The Muay Thai roundhouse kick

Key facts:

• Shin on the target, toes pointed in the line of the shin, standing heel turned out.
• Low kick: thigh. Middle: ribs or arm. High kicks wait until the coach asks.
• We will not give a repetition count that "builds shin conditioning". We did not study one.
• NHS: a sprain is a reason to stop strenuous kicking, not a reason to kick through it.

The sequence

1. Hands up. Weight more on the standing leg than you think.
2. Step the standing foot out and turn the heel towards the target. If the heel stays pointing forward, the hip cannot turn and the knee takes the twist.
3. Swing the knee first, then the lower leg. The shin meets the target.
4. The arm on the kicking side sweeps down. The other hand stays near the cheek.
5. Bring the foot back. Do not finish in a split.

On a bag, start at thigh height. The bag should move because the hip moved, not because you leaned your head past your knee.

Mistakes

Sign	Likely cause
Instep slap	The foot was loose and the hip did not turn
Standing knee pain	The heel did not pivot
You miss behind you	You looked at the floor
Shin pain that is a sharp line, not a bruise	Stop. That is not "conditioning"

A bruise that fades is part of learning this kick. Swelling that stops you walking is the NHS ankle page. We are not writing a rehab week.

Drill

Ten kicks each side on a bag, slow, then ten at a conversational pace. Stop before the standing foot gets sloppy. Log it. The teep page is the kick you use to keep someone off this one.

Pads, bag, and a person

On a Thai pad, the holder turns the pad to meet the shin and braces the shoulder. If they hold it flat like a punch pad, you will hit the edge and think your kick is wrong. On a bag, the target does not help you. That is the test of the heel turn. On a person, low kicks in sparring wait until the coach has said the gym's rule, including the glove ounce. Most UK gyms ask for 16oz to spar. That is our copy from 8 Oct 2026, not a law of the kick.

Do not add ankle weights. We have no source that says they make this kick better, and they are a good way to change how the knee tracks. The shin guard you wear when a partner is involved is a separate purchase. The catalogue price for the RDX instep guard is £40.99, recorded 8 Oct 2026. It does not go on for shadowboxing.

Sources

• NHS sprains. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sprains-and-strains/ read 10 Oct 2026.
• Teaching description. gym-standard roundhouse cues not a lab study.

FAQs

How do you throw a Muay Thai roundhouse?

Turn the standing heel toward the target, swing the knee, and land with the shin. The arm on the kicking side comes down. The other hand stays up. If the heel does not turn, the knee twists. If the foot is loose, you slap with the instep. Start at thigh height on a bag. High kicks wait for the coach. Ten slow kicks each side is enough for a first session.

Should I kick with the shin or the instep?

The shin. The instep slap is the usual beginner miss, and it hurts the foot rather than moving the bag. Point the toes in the line of the shin and let the hip turn. We are not claiming a force figure. We did not instrument a kick. A bruised shin can be ordinary. A sharp line of pain is a reason to stop, not a badge.

How do I condition my shins?

We will not give a repetition programme that claims to condition bone. We did not study one. Kick the bag with good mechanics, stop when the standing foot gets sloppy, and do not kick through a sprain. The NHS says to avoid strenuous exercise such as running for up to eight weeks after a sprain. Kicking is strenuous. That is the medical line we will cite, and it is not a rehab plan.

What is the difference between a teep and a roundhouse?

The teep pushes with the ball of the foot, hips going forward. The roundhouse turns the hip and lands with the shin. Both are Muay Thai. The teep makes space. The roundhouse is the kick people mean by tae (เตะ). Learn the teep early so you are not only the person walking into someone else's shin.