What type set-up do others use for a side kick? What kind of situations do you find the sidekick useful for?
I think the side kick is one of the most powerful kicks. I usually use it when an opponent is charging at me or when he gets too close. its good cuz its almost impossible to block a sick kick.
clark
If he throws a front kick and I side step away, I find a sidekick to the midriff wakes him up! 
Only managed it a few times, but it was lovely.
“its good cuz its almost impossible to block a sick kick.”
I have found the opposite to be true. It can be vary easy to spot and stop, catch, or evade a sidekick, but it is indeed a powerful and great long range kick. It also has the advantage of being launched from the leg closest to your opponent.
To set up the kick, some high hand strike to open up the lower guard can be good.
I find this kick is very effective when a person is retreating from you and trying to gather their balance, or right when they try to move in (especially if they are trying to pass you kicking range in order to punch you).
You can also set it up with a lead jab. You use the lead jab to open up your opponent’s midsection. The combo usually goes like this: Lead Jab, Side Kick, Spinning Back Kick.
i find it good for jamming most kicks too.
i guess i don’t have any real complicated setups for it. i like to launch one to the knee when someone has just moved in and all their weight is on their front leg. i also like using it on their supporting leg if they go for a roundhouse.
oh … and if anyone ever trys a spinning move without proper setup i side kick them in the ass pretty hard for being dumb.
Front leg side kick is IMO a lot more useful than the rear leg one and it’s a lot easier to set up. Front leg side kick is an easy and fast way to stop your opponent’s attack by kicking him in his gut when he’s coming at you. And if your opponent isn’t that good fighter, you can try to get him to raise his guard by hitting him to his head with your front hand and then launch the front leg side kick to his stomach. This combination works ok even if the opponent blocks the punch and starts to attack. Fu mei gueuk, the tiger tail kick is pretty neat too.
I don’t usually use rear leg side kick that much, because a normal rear leg heel kick does the job just as good and it’s easier and faster to pull off. The rear leg side kick could also be slightly easier to block than the front leg, but of course, it’s matter of setting up the kick correctly.
Side kicks make nice counter attacks after blocking a kick with the shins. If you’re fast enough, you can even nail the supporting leg.
I dont’ throw a side kick off the front leg unless I’ve done an approaching cross step(twist stance) to set it up. The only kicks I throw stait off the front leg are front and round house. That’s not becuase sides and hooks are no good off the front leg, it’s because I can’t do them very well.
As far how I set up the rear leg, I use it almost exclusively for retreating opponents. The hard face jab to side works allot. I like to throw it at a bit of an angle up and into the flaoting ribs or just strait into the the gut. Sometimes it’s nice to kick them square into the hip with the side kick and turn them.
Oh, and I pretty much exclusively use the “knife edge” brand of the side kick. I pick my heel up and point my knee at the target, and then lauch my foot out.
There is a “defensive side kick” that aims with the heel of the foot and then launches out with the lead leg, but I find that kick not so usefull against a fully committed opponent.
In sparring, if the opponent fighs from a side stance, I like to try and dead leg the thigh with a side kick to the thigh. Always fun.
I also find the side kick easy to catch.
JWT
The Sidekick Rocks!!!
I have defeated a Wrestler twice my size with a sidekick during a challenge match.
He rushed in for a takedown.I went in at the same time & “BLAM” He fell on his butt.
He got up,tried the same thing & “DOUBLE BLAM” I hit the same spot.
He was on painkillers the next day because I broke 2 of his ribs.
My sidekick is always c ocked,locked & ready to rock!
Badger
I find it most useful if the opponent is coming in. Just pick up the leg and kick. If I’m going in and starting with a kick, I prefer the front heel kick so I can follow up more easily with my hands. The lead leg side kick is fast, but has more power if you step up first with the rear foot. I also use the rear leg side kick for agressively trying to knock my opponent around, it’s very fast if you turn out your front foot, then bring the rear knee up and kick in one motion.
So, do you guys turn your supporting heel back 180 degrees like in TKD, or do you keep the angle less like most CMA styles? I like to keep the supporting heel around 135 degrees when attacking with the lead side kick, about 90 degrees if attacking with the rear leg, if I’m moving back it gets closer to 180, probably 160 or so. Also, the defensive kick while moving back is always with the lead leg.
We train to be able to kick at all angles, in fact we regularly train a side kick where the base heel is less than 90 degrees from forward, in other words the base heel is pointing slightly forward like in your ready stance. This is good for a stop kick, the trick is bending at the hip. And timing-mine needs improvement.
-FJ
You can see some sidekicks used by Marvin Perry who is probably the best Kicker in US San Shou today here . You can also see how establishing that range allows him space to catch his opponents kicks with ease.
Great topic, I wish I had seen it earlier since I am in tae kwon do.
I too find side kicks easy to defend against, of course unless my opponent uses it in a smart way.
My head instructors side kick is awesome. Sorry to brag, but I just love it when he uses it. Sometimes he uses the side kick to set up the opponent for something else or sometimes he will use something else to set up the opponent for the side kick.
If you see someone in TKD place their foot on the floor, wether it is after a kick with that leg or simply stepping forward, and they land the foot on the floor pre-pivoted, rest assured get ready for a side kick.
My instructor, however, will actually hide what he is doing from your perception. He will be in a middle stance. He strikes to your face with a quick backfist. At the exact moment his back leg has slid right up next to his front leg. However, he keeps his knees bent to appear as though he has done no such thing. As the backfist retracts the side kick with the front leg is coming for you.
I love watching his deceptive footwork more than anything. That is to say, I like watching when I don’t spar him, and if I do spar him I try to see what he is doing.
C’mon guys, at what angle is your base foot when you do your side kick and why?
-FJ
I have never like the side kick but that’s cause I don’t like kicking..
BUTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT…
it’s a great tech. if u master it! It’s powerful as hell…I’ve seen guys that can kick hard enuf to kill an average man…especially middle and heavy weight guys that can use the side kick!
my base foot is usually straight. if momentum carries me through a little more it will turn about 45 degrees heel towards groin.
i’ve never been taught it, but jesus h christ i want to learn it.
the side kick?
if i remember right you used to do wing chun . ..
no side kicks in wc?
yeah the side kick. always wanted to learn it. I’ve always thought it must be so powerful
there is technically a side kick in wing chun, but it doesn’t go higher than the knee and is nothing like what we’re talking about here.
and there are no kicks in boxing. obviously.
I find the front leg sidekick to be one of my most effective tools for point sparring, as for full contact I don’t think that I’ve developed enough power yet.
I can pretty much land it when ever I want and it’s one of the few techniques that I can land consistently that I still use in (learning) sparring, I should really stop.
Some times I step up with a jab, some times I wait for their attack and the kick, some times I just kick. It doesn’t land all the time but most of the time.
I want to be able to recover faster so I can use it when my sifu sweeps my front leg. If I retain my balance I can land a week sidekick but he has already gotten me by then.
I usually just kick strait in, and hit the floating ribs area, but what ever is open is good for me. And I believe my foot pivots 90 degrees.