangkok and purchase equipment. What should be on my list? Clearly, gloves, wraps, shorts and mouthguard are required. I would be grateful for some more insight e.g. should I buy bag gloves and sparring gloves, whether shin pads are worthwhile for a beginner, etc. I'm partiularly conscious of the heat and humidity, it would make sense to pack two pairs of running shoes, two sets of gloves, several handwraps and lots of shorts. Any nuggets of wisdom are most welcome. Thanks in advance for your contributions!   
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      1.4k
    • Total Posts
      11.3k
×
×
  • Create New...