| According to various sources on the internet, | | | | |
| a 1996 article in Iron Man Magazine revealed | | | | Exercises for neck (with partner) |
| Bruce Lee's workout. In addition to his | | | | |
| cardio and karate workouts, Lee lifted | | | | Leg exercise (squat with partner on back) |
| weights three times a week and performed the | | | | |
| following routine:clean and presses 2 x | | | | Back and Abdomen exercises with partner |
| 8squats 2 x 12barbell pullovers 2 | | | | |
| x 8bench presses 2 x 6good mornings 2 | | | | Elsewhere in the book, Oyama said that he |
| x 8barbell curls 2 x 8 | | | | would bench press 175 pounds 500 times a day. |
| | | | |
| Unfortunately, he injured his back doing good | | | | Then there are karate-specific exercises such |
| mornings, which nearly ruined his career. | | | | as straw striking and exercises that are |
| Otherwise, his weight training was successful | | | | specific to board and stone breaking |
| in that it is credited with helping him add | | | | abilities. All this was in addition to |
| 30 pounds of solid muscle to his relatively | | | | practicing forms, sparring, etc. |
| small frame. | | | | |
| | | | Comparing Lee and Oyama |
| Although Lee is the most famous martial | | | | |
| artist ever, it may be that the strongest was | | | | Now, what strikes me as the essential |
| a man named Masutatsu Oyama. Therefore, it | | | | difference between Lee's and Oyama's workout |
| will be interesting to contrast Lee's workout | | | | styles is volume. Lee's weight training |
| with Oyama's. | | | | routine is relatively brief, and he avoided |
| | | | lifting on days of heavy martial arts |
| The Karate Bull-Fighter | | | | training. |
| | | | |
| Oyama was one of the first to bring Karate to | | | | While Lee might do an exercise for 2 sets of |
| America and founder of the Kyokushin style of | | | | 8 reps (which is fairly typical), Oyama would |
| Karate. His 1958 classic "What is Karate?" | | | | do it for hundreds of reps. Clearly, Oyama's |
| was one of the first books on the subject | | | | is a more time-consuming approach that would |
| written in English, and designed to make the | | | | require a lot of dedication. |
| subject accessible to westerners. | | | | |
| | | | If you look at pictures of these men, they |
| Oyama initially became famous with stunts | | | | have quite different builds. For Lee, his |
| such as bull-fighting Karate-style. Unlike | | | | training goal was apparently to add bulk. |
| Mexican bull-fighters, he would actually | | | | Before the weight training, he weighed only |
| wrestle the bull to the ground and break off | | | | 135 pounds, and he added 30 pounds of solid |
| one of its horns. (He wasn't too popular | | | | muscle. |
| with animal rights activists in Tokyo.) | | | | |
| | | | Oyama, on the other hand, was obviously a |
| Oyama's Strength Training | | | | stockier fellow, and talks in his book about |
| | | | losing weight during periods of intense |
| According to Oyama's 1958 book, strength and | | | | training. Judging from pictures of him with |
| speed are more important than skill for | | | | other people, I would say that he was |
| Karate, and speed more important than | | | | probably slightly taller than Lee (who was 5' |
| strength. Also, he said it was very | | | | 8"). Although Oyama was of average height, |
| important to practice jumping. | | | | he doesn't look like a small guy when |
| | | | standing next to American professional |
| Here are some recommendations he gives in | | | | wrestlers, boxers, and strongmen. |
| "What is Karate?" (He doesn't give an exact | | | | |
| workout.) | | | | Possible Conclusions |
| | | | |
| Running - 4km per day | | | | The point is not to compare them as saying |
| | | | one was better than the other. I do wonder |
| Rope-skipping - 20 minutes per day | | | | what affect their training style had on the |
| | | | way they looked and how much was just |
| Dumbell arm exercise (shoulder press?) - 200 | | | | genetic. |
| times | | | | |
| | | | At any rate, if Oyama struggled to keep his |
| Dips - 100 times | | | | weight down, it sounds like high volume |
| | | | training helped him to achieve that. Lee, on |
| Push ups (with hands in fist) - 300 times | | | | the other hand, seems to have been naturally |
| | | | lean and wanted the weight training to bulk |
| Inclined push ups - 100 times | | | | up (probably to look better on camera). Too |
| | | | much volume might be counter-productive to |
| Jumping side kick over 4 foot vaulting horse | | | | that goal. |
| | | | |
| Inclined dumbell bench press | | | | So, maybe the lesson in this is that if you |
| | | | want to lose weight while simultaneously |
| Exercises requiring a partner: | | | | getting stronger, it might be worth |
| | | | considering an old-fashioned high volume |
| Hitting bag with upper elbow and side of | | | | workout routine, assuming you can make that |
| elbow - 200 times each | | | | kind of dedication. On the other hand, if |
| | | | your goal is to look like Bruce Lee... well, |
| Practicing jumping kick with bag | | | | all I can say is "good luck"! |