KICKING

It is important for martial artists, especially of the ‘internal schools’
to be conversant with all of the regular kicking techniques in order to
know how to defend against them. Too many Tai Chi practitioners
use the old ‘cop out’ of “if it isn’t in the form, I won’t use it”. What
happens of course is that his opponent uses a kick that he is not familiar
with and so he is struck! I don’t believe in using high flashy
kicks but I do think that it’s necessary to know how to use them. The
most devastating kicks are low to the legs; these are almost impossible
to defend against especially if used in a defensive mode.
T’ai chi does have some of it’s own kicking techniques. These are
usually kept low and simple and only used when we know that they
will work. Usually we will use the excellent hand techniques for
some time, this puts our opponent at ease in thinking that we do not
use kicks, then we will put in a stomach heel kick or one to the chest
and it usually works.