[QUOTE=-N-;1255665]Many years ago, when I did Kenpo, it was mandatory for us to wear cups at all times in class. Groin shots were a common and even preferred target in sparring.
We made contact there in sparring and in partner exercises. Everybody knew when you hit the target because the cup would make a popping sound. Even if you knew you could get kicked, you couldn’t always defend from it. One guy passed out from getting kicked so hard that his cup broke.
A few years ago, a Karate school I was working out with went to visit a Kenpo school for friendly sparring. The Karate guys all got dropped with groin shots, even the blackbelts. They grew up protecting their balls, but they still got dropped. The Kenpo guys trained for that target. The Karate guys didn’t.
I had an adult student get dropped by a groin kick from a six year old during practice.[/QUOTE]
Back when I studied Kenpo, we also used groin attacks. My teacher not only used kicks, but also hand strikes (hard slaps from different angles, back fists, etc.).
Common counters to mid-or-high kicks included ‘lift kicks’, which were similar to low front or side leg raises coming up from underneath; a back heel snap by simply whipping your heel up with the knee down; if you parried his kick so his back’s to you, a ‘scoop’ kick, which you extended underneath then sharply pulled back and upwards, using the instep and toes to hook his groin. To initiate, most common was the lead-leg round kick. The ‘flip’ kick could be either initiating or countering…keeping the knee down and flipping the lower leg to hit with the outside edge of your foot.
Often, when stylists from styles like TKD, TSD, Shotokan, etc., came in to spar, they would quickly realize how open they’re groins were. Many of those other stylists were used to sparring without any thought to protecting their groins. Yes, cups were always a mandatory thing in our Kenpo school.
