Muay Thai Roundhouse Kick Technique Tips

THROWING A MUAY THAI ROUNDHOUSE KICK - PROPERLY

By Sean Fagan

Needless to say, the Muay Thai roundhouse kick is what makes Muay Thai one of the most deadliest martial arts in the world.

However if you throw a Muay Thai kick with sloppy technique you be less efficient (which makes you more tired) and you will leave openings in your defense.

Even though the roundhouse kick is one of the most basic Muay Thai techniques you’ll first learn when you step into a gym, it takes a lifetime to perfect. I’ve been training Thai boxing over 10 years now and still know that there is plenty of room to improve my kick technique to add more power and speed to it.

 How NOT To Muay Thai Kick: 8 Common Mistakes

Basic Kick Technique Tips

• Be loose! Your leg should almost be completely dead weight that is guided by your hips, shoulders and torso.
• Push up on the balls of your post foot. This will help you generate more hip action and be more free to rotate through. If you are flat footed you lose power and fluidity of the Muay Thai kick.
• Hump the air. Get sexual! Thrust your hips forward into the air like you’re making sweet sweet love. This is where the power from the Muay Thai roundhouse kick comes from.
• Pivot hard. Your post foot should be opening up and pivoting to open up your hips when you drive through your kick.
• Swing same side arm down. This will help open up your hips, and like I’ve been saying, the power comes from your hips!
• Kick through your opponent. Don’t stop the motion once you make contact! You should be following through! If you are shadowboxing kicks then you should be rotating 360 degrees.
• Keep chin tucked behind shoulder. For defense purposes obviously. Also make sure to have your opposite arm up defending your face if possible.

Just with any type of basic or advanced Muay Thai technique, repetition is key. Professional fighters have thrown the same roundhouse kicks thousands of times to work on their technique, power and speed… you should be doing the same!

Obviously there is a lot that goes into perfecting the roundhouse kick technique so try not to overwhelm yourself by trying to learning every little aspect at once. Take one kick technique tip at a time and focus on that one the entire Muay Thai training session until you feel more comfortable with it.

Once you feel like you’ve got a feeling for that specific technique, then add one more of the tips to your technique. Eventually you’ll be able to implement all of them into one solid kick!

This picture is one of the two high kicks I can remember throwing in a fight. Typically, I love the low leg roundhouse kick because I see more openings for it and feel much more comfortable throwing it.

However I do plan on head kicking someone someday so watch out!

In the meantime, try adding these Muay Thai Kicking Drills to your routine!