Taekwondo
Move · High-Intensity · Movement, Typed Supps
Kicking height depends on how fast you can lift the leg, not on how far you can stretch it cold.
Stage by stage
- Warm-up (Dynamic, not static): Prolonged static stretching immediately before explosive kicking can transiently reduce force, so dynamic range work is used.
- During the kick (Pelvis drives the leg): Trunk and pelvic rotation transfer into the kicking leg; the speed of the chamber sets how fast the kick arrives.
- Across the session (Hip flexors and hamstrings): Repeated high-velocity loading at long muscle length makes strains here the most common injury in the sport.
- Months later (Power, timing, growth plates): Rotational power and reaction timing build over months; kicking volume is monitored in adolescents with open apophyses.
Muscles trained
- Primary: quads, glutes, shoulders
- Secondary: abs, calves, hamstrings
Intensity
10.3 METs (Martial arts, different types, moderate pace (e.g., judo, jujitsu, karate, kick boxing, tae kwan do, tai-bo, Muay Thai boxing)).
Time to effect
- Weeks: Kicking height and the hip flexibility needed to chamber a kick quickly both improve within the first few weeks of regular drilling.
- Months: The explosive hip power behind a jumping or spinning kick, and the split-second reaction timing the sport’s fast scoring rewards, typically build over two to three months of consistent sparring practice.
Related supplements
Common myth
“Taekwondo isn’t a real striking art because it’s all high kicks and no hands.” In reality: The kick-heavy style seen in competition is largely an artifact of Olympic scoring rules that reward head kicks heavily; the broader curriculum still includes hand strikes, blocks and stance work, and other rule sets within the art use hands far more.
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