Bruce Lee's identity is shrouded in mystery
. The Hong Kong actor burst onto the world stage in the late sixties and early seventies and literally blew up an unprepared Hollywood. At the time, the martial arts action genre was new, and people flocked to movie theaters to watch Bruce Lee beat dozens of nameless extras to pulp. Of course, his persona quickly became overgrown with myths and speculation, and each person had his own idea about Bruce’s abilities. So let's talk about them!
Photo card of Bruce Lee, 1968
What abilities were attributed to Bruce Lee?
Teacher, you know kung fu, and I know how to dance chachacha. Let me teach you to dance, and you teach me kung fu!
Actor Bruce Lee
The greatest controversy surrounding the personality of Bruce Lee began in the nineties. VCRs reached our country, and Soviet citizens could see Bruce Lee in video salons. The worn-out tapes with the Hong Kong actor were distributed throughout the Union, and Bruce became a semi-legendary personality. What kind of superpowers were not attributed to him. “Guys, I heard that Bruce Lee can catch a bullet on the fly!”, “I found out yesterday that Bruce Lee defeated 100 opponents in a karate tournament in a day!”, and so on... Most likely, most of these statements grow from fragile children's minds with wild imaginations. But one thesis was most common. This is data on the strength qualities of Bruce Lee
. According to rumors, the actor could:
- Hold a 32-kilogram weight for 20 seconds at arm's length;
- The speed of the hand strike was 0.05 seconds;
- He could do pull-ups and push-ups with just one finger.
- Bruce Lee punched a can of cola with one finger.
In general, such an Asian superman. It is impossible to say whether this is true or not.
Bruce Lee devoted almost all his free time to developing his body.
Bruce Lee's Physical Fitness
Lee was known for being physically fit and energetic, devoting as much time to training as possible.
Looking for the best workout
After his fight with Wong Chek Man in 1965, Lee changed his approach to martial arts. Lee believed that many fighters did not spend enough time on physical training . Bruce incorporated all elements of fitness into his training: muscular strength, muscular endurance, cardiovascular endurance and flexibility. He tried traditional bodybuilding to create bigger muscles or mass. However, Bruce was careful enough to assert that mental and spiritual training was fundamental to the success of physical training in martial arts skills. In The Tao of Jeet Kune Do, he writes:
Training is a neglected phase of athleticism. Too much time is spent on developing skills and too little on developing individual characteristics. Jeet Kune Do is ultimately not a matter of narrow methods, but of highly developed spirituality and physique.
Bruce Lee Strength Training
Bruce's strength training in Hong Kong in 1965, at the age of 24, focused mainly on arm development . At that time, he performed barbell curls with weights of 70–80 pounds (32–36 kg), for three sets of eight reps, along with other exercises such as squats, push-ups, reverse crunches, concentrated crunches, and French presses. He always used 6 to 12 reps. Bruce later weighed about 68 kg. Lee had over 2,500 thousand books in his library; the statement “Strong muscles are big muscles” was challenged by him during training.
Bruce Lee's experiments
Bruce has always experimented with his training to maximize his physical capabilities and push his body to the limits. He used many different routines and exercises that included jump rope, which is very good for bodybuilding.
Lee believed that the abdominal muscles are the most important muscles for martial arts , since every movement requires some degree of abdominal work. Mioto Yuehara recalls that "Bruce always felt that if your abs weren't developed, then you weren't sparring hard." According to Linda Lee Cadwell, even when not working out, Lee often performed various exercises in his daily life during the day, even while watching TV. “Bruce was a fanatic about abdominal training. He always did crunches, Roman chair exercises, and the corner exercise.
Training routine
Lee trained from 7 to 9 am : abs, flexibility, running and from 11 to 12 he lifted weights and used a bike. Bruce typically ran 2 to 6 miles in 15 to 45 minutes, speeding up every 3 to 5 minutes. Lee rode about 10 miles (16 km) in 45 minutes on a stationary bike.
Lee often jumped rope after cycling, doing about 800 jumps. Lee also did exercises to tighten the skin on his fists by sticking his hands in buckets of rocks and gravel. He did over 500 repetitions every day. An article by S. China Post writes: “When a doctor warned him to stop abusing his body, Bruce told him: “The human brain can control anything, even real pain.”
Myth or not?
