OK -- you can kick. You have a variety of kicks in your arsenal.

The kicks have form. They have power. They even have precision.

But they aren't getting in.

Some of this article will cover speed, but I think you really want to discuss the effectiveness of the kick. Does it reach its target? For the practical martial artist, effectiveness is always the real concern.

Here are specific ways to make your kick much more effective:

1) Kick your attacker when his attention is already somewhere else. Your kick can be as slow as ketchup if it makes contact with your attacker -- with full power plowing into the target. No speed kicking necessary.

For example, say you are close enough to punch your opponent. You get involed in a hand game.

Right in the middle of your straight blast (barrage of punches), checks, and other types of punches, you kick your attacker's shins. If your aggressor is focusing on your upper ³line² (gate in some Kung Fu styles) attack, he won't see the clos-in shin kick coming.

2) Kick your attacker when his attention is 'starting to focus' elsewhere. If your attacker has to move his hand to block a technique of yours, then that means when his hand moves, he is creating a new opeining, correct?

Take advantage of this shift. Do something to make him move his hand.

And then kick as the new target is opening up.

3) Practice the last part of the kick first. Say you are practicing a side kick. If you are doing it correctly, there should only be one motion.  Contrary to lousy technique, you DO NOT raise your leg from the ground in the first motion, and then send it out towards the oppoennt's knee.

It should all be one motion.

Still, there is the last part of the kick. Say, the last foot in a half or two to the target.

Practice just that last part over and over again. You can learn to make a small motion fast, like the last part of a kick, right?

Once you have that last part fast, then practice doing the entire kick, from beginning to end. Notice a difference?

4) Stop telegraphing. Yes, it is a pet peeve of mine. I write on the subject often.

It's hard to have a partner tell you what is moving first, if he or she doesn't know how to really determine the very first part of the body moving.

You are trying to kick, without having your opponent react. So, you need to discover what motion of yours really causes your partner to react.

If your partner doesn't have the ability to pick out tiny motions, you'll need a video camera. Record yourself kicking at a partner. And have your partner react.

When you analyze the kick, slow the tape down. Watch everything in slow motion.

Find the precise movement of yourse that caused the reaction. I bet it wasn't your kick leg moving first.

Did you step with the other foot first?

Did you shift your head?

Did your hand start to drop?