Kick–Hand Chains Playbook
Mat Manual companion guide to "After the Roundhouse: Uraken and the Reverse Punch." Print it. The article teaches the chain as a shrinking sequence, one range inside the last, on one shared hip rotation. This book makes…
| Art | Shotokan Karate |
|---|---|
| Family | Karate |
| Level | intermediate |
| Format | playbook |
| Topics | kicks, strikes, sparring, training-plans |
Mat Manual companion guide to "After the Roundhouse: Uraken and the Reverse Punch." Print it. The article teaches the chain as a shrinking sequence, one range inside the last, on one shared hip rotation. This book makes it trainable. It gives you the three chain cards, the retraction-speed drills that make the back-fist arrive on time, and the heavy-bag ladders that build the chains link by link under impact.
Name: ______________________________ Dojo: ______________________________ Grade: ______________ Start date: ______________ Lead leg (circle): Left / Right Chain side first drilled: ______________
BEFORE ANYTHING: SCOPE AND SAFETY ☐ All partner work in this book runs at agreed speed and agreed contact, stated out loud before each drill. Either partner can lower the speed or the contact at any time with one word, and the drill obeys instantly. ☐ Kicks and strikes are thrown at real lines at controlled contact. A chain rep that cannot be controlled does not count as a rep, however fast or clean it looked. ☐ Head contact follows your dojo's rules for your grade, with headgear where your school requires it. Students whose schools do not allow head contact train jodan (high level) uraken uchi (back-fist strike) to touch a held guard or pad, never a partner's head. ☐ Heavy-bag work stops on any sharp pain in the foot, ankle, knee, hip, wrist, or hand. Wrap or glove to your school's bag standard before Ladder work (Part 10), not after the first sore knuckle. ☐ This is an intermediate book. Students train it with sound single mawashi geri (roundhouse kick), yoko geri (side kick), and mae geri (front kick), a reliable gyaku zuki (reverse punch), and their instructor's knowledge.
Part 1: The Three Chains at a Glance
One pattern, three kicks. The kick takes the guard. The back-fist rides the retraction. The reverse punch finishes through the middle. Mark your school's variants in pencil where they differ.
| Chain | Link 1, at range | Link 2, on the retraction | Link 3, through the middle | First drilled in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A, the main chain | Mawashi geri (roundhouse kick), chudan (middle level) or jodan per school | Uraken uchi, same side as the kicking leg, over the top | Gyaku zuki, chudan | Part 4 |
| B, sibling | Yoko geri keage (side snap kick) | Uraken uchi, same side as the kicking leg, as the knee folds back | Gyaku zuki, chudan | Part 5 |
| B2, sibling variant | Yoko geri kekomi (side thrust kick) | Uraken uchi, same side, as the thrust leg folds to chamber | Gyaku zuki, chudan | Part 5 |
| C, sibling | Mae geri (front kick) | Uraken uchi, same side as the kicking leg, as the foot sets down forward | Gyaku zuki, chudan | Part 6 |
Chain law: a chain is on your menu only when you have passed its stage standard (Part 3) with it. You spar with the chains you own, not the chains you have read about.
Kick–Hand Chains Playbook
Mat Manual companion guide to "After the Roundhouse: Uraken and the Reverse Punch." Print it. The article teaches the chain as a shrinking sequence, one range inside the last, on one shared hip rotation. This book makes it trainable. It gives you the three chain cards, the retraction-speed drills that make the back-fist arrive on time, and the heavy-bag ladders that build the chains link by link under impact.
What's Inside
- Part 1: The Three Chains at a Glance
- Part 2: How a Rep Counts
- Part 3: The Five Stages
- Part 4: Chain A Cards — Mawashi Geri, Uraken, Gyaku Zuki
- Part 5: Chain B Cards — Yoko Geri Into Uraken
- Part 6: Chain C Cards — Mae Geri Into Uraken
- …and 25 more sections
The full guide is a paid Mat Manual product. Checkout is not connected yet — no payment is taken on this page.
Free companion article: After the Roundhouse: Uraken and the Reverse Punch — the full article, free in full.
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