Kickboxing: From Initiation To Knockout Series

When you have learned the jab and its significance as the most basic, yet perhaps also the most versatile kickboxing technique, and practiced a variety of ways to use the jab for speed, set-up, and power, it doesn't surprise me if your next question is: "When do I get to knock'em out?" A strike's knockout capability is not necessarily determined only by its power. Other factors, such as accuracy, choosing the best target, and timing are at least equally important. But power alone, even if it doesn't result in a knockout, will certainly help get your opponent's attention. This brief book explores the three commonly used power strikes: the rear cross, hook, and uppercut. It includes discussions and training exercises on long and short range fighting, closing distance and gapping as appropriate, and using broken rhythm and sensory overload for opening up targets for the knockout. Kickboxing: From Initiation To Knockout comprises a series of short books with focus on learning specific techniques and strategies for the exciting sport of competition kickboxing. With plenty of pictures, each book breaks the material down into bite-size pieces that allow you to practice to perfection. The material in this book previously appeared in Complete Kickboxing, now out of print, and is great for straight boxing, too.

Although the jab is not your most powerful strike, at long range it is in a sense your most superior strike. Superiority is determined not only by how much strength or power you have, but also by how you use movement to employ that power. Landing a long range technique is difficult without some sort of setup against a skilled opponent. The jab is perhaps the most versatile kickboxing technique available and can be used to set up all other long range techniques. Although not a knockout punch per se, the jab could on occasion be all you need to end the fight. This brief book discusses basic jabbing strategy for sparring and competition, choosing your targets and using the jab as a distraction, and using lateral movement to establish superiority. It emphasizes distance and timing. Understanding distance, and timing your jab correctly to your opponent's movement, allows you to control the fighting arena and create openings for your stronger rear hand. Kickboxing: From Initiation To Knockout comprises a series of short books with focus on learning specific techniques and strategies for the exciting sport of competition kickboxing. With plenty of pictures, each book breaks the material down into bite-size pieces that allow you to practice to perfection. The material in this book previously appeared in Complete Kickboxing, now out of print, and is great for straight boxing, too.

Now that you are ready to embark on the kickboxer's long and arduous journey, it should come as no surprise that the first thing you must learn is how to survive by combining offense and defense with balance and the right mental attitude. A good fighting stance allows your feet, torso, arms, and head to work in unison, so that you can throw your techniques with minimum effort and without fear of losing balance. To appreciate a good stance, we must understand the inherently weak areas of the human body. Movement is always used to avoid an attack or position for a counterattack. The fighter who controls footwork typically controls the fight by dictating what, when, and how. Offensive movement comprises distance awareness and jamming and gapping techniques. But controlling footwork extends beyond your own footwork. You must also learn to control your opponent's footwork, to maneuver into a more desirable position, while preventing him from doing the same. Kickboxing: From Initiation To Knockout comprises a series of short books with focus on learning specific techniques and strategies for the exciting sport of competition kickboxing. With plenty of pictures, each book breaks the material down into bite-size pieces that allow you to practice to perfection. The material in this book previously appeared in Complete Kickboxing, now out of print, and is great for straight boxing, too.

Knowing how to box is not enough if you want to call yourself a kickboxer. Since kickboxing combines kicks and strikes, we will now look at the three basic kicks: the front kick, roundhouse kick, and side thrust kick. Which kick you use depends on your position, on your distance to the target, and on what you are trying to accomplish. The benefit of a kick over a punch is that you can reach any target on your opponent's body. While the hands can be used for punching to the head and body, the legs can be used for kicking to the head, body, and legs. In this sense, kicks are more versatile than punches. All kicks can be thrown with the lead or rear leg. In general, your lead leg is used much like the jab: to gauge distance. Since your lead leg is closer to the target than your rear leg, it is faster and needs less movement. Your rear leg, by contrast, has the potential to create a more powerful kick. Throughout your training, we will explore those kicks that are the most practical for competition kickboxing, and learn their application from beginning to advanced stages. Kickboxing: From Initiation To Knockout comprises a series of short books with focus on learning specific techniques and strategies for the exciting sport of competition kickboxing. With plenty of pictures, each book breaks the material down into bite-size pieces that allow you to practice to perfection. The material in this book previously appeared in Complete Kickboxing, now out of print.

A successful kickboxer must be complete in all aspects of his game, and offense cannot survive without defense, and vice versa. Many kickboxers think of defense as simply avoiding a strike or kick. But good defense has many other purposes. Your goal defensively is to make your opponent pay a price. Good defense protects you from harm and creates offense. Blocking or moving to avoid a strike will in itself not win the fight. It is impossible to protect against all strikes, and you will get hit. You should therefore strive to use the momentum of good defense to launch a counterattack. Good defense destroys your opponent's weapons. Begin thinking of your blocks as strikes and not simply as means of thwarting your opponent's attack. By selecting the right block and executing it in the proper manner, we can punish our opponent's offensive weapons and eventually render those weapons harmless. It takes more energy to fight offensively than defensively. Defense, with its shorter and more compact moves, should therefore be used between offense to replenish your energies and tire your opponent. Kickboxing: From Initiation To Knockout comprises a series of short books with focus on learning specific techniques and strategies for the exciting sport of competition kickboxing. With plenty of pictures, each book breaks the material down into bite-size pieces that allow you to practice to perfection. The material in this book previously appeared in Complete Kickboxing, now out of print, and is great for straight boxing, too.

The fighter who controls distance controls the fight. This is true both in long and short range fighting. The difficult part about fighting at short range is moving in and achieving the superior position. Distance should generally be closed when your opponent experiences a moment of weakness. Although long arms and legs are advantageous in kickboxing, your long reach is only as good as you are at using it. You can exploit the strength of your opponent's longer reach by developing superior short range fighting techniques. When you move from the out-fighting zone to the in-fighting zone, you are very close to your opponent and many long range techniques are no longer effective. Once you get past your opponent's long range techniques, you have taken from him many of his weapons. The purpose of working your way to short range is to throw powerful short range techniques, so once there, you must make an effort to stay there until something decisive happens; until you knock out your opponent or choose to move back to long range for some other reason. Kickboxing: From Initiation To Knockout comprises a series of short books with focus on learning specific techniques and strategies for the exciting sport of competition kickboxing. With plenty of pictures, each book breaks the material down into bite-size pieces that allow you to practice to perfection. The material in this book previously appeared in Complete Kickboxing, now out of print, and is great for straight boxing, too.

Kickboxing employs some devastating lower and upper body attacks. The cut kick (also called a leg kick), is designed to "cut" through the target, immobilize your opponent, and destroy his foundation. A kickboxer who can't stand can't fight. Therefore, upon the successful completion of the cut kick, the fight ends. Two of the most powerful strikes you will ever use in kickboxing are the knee and the elbow. The knee is capable of inflicting severe damage. Since some kickboxing tournaments allow elbow strikes (generally, if pads are worn), it also benefits the kickboxer to learn fighting according to Muay Thai rules. The beauty of the elbow strike is its devastating power and the difficulty defending against it. The small, hard bone of the elbow translates into a devastating striking weapon. The elbow's proximity to the body makes this primarily a short range technique. The sweep is yet a good short range technique you can use to unbalance your opponent and set him up for the finishing strike. A sweep is essentially a low kick to your opponent's leg. Separating his legs with a sweep opens his centerline to strikes. On the centerline are some of the most vulnerable targets: nose, chin, chest, and solar plexus.