Name: Back Kick Playbook: One Kick, Taught All the Way Down
Brand: Mat Manual

Art

Taekwondo

Family

Korean Arts

Level

intermediate

Format

playbook

Topics

kicks, fundamentals, safety

Mat Manual companion guide to "The Back Kick That Misses Sideways." Print it. The article takes the dwit chagi apart. This book rebuilds it: look-and-spot progressions, turn-only footwork, chamber standards, line work on pads, a fault-correction library, distance rituals, and sparring entries — one kick, with nothing skipped.

Name: ______________________________ School: ______________________________ Kicking leg: L / R Block start: ______________

SAFETY, BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE ☐ The back kick is a blind, full-power heel strike for part of its travel. It is thrown only at pads, shields, and bags in this book's drills — never at a partner's body in technique work — and live sparring use follows your school's rules with full protective equipment on both students. ☐ Holders brace for a heel driven through the pad, hold at the agreed height with the pad's face square to the line, and stand off the line themselves. A holder who crowds the line to "help" is standing where the heel goes. ☐ Turning space is checked before every set: a full stance-length clear behind and beside the kicker, no bags, no waiting students. Spinning kicks and crowded floors do not mix. ☐ Speed and power are gated by the line (Part 5's stop rule): two consecutive misses to the same side end the set. A set that continues into drift is rehearsing a miss at full power near other people. ☐ Dizziness is a stop. Students new to turning work build volume across weeks (Part 3's doses), and anyone who feels sick or unsteady sits out the turning work for the day. No exceptions are argued with.

Part 1: The Kick's Specification

Every drill in this book is measured against this page. Your instructor's house standard governs where it differs; the structure does not change.

Part 1: The Kick's Specification

Phase	The specification
Acquire	Eyes on the target; height and distance fixed before any movement
Turn	Body turns away from the target; head turns with the body and spots over the kicking-side shoulder
Support foot	Pivots during the turn so its heel points roughly toward the target as the kick fires
Chamber	Kicking knee folds tight: knee down and slightly across, heel drawn in close, leg on the target line
Fire	Leg extends straight back; heel leads, toes pulled back; hips drive through the line
Strike	Heel and sole through the target's center, aimed at a point behind the pad's surface
Return	Leg retracts along the same line, refolds, sets down
Finish	Turn completes back to fighting stance, facing the opponent, balanced, guard up

Terminology note. Korean: dwit chagi, also romanized dwi chagi — dwit means "back" or "behind," chagi means "kick." Some systems teach a closely related rear-leg version as a "spin back kick" and a step-across version with a different entry; the mechanic this book trains — turn, tight chamber, linear heel — is the shared core. The spinning hook kick is dwit huryeo chagi, a different technique (Part 9 separates them).