Mae Geri vs Yoko Geri

[Prince Loeffler]

Some us are apt to use more of one than the other. I thought I'd ask the general populace of E-Budo of what they consider a more powerful kick and why ?.

[Chupacabra]

I get way more power out of the rear leg sidekick than a rear leg front kick, but tend to use the front kick more since it can be used in a shorter range and with less hip movement, making it easier to land effectively.

Off the front leg I use the side kick more because it locks the hip in nicely and makes for a good stop kick on an advancing opponent.

[Simon Keegan]

Our legs are more accustomed to moving forward and back (all the walking we do) and so is more natural than the sidekick.

I'd say the Mae Geri.

[shoshinkan]

If we are talking raw power then the Yoko Geri delivers way more power than the mae geri, in my expieirence.

However which has more function, mae geri by a long shot, and it delivers enough power to do it's job.

For me the superior technique, all things considered is the mae geri.

[Simon Keegan]

Which explains the Yoko Geri's absence from classical kata.

Nice to see you again Jim, so to speak.

[Trevor Johnson]

I find yoko geri slow. Nice for power, but the only way I ever use it is low, since it's faster then. I like it or a precise mae geri to the knee for stopping a charge and getting them to overbalance forwards.

[shoshinkan]

Which explains the Yoko Geri's absence from classical kata.

Nice to see you again Jim, so to speak.

Yes, good to see you to Simon, we must hook up one day!

[Mitch Saret]

Side kick definitely delivers more power, and that was the question. However, the points made about it being slow and what not are all geared to an opponent to the front. A side kick was meant to be delivered to an opponent at the side. A second opponent, perhaps, while you are dealing with someone in front of you. Or even someone coming up from the side. In those scenarios yoko geri is plenty fast.

[powerof0ne]

I have to agree, Yoko geri is more powerful but it's much easier to land mae geri. Coming from a Karate and Muay Thai background I do a lot of variations of a mae geri and front push kick. About the only way for me to land a yoko geri in the kind of sparring I do(leg kicks allowed)is to start out as a mae geri and turn my hips over into a yoko geri about half way through.

[Trevor Johnson]

I have to agree, Yoko geri is more powerful but it's much easier to land mae geri. Coming from a Karate and Muay Thai background I do a lot of variations of a mae geri and front push kick. About the only way for me to land a yoko geri in the kind of sparring I do(leg kicks allowed)is to start out as a mae geri and turn my hips over into a yoko geri about half way through.

If you've got someone locked, you can take the time to land a yoko geri.

[Prince Loeffler]

So gentlemen ! If Physical Science sense, what makes Yoko Geri powerful as oppsed to Mae Geri ?

[powerof0ne]

If you've got someone locked, you can take the time to land a yoko geri.

If I have someone "locked", I clinch and knee. The reason why is because I know a bunch of different knees and can control my opponent in the clinch and literally throw them into my knees.
Clinching isn't just to pull someone' shead down and knee them in the face, the main goal of it is to move your opponent around and catch them off balance & then taking advantage of the oppurtunity.
I personally don't think locking/trapping an opponent than delivering a yoki geri would be as effective as clinching & kneeing.

[Paul Steadman]

Hello All,

I used to train in a karate group based on Shotokan, Gojukai & Shorinji-ryu Kenkokan. We used to do the usual ido kihon waza of practising mae & yoko geri marching up & down the dojo, usually from zenkutsudachi with the back leg kicking through to become the front leg.

In my small amount of exposure to classical Okinawan karate and more so in traditional and classical Japanese jujutsu, I have found that zenpo keashi (mae-geri) is executed with the front or back leg to the front and sokuho keashi (yoko geri) is performed with the closest leg -the front leg- from a yoko jigotai (side on shikko or kiba-dachi) or yoko shizentai (side on soto hachiji dachi) to the side even if the target is to the front side.

Just curious, has anyone ever got a back leg yoko geri on an opponent in kumite or on "the street."

Cheers,

[Trevor Johnson]

If I have someone "locked", I clinch and knee. The reason why is because I know a bunch of different knees and can control my opponent in the clinch and literally throw them into my knees.
Clinching isn't just to pull someone' shead down and knee them in the face, the main goal of it is to move your opponent around and catch them off balance & then taking advantage of the oppurtunity.
I personally don't think locking/trapping an opponent than delivering a yoki geri would be as effective as clinching & kneeing.


Depends on your target. Side or back of the knee works nicely for yoko geri. It depends on how you're holding them. I would never throw a yoko geri above the belt in any kind of fight, anyway.

[Mitch Saret]

So gentlemen ! If Physical Science sense, what makes Yoko Geri powerful as oppsed to Mae Geri ?

