Haisoku
背足
Instep, literally “back of the foot”. The striking surface of the arcing kick mawashi-geri, especially in sport karate and taekwondo.
Quick Facts
Word breakdown
Definition
Haisoku (背足) means “back of the foot”: hai is dorsum, back, soku is foot. It is the instep, the upper surface of the foot, which lands with the toes pointed. In karate, the instep is used mainly for mawashi-geri, the arcing kick. Traditional schools teach the same kick with the ball of the foot (koshi) as well, which is harder but requires a more precise position of the foot. The instep gives a longer reach and a larger surface, so sport karate and taekwondo use it.
Relations to other terms
See also
Ball of the foot below the toes, literally “tiger toes”. The striking surface of straight kicks mae-geri, the toes are pulled up during the kick.
Geri蹴り / 蹴り技Japanese for “kick”. In karate it is the second part of every kick name: mae-geri, yoko-geri, mawashi-geri, ushiro-geri. On its own it is read keri.