When you start practicing a martial art, The first kick you will learn will likely be the front snap kick. This is a simple and quick technique meant to buy time for a follow up strike. The most common target for this kick is the groin. Practicing this kick can get monotonous as many only drill the kick in the air or on a bag repeatedly. There are a few exercises that may add some variation to your practice and help you improve your front snap kick.

The snap kick consists of 4 parts.

Part 1 Lift the knee up and point your knee at your target.

Part 2 Extend the bottom half of the leg rapidly.

Part 3 Bring the leg back to previous position, standing on one leg with the knee raised.

Part 4 Bring the leg down and return to your fighting stance.

The first exercise is a snap back drill. This drill is usually done with strike film. If you would like to purchase a strike film target, simply click the link below.

For this drill, hang your target at about groin level. Throw the kick with the toe turned down. Try to stop the kick right before it actually makes contact. Get as close as you can and then withdraw the kick rapidly. Your goal is to cause the film to pull down from the air off of the kick. Try throwing this 10 times on each side, starting the count over if you accidentally kick the striking film.

The second drill will teach control and balance, while building a bit of leg strength. For this drill you will hand wrap rolled up. Put the hand wrap on the top or your foot and try to get it to where you can balance it in the middle. Use a wall or a chair for assistance until you no longer need it. You are going to slowly bring your foot up, extend the snap kick, and bring it back in (don’t worry about setting down yet) without dropping the hacky sack. This shows that you are able to maintain good form throughout the kick without getting wobbly or off balance. Try extending the leg out and bringing it back 10 times without dropping it. If you do drop it, start the count over.

The last drill is a simple strength training drill. It is very similar to the previous drill, except instead of a hacky sack, you are going to use a resistance band. Stand on one side of the resistance band to hold it in place. Reach down and grab the other side, stand up, bring your knee up, and wrap the band around your ankle. Now slowly extend the leg out and bring it back. Repeat 10 times. This is going to add a bit of resistance to your kick.

I hope these drills help you in your training or give you something new to try. They are simple drills that I feel really help you develop the snap kick more than just throwing the same kick over and over again. Thank you for reading.