One thing is for sure. Although Bruce Lee is considered a fighter-actor, Bruce himself believed that a decent fighter should “polish” his body in the gym . And there Lee conducted various experiments on himself
. This is true. But no documented confirmation of his records could be found anywhere. Unfortunately, there are no documents or videotapes that would confirm the achievements of Bruce Lee. There is only one video of Lee landing an inch punch on a standing opponent. And I must say, it looks impressive. Actually, that's all.
This punch was Bruce Lee's calling card
How did Bruce Lee pull himself up?
The actor used pull-ups on the horizontal bar to train the muscles of the arms, shoulder girdle and back.
He worked with a direct grip, when the palm lies on the crossbar turned away from you. The grip was wide, that is, the hands were placed at a distance wider than the shoulders.
When Bruce Lee pulled himself up, his body remained straight and motionless. Only the hands moved.
He had three types of lifting over the crossbar:
- to the middle of the neck, when only the chin extends upward;
- to the upper third of the chest;
- to the base of the back of the head, when the athlete seemed to dive under the crossbar.
The last method was needed to work the back muscles.
According to friends, he pulled himself up like a car, smoothly, without hovering or accelerating. Finished the workout before fatigue became noticeable.
Sometimes he would do pull-ups with one arm. One of his friends from his student days said that he witnessed how, during a joint training, Bruce Lee did pull-ups on one arm several dozen times. The friend was impressed. Bruce is happy. He loved to show off, especially in his youth.
Minor disagreements with reality
The statement about Bruce Lee's capabilities is slightly out of touch with reality. In the sixties, Lee moved to Hollywood in search of income as an actor. This begs the main question. If you are such a super fighter, then why not try yourself in the ring. After all, if you believe the stories of enthusiastic teenagers, Lee could defeat any opponent almost with his eyes closed. But in the ring at that time, a person with such “skills” could earn millions of dollars in the shortest possible time. Why choose such an unobvious path as cinema, if you can get rich in professional fights. This is what is alarming. Add to this the murky title of Hong Kong boxing champion and the complete lack of documented evidence of Bruce Lee's abilities.
Fan Art based on the movie "Enter the Dragon"
Training principles
Principles that reflect how Bruce Lee trained:
- Absorb only what you need and remove what is useless. His fighting style fully confirms these words.
- You have to train to fight. Strength training is for endurance and energy, aerobic training is to improve blood circulation and reaction, combat training is a great way to hone your technique.
- Daily training process. Every day the master performed exercises to develop speed and flexibility, and worked with iron at least 3 times a week.
- Practicing strikes, according to Bruce Lee, should not be impersonal. In place of the pear, you should imagine the most hated person.
- It is necessary to put emotions into every blow.
- The training process should be progressive.
What's the result? Who is he?
As a result, we have a revolutionary in the field of cinema, a talented actor and, in fact, the founder of a new genre. But not Superman. Yes, Bruce Lee could hone his skills in the gym, but as a world-class fighter, that's a fiction. To the credit of the Hong Kong actor, it is worth saying that it was not Bruce Lee himself who spread rumors about himself. This was done, consciously or not, by a grateful audience. But Bruce Lee himself simply did not want, and could not, refute the abilities attributed to him. He only modestly remained silent, neither confirming nor agreeing with such rumors.
Bruce dominates with just one look
This is precisely why Bruce Lee should in no way be considered Hong Kong’s “Alexander Nevsky”. Bruce never claimed to be a super fighter. But he really taught martial arts, and quite well. In the nineties, a number of his students became professional fighters and switched to mixed martial arts, which were just beginning to develop. There they performed with varying degrees of success. And we can only be content with speculation, theories and fragmentary gossip. But the secret of Bruce Lee, it seems, will remain a secret for a long time. But one thing is worth recognizing. He is a truly talented actor, and Bruce Lee did more for the development of martial arts than any federal program for the development of sports.
It was Lee’s example that thousands of schoolchildren flocked to karate classes, and for this we need to thank him.
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Technique and types of exercises
Reconstructing diary entries, eyewitness accounts and photos of Bruce Lee, experts came to the conclusion that he worked using the following physical training techniques:
- Basic exercises in three sets with 15...30 approaches depending on the weight.
- Alternate exercises, they change in each workout.
- Constantly increasing load.
One of the programs for training the abs and leg muscles is shown in the photo.
The table below summarizes the basic principles of operation.
