The Daring Book for Girls - Andrea J. Buchanan [40]
Front Kick
Back Kick
Front Kick
The front kick is Karate’s most powerful kick. Bring your left knee up to waist level, then extend the rest of the leg straight out. Your right leg should be firmly grounded to balance the kick, and your arms should be held close to your chest. Try the quick-surprise front kick, and then try a slower but more forceful variation.
Back Kick
Stand in a comfortable position facing forward. Your right leg is your kicking leg. Bend your left non-kicking leg just a little bit to give your body extra support and balance. Look over your right shoulder. Find your target. Bend your right knee, aim your heel in a straight line toward your target, and kick your foot high behind you. Your eyes are very important in this kick. Keep looking at your target while you kick back, extending your leg. Pull your leg back in the same path you used for your kick. Alternate kicking leg.
Punch and Pull
Punch and Pull
Face forward with your feet shoulder-width apart. Keeping your right leg straight, lunge forward with your left leg, bending at the knee. Push your right arm forward in front of your body, with your hand in a downward-facing fist. Your left arm stays back, at your side, with your left hand in an upward-facing fist. Now, punch forward with the left arm and twist the wrist so that when this arm fully extends forward, your fist faces down. While the left arm punches, the right arm comes to rest at your side, with hand in an upward-facing fist. Alternate punches.
Knife Hand, or Classic Karate Chop
Open your hand and turn it so your thumb faces the ceiling and your pinky faces the floor. Extend your fingers forward and away from you. The fingers should lightly touch. Let your thumb fall into the palm of your hand, and bend the top of the thumb downward. Arch the hand slightly backward. Raise your hand above your shoulder. Swing diagonally downward across to the other side of your body aiming to strike your target with the part of your hand that’s just below your pinky.
Knife Hand
The Lunge Punch
Face forward, with your feet shoulder-width apart. Place your left leg in front of the right, and bend your knee into a lunge. Keep your right leg straight. This is called front stance. Step forward with your right foot into a powerful lunge, and as your right foot lands forward, punch forward with the right hand. To add power, at the same time you punch the right fist forward, pull your left hand back to your left side in an upward facing fist. Pull your punching hand back to lunge again, alternating sides, or to switch to another move.
The Lunge Punch
The Daring Girls Guide to Danger
FACING YOUR FEARS can be a rewarding experience, and pushing yourself to new heights will inspire you to face challenges throughout life. Here in no particular order is a checklist of danger and daring. Some you should be able to do right away, but a few you might need to work up to:
Ride a roller coaster. The biggest roller coaster drops in America include the Kingdom Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey at 418 feet; the Top Thrill Dragster in Ohio at 400 feet; and Superman: The Escape in California at 328 feet. But the scariest coaster ride in America is still the Cyclone in Coney Island. Built in the 1920s, this comparably small metal and wooden ride packs an unbelievable punch with sudden drops and hairpin turns.
Ride a zip line across the canopy of a rain forest. A trip to Costa Rica offers incredible adventures, including “flying” across the roof of the world 200 feet off the ground with distances between trees of up to 1,200 feet. Many outdoor centers around the country also offer zip line courses.
Go white-water rafting. Most people think looking at the Grand Canyon from the rim down is scary, but a true act of daring is to take a white-water rafting trip down the stretch of Colorado River that cuts through it. Some trips even include a helicopter ride for an extra dose of danger!
Have a scary movie festival in your living room. Some good