Bruce Lee’s Lats Muscles. What is the secret of training?
The truth, as always, is likely much more nuanced. Bruce was a flawed human being and was prone to theatricality. But there is also no doubt in my mind that he was an incredible athlete AND a trailblazer in the realm of functional training and human performance.The squat and bench press do not translate perfectly to any movement an athlete needs to perform. And they certainly don’t need to perform that movement with so much weight on their backs.Bruce Lee used the Macy Circuit Trainer in order to train standing up using cables. Again, this was very early on before this was a common practice. Cable training is now a firm favorite among athletic coaches, as it allows the athlete to train while standing up and fighting resistance from the correct angle.Core stability is absolutely critical for athletic performance, as has been promoted by the likes of Stuart McGill. In order to punch and kick explosively, you need a stiff and rigid core. Otherwise, energy will be lost as the core flexes and bends.Bruce knew to train his gripping strength. He did this via a LOT of wrist curls and similar movements. And of course: finger push ups! GripBruce Lee recognized the ideal role of his strength training as a way to support his martial arts training rather than to distract from it. He recognized how to build explosive power versus max strength. He knew that that strength was of little use without the core stability to support it.
Bruce Lee was willing to experiment and continuously push himself forward. And perhaps that’s the most interesting part of all of this. Bruce Lee was like a DaVinci of fitness strength is essential for martial artists but also correlates with general health and even life expectancy!
Bruce Lee’s Functional Approach to Strength Training Was Truly Ahead of His Time