Demonstration of the abilities of the legendary actor
Bruce Lee could strike from a distance of 1 meter in five hundredths of a second, and from one and a half meters in eight hundredths. The cameras filming the blows simply could not capture the Chinese’s blows, they were so fast. In the video, it looked like nothing happened, and Bruce’s opponent was already holding his face
. This was very stressful for the producers, who asked Bruce to slow down during the action scenes. Lee's fight scenes were filmed at 32 frames per second.
And if you can still believe in this, then the legendary “inch” blow is hard to believe. People claimed that Bruce Lee was capable of sending a much heavier opponent flying as much as 5 meters with a punch from a distance of one inch. Physics disagrees with the actor's fans
. Bruce also holds records for knockouts - the fastest knockout from a punch (3.2 seconds) and the fastest knockout in a fight (18 seconds). It is impossible to confirm this; there are no records.
The only shot from Bruce Lee's "one fight"
Physicality as a challenge
Bruce Lee was born in 1940 in the American city of San Francisco. His father was an artist, a comedian of Chinese opera. Therefore, it is not surprising that the boy acted in films almost from birth. But due to his frail physique, he most often played the roles of negative characters. It was precisely because Bruce Lee was dissatisfied with his physical characteristics (even by the end of his life the film actor weighed only 65 kilograms and his height was 171 centimeters), he first took up dancing, and then martial arts. At least this is what the author of the publication “World History in Persons”, Vladimir Fortunatov, claims.
Bruce Lee's only official mentor was the famous Chinese master Ip Man, who trained more than one celebrity. Bruce, as his brother Peter recalled, turned into a real fanatic. As Phil Exposito writes in his book Bruce Lee's School of Street Fighting, Ip Man's students were unhappy with Lee because he learned everything too quickly and ridiculed them. However, according to Exposito, Bruce Lee's success was due to the fact that he trained virtually constantly, reinforcing techniques at every opportunity. If the mother saw Bruce motionless for even one moment, she believed that he was sick.
Programs based on Bruce Lee's training
For a three days
Bruce Lee's three-day program is presented in the table:
| First day | Actions taken: 1. Kettlebell press in a standing position. You need to perform 2 sets, 8 repetitions each. 2. Squats using a barbell (2 sets of 6 times each). 3. Running. Time required: 15 minutes. 4. Performing side bends (with a barbell). It is important to perform as many repetitions as possible. 5. Raising the body from a lying position. In this case, perform 2 approaches (do maximum repetitions). |
| Second day | Description of classes: 1. Jumping rope (perform 5 approaches, each equal to 2 minutes). 2. Ride an exercise bike for 15 minutes. 3. Bent-overs using a barbell (perform as many repetitions as possible). 4. Abdominal pumping (maximum number of times). |
| The third day | Step-by-step algorithm: 1. Kettlebell press in a standing position (one at a time). Perform 2 approaches, each with 8 repetitions. 2. Barbell squats (2×8). 3. Practicing punches and kicks on a punching bag (25-30 minutes). 4. Running on the treadmill (15 minutes). 5. Performing side bends with a barbell (2 approaches are performed, each with a maximum of repetitions). 6. Hanging on the bar and raising both legs (2 sets should be performed with the maximum number of repetitions). 7. Pumping the abdominal muscles (maximum number of repetitions). |
For six days
The six-day program includes 6 workouts. This is a more convenient option.
Exercises performed on days 1 and 4:
- Hitting the bag with hands and feet (total time - 20 minutes).
- Lateral bends using a barbell (maximum number of repetitions should be performed).
- Raising the legs from a hanging position on the bar (2 sets, each with a maximum of repetitions).
- Pumping the abdominal muscles (maximum times).
Exercises for days 2 and 5:
- Standing Kettlebell Press (2×8).
- Squats with a barbell in hands (2x8).
- Barbell press (lying, 2×6).
- Run for 15 minutes.
Classes for 3 and 6 days:
- Practicing punching bags (20 minutes).
- Jumping rope (requires 5 approaches, each lasting 2 minutes).
Using the methods and principles of Bruce Lee's life can significantly improve athletic fitness and the condition of the body as a whole.
Bruce Lee's broken record
There is an officially confirmed record in the Guinness Book of Records, set by the Russian athlete Manvel Mamoyan. Push-ups on two fingers were recorded on Red Square. Mamoyan’s first record is 52 times, the second is 55 times in one minute. The athlete is believed to have broken Lee's record of being the first to demonstrate such push-ups.
Bruce Lee finger push-ups.
As for Bruce’s push-ups, he did these push-ups with good technique, but how many is unknown.
How many children did Bruce Lee have?
Bruce Lee/Children
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