Kicks heavily involve hinge, squat and rotational movement patterns. A hinge is a simple bend that happens between the femur and the lower leg or the pelvis the the femur. The initial knee drive in a front kick demonstrates both functions. We squat with our base leg to either hold our centre of mass or to propel the kick further forward. Finally there is the rotational forces to consider. Spinal rotation is important for a correct knee chamber but hip rotation is important for producing torque in our kicks. Torque adds resistance against our target that is much more devastating.
Training the Hinge
I like to start with an explosive form of exercise. This will produce a better neural drive which will prepare the muscles for the rest of the workout. You can't go wrong with a kettle-bell swing. Here is a post of current European TKD Champion Carl Betty performing this exercise:
https://instagram.com/p/8OBDrygoaI/?taken-by=gethin_rhys_james
As you can see this exercise is explosive. You may have also noticed that his hips pushed forward. Pushing your hip forward provides a dynamic stretch on the hip flexors and increases the muscular contraction of the glutes. This sensation is rarely felt in other exercises but it mimics the feel of a proper hock kick. Another good exercise to begin with would be a hang clean. A hang clean is a modification of a popular olympic lift but it's complexity makes it difficult to perform correctly so before considering your programme you must make sure that you are capable of practicing them safely. 3 sets of 8 swings will be ideal for the beginning of this workout.
For strength development a dead lift is irreplaceable. When performed on a regular basis it will develop power and density to your entire posterior chain. This power lift is crucial for elite posture development and will teach your limbs to hold a considerable amount of instant force I.e. An opponent running into you! Never exceed 25 repetitions of this exercise because your form will suffer. Bad form leads to injury, injury leads to no more TKD! 5 sets of 5 repetitions is the weight room favourite but I personally feel that 3 sets of 12, 8 and then 5 repetitions is better for form. Obviously you should add more load when the repetitions decrease.
Single leg Romanian dead lifts are brilliant for balance, motor control and skeleton realignment so make sure that you have these beauties in your routine. 3 sets of 8 repetitions on each leg should do the trick.
Squat Power
When performed correctly the squat is a full body blast but pays specific attention to the quads, hamstrings and glutes. So not just the quadriceps. People who use their quadriceps too much will find their kens going too far over their toe on their squat which results in damage to the joint structure. Here's a recommendation to first time squatters. Try a goblet squat. Hold a dumbbell against your chest at a vertical position. One weighted side of the dumbbell should be placed against your chest with your hands holding it in place. The other side should be dangling down but rested against your abdomen. If the dangling side of the dumbbell leaves your body when you squat you know that you are leaning too far forward. Also if your knees past your laces you are not engaging your glutes and hamstrings enough. After a good 5 sets of 5 on a squat you should look at a single leg exercise such as a Bulgarian split squat. This is basically a single leg squat which involves the resting leg parked on top of a knee height box. Single leg exercises helps to build the adductors and abductors for powerful lateral movement. 3 sets of 8 repetitions is adequate for this exercise.
Rotation for Torque
It's difficult to mimic transverse plane forces in the weights room. However developing the muscles associated with rotational hip movements is relatively easy. A lateral lunge for 3 sets of 8 repetitions, a crab walk for 3 sets of 20m and a ski hop for 3 sets of 10 repetitions each side are the trio you're looking for. They collectively develop the gluteus major, medius and minor in the frontal and transverse plane. Throwing in a few agility sprints will also help. Practicing cutting corners for sets lasting under 20 seconds will fire up stabilising muscle tissue.
This is just a quick overview and as always I am available for personal messages for whoever needs more advice. Also look at these two relevant posts:
Resistance Training and Lateral Movement
http://icankeepup.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/resistance-training-and-lateral-movement.html
The New Way to Train
http://icankeepup.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/the-new-way-to-train.html
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