The Mae Gaeri, or Front Kick, is one of the few basic kicks employed in GKR Karate. It’s very simple to perform, and can generate a lot of force. To perform the Mae Gaeri, start in a normal fighting stance. Take your right leg and bring it up as high as you can. Curl your toes upward so that they are pointing towards the ceiling. You will be striking with the ball of your foot, and you do not want your toes to take any of the impact as this can really damage them. Kick your leg out forward as hard as you can in front of you while still maintaining your balance, being sure to strike with the ball of your foot as I said. Make sure you don’t throw your bodyweight forward with the kick, as this will reduce the power behind it and could throw you off balance, opening you up to the possibility of an attach. After you kick, place your leg back on the floor where it was when you started. This will put you back in your fighting stance, allowing you to maintain your guard. If you want to perform successive kicks, take your leg and retract it to the position it was in right before you kicked while making sure to maintain your balance.
There are two ways this kick can be effective. You can either go with a quick, snapping kick or a hard thrusting kick. If you choose to go with a quick, snapping quick, make sure it is quick enough so that your opponent does not have time to react to it. If you choose to go with a thrusting kick, this kick will have more momentum behind it and can be used to throw your opponent back or at least put them off balance.
The great thing about the front kick is that it is effective no matter where you strike the person. It can be used to target the stomach, chest, groin, or shins, causing serious damage in any of these areas, and can be coupled with other strikes for a deadly combination. Here are a couple of tips to keep in mind:
1. Form is everything. Don’t try to kick without bringing your leg up all the way first as this will deliver a weak straight legged kick.
2. It is important to maintain your balance throughout the motions. While this is not hard normally, if one is performing successive kicks it may become a problem.
3. Keep your toes curled up. Striking with the ball of your foot deals the most damage.