The muscles used. It's the difference between doing leg lifts on a weight machine and leg presses.

[gmanry]

Mae geri does not have the equivalent support from the grounded leg as a yoko geri with the hip fully open. So, the yoko geri can bring more muscles and tendons to bear on the execution of force.

A good way to picture this is to think of the typical mae geri in most karate, then compare it to the stomping type kick used to take down doors. The stomping kick allows the hip to open more and allows the supporting foot to pivot and drive with the extension of the thighs and support of the hamstrings. It is slower but penetrates more delivering more overall force over a range of motion (taking down a door). Mae geri is more like a strong punch that drops the person right there, shorter range, faster speed.

Or you can think about the triangle kick in Ashihara, where the two concepts are combined and you get an amazingly powerful kick that shocks and drives the opponent.

When I was working out with someone here who had a force measuring shield people who kicked with the typical mae geri (kyokushin practitioner) were scoring in the 200s (not sure of the formula used for calculation by the shield so it is a crude benchmark). When I kicked using my version of mae geri I was scoring in the 400s. A little bit of hip load and a quicker rhthym in the kick produced these results.

Side kick was harder to guage because you had to be accurate on the shield. But when I used yoko geri with a straighter trajectory I was consistently 100 points higher than the typical lift and execute model. Scores were not as high because it was harder to hit the sensor area with the yoko, but the holder moved more (slower kick releasing engergy over a longer trajectory), whereas the mae geri could hit with great accuracy and seemed to punch through the target causing more "shock."

Yoko geri is less of an attacking kick, imo. As some have pointed out it is for use against a person who is coming in at an angle. If it is used at its natural angles of execution it can be very effective at stopping an advancing person because they are running into a structure that has maximum support to the ground through the support leg through a fully opened hip structure.

Like ushiro geri it is a kick of expediency in the situation. Mae Geri is more user friendly and can be used as a "punch" with the foot, a distance gauger, or a push to create openings, as Brian alluded.

[shoshinkan]

it's far from a great example but heres a side kick I actually landed in a tournament, a while back -

http://media.putfile.com/Sem-Contact-Final-B-c1991

pleas enote it takes a little time to upload and play correctly, it's also rather bad quality filming.

from memory the kick was a few inches out of range, it did some damage but I remember thinking at the time, if I were a bit closer he would have gone over with a thud!

I don't do this kind of stuff these days but thought it would be entertaining for everyone! LOL

[gmanry]

Getting back to the original poll. Yoko geri will deliver more force than mae geri, but mae geri can make more of the force it generates in terms of accuracy and transferring energy to the target. Mae geri is more efficient than yoko geri more often than not.

[Eisenheim]

Rare are the times that a yoko geri will prove to be perfectly effective in battle IF your opponent has a good guard. Otherwise, yoko geri is better, however, the mae geri never fails to show its true power.

I say: Mae Geri.

Joel Neves

[0601824]

I support mae geri but actually mawashi geri is much more stronger and faster.

[DAYoung]

I'm going to go with yoko geri. It's not my favorite kick, but it's handy under (or over) a lapsed guard.

[Markaso]

Not that I am an expert on this subject, but are we talking about a Mae Geri (front snap kick) with a step before kicking? Also on the Yoko Geri ( side kick) with a step? If not I would say that I get more out of the Mae Geri.

Basically I would say it really depends on the practitioner and how well he/she can use the machanics of his/ her body to get the most out of each kick.

[Prince Loeffler]

Not that I am an expert on this subject, but are we talking about a Mae Geri (front snap kick) with a step before kicking? Also on the Yoko Geri ( side kick) with a step? If not I would say that I get more out of the Mae Geri.

Basically I would say it really depends on the practitioner and how well he/she can use the machanics of his/ her body to get the most out of each kick.

No Steps, all thrusting kicks

[Prince Loeffler]

I support mae geri but actually mawashi geri is much more stronger and faster.

But the discussion for the moment is Mae Geri vs Yoko Geri. Not Mawashi Geri but thanks for the input. :)

[Jay Vail]

Back when I participated in the tournaments in the 70s and 80s, you almost never saw the front kick used, apart from a few shotokan fanatics. :-) I think the reason for this is the substantial likelihood of injury to the toes when performing that kick to the body. I and many of the people I trained with at one time or another broke toes on someones forearm or elbow when doing the front kick in sparring.

The danger of injury is far less with the side kick, which is probably why we saw so many people doing it in preference to the front kick.

As a self defense tool, however, I would rely on the front kick because of its speed. It usually isn't a knock out kick as our experience with muay thai and MMA shows, unless you direct it at the knee or the groin. But it is often like a jab and can open the way for more substantial follow ups. It doesn't leave you as unbalanced as a side kick, either.