Chi Ger/Leg Sparing

[HungFamilyFist]

Wondering what drills you guys do to train leg checks, Kick defenses(leg to leg), and breaking the opponents horse.

Some of us in my class do a sort of free-form leg drill where we try to check and uproot our partners stance. I like it because it's live speed and almost full power. It gives a good look at the changes that happen mid fight and how to counter them. When we do it, it's lower body only, though it's easy to see how bringing the upper body into it would facilitate throws and sweeps. It's like a chi Sao for the lower body.

I am also working on technical asspects like setting up sweeps/trips a few moves ahead as well as going for the rear leg. This also trains leg strength, and gives us what i guess could be "Iron" training, since you are making lots of contact.

anyone else have drills they can suggest?

As always forgive my Phonetic spelling of chinese words.

[PM]

hello,

as our main kicking arsenal, it consists of low/middle "tiger tail kick" (side kick), low "showel kick" and "iron broom sweeping kick". although we do not train Muay Thai like low kicks as a part of our HK arsenal, we train them to do various defensive drills against them, as it is very common part of the fighting arsenal of many streetfighters here. the legs has to be able to withstand something, as correctly executed low kick (of any kind), ie. part of a combo and predecessed by "shadow hand" usually does not miss the target (anyway, in one of the last sparring matches with Muay Thai friends, the oponent was able to land only one solid low kick).

as for the leg drills, we train:

- stepping into the opponents stance (inside, outside)
- low kicks of any kind
- yi geuk siu geuk = neutralise the kick with legs (ie. with the change of the stance and/or turning movement, footwork, "block" or counter kick)
- stomps
- knee kicks
- kneeling on the oponent (lok gwai ma) - on ribs, head
- ...

we also do the chi geuk like exercise you have described, but more like training drill, not a fighting drill. most of the opponents move, jump around, run at you, or kick. at a middle/short range, stomping aknd knee kicks come to play, so we focus on those.

all the best to you in your training!

[LGH]

Hello
My Hung gar Sifu taught us a "leg pounding" drill where you use three simple moves to help with conditioning the lower legs and to help strengthen the balance, and develop lower leg defenses with the use of two blocking techniques.

both students are in the same ge-ng ma stance (bow and arrow stance)
- each of them then throws an inside hook from the rear leg. These hooks meet as blocks in the middle. Of course, the conditioning is used the same way that "arm pounding" is done...starting out with lighter movements and get used to the technique (same move as the first hook kick in Gung gi)
- after the first movement you do not put your foot down but pull back to hanging crane stance and throw a low outside kick with the outside edge of your shin, with both practitioners meeting with the same technique contacting the outside part of the shins. The kicks essentially are being used to train a low block and press towards offsetting the opponents balance.
- the third move is simply pulling back to the starting ge-ng ma position and throwing a front kick to the outside side of your partner...obviously there is only one way to throw the kick or you would cross...lol...this one has no contact but meant to train a follow-up reaction after the previous blocks.

With this drill you work all one side for while and then you switch sides to train the other leg.

It is a simple drill but helps develop the lower leg blocking and balance.

Has anyone else done this drill?

[ngokfei]