The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.
If you want to succeed, focus on the tasks you should do. Set up a distraction free environment when you’re working. If you know that you will most likely get distracted by your smartphone, keep it in another room when you are working. Or disconnect it from the internet.
We can’t deny the fact that most of us have short attention spans, but, we can do something about it. Find a way to help yourself concentrate. Set a schedule for yourself to disconnect from the world and focus on the most important tasks at hand.
“Knowledge will give you power, but character respect.”
We all know about the power of knowledge, as a wise man once said: “Knowledge is power.” But, often we forget that character, in some ways are more important than knowledge.
Do you like people who are arrogant or do you prefer people who are kind-hearted? The answer is obvious. No matter how intelligent you are, it doesn’t matter that much when it comes to earning respect from others. It is your character which counts!
“A quick temper will make a fool of you soon enough.”
How many times have you lost your temper in the past? Countless times I suppose? And what happened next? Did the things you were angry about become better, or did it get worse? Admit it, your quick temper worsens the situation almost every time.
Everyone experienced it before. We all know that letting our anger loose is harmful to us. We want to change that, but it is not easy to take control of our temper. We are only humans after all.
So, what can you do to control your temper? Well, there are many things you can do, but the best advice I can give is to take a deep breath and think it through. You still need oxygen when you’re angry after all. Remember, always control your temper before it controls you!
“Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them.”
A teacher once asked his students, is admitting our mistakes shameful? 8 out of 10 said ‘No’. The other two students who were siblings thought that admitting mistakes is something shameful. It’s the environment we grow up in that shapes the way we think. Some may perceive mistakes as something bad. They think that it’s shameful to admit their mistakes. This could not be further from the truth.
There is nothing wrong with making mistakes in our lives. The most important part is how we respond to it. Do we admit and acknowledge our mistakes, eventually learning from it? Or do we avoid talking about it and pretend nothing happened? The worst mistake you can make is, not admitting your own mistakes.
“A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at"
A goal is our target to aim at. It is our source of motivation. Having a goal gives us a clear direction in our lives. We aim for it and work towards it. It gives us a clear destination in our lives.
But the main point here is that goals aren’t always meant to be reached. So, it’s okay not to hit your goals within a time frame. It’s okay to fail, but never give up. Sometimes, you just have to believe. Aim for it and work towards it until you achieve it. Clement Stone once said that: “Aim for the moon. If you miss, you may hit a star.”
Even if you fail to hit your goals after all the hard work, it is okay, because you will still have achieved something. If you never try, then the chances of you achieving something will be zero.
“If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made up of.”
Reflect on your life so far, how did you spend your time in the past? Doing things that are meaningful to you, things which add value to people around you or did you just procrastinate most of the time?
I bet every single one of us is clear that we only live once, but how many of us really make use of our precious time wisely? Think about it, you don’t want to waste the rest of your life doing meaningless tasks right? Starting from today, make good use of the time you have.Live everyday like it is the last day of your life. It might sound cliche, but it is true.
“It’s not the daily increase but daily decrease. Hack away at the unessential.”
“If you spend too much time thinking about a thing, you’ll never get it done.”
If you want to improve your life then it’s tempting to want to add more. One problem with this may be that you don’t really have the time or energy to do more though. And so your efforts to improve become short-lived.
Adding more and more just creates more stress and anxiety. Removing clutter and activities, tasks and thoughts that are not so important frees up time and energy for you to do more of what you really want to do. And as the clutter in your outer world decreases the clutter in your inner world also has a tendency to decrease. This has the added benefit of making it easier to actually enjoy whatever you are doing even more while you are doing it.
Adding more thoughts and thinking things over for the 111th time may create a sense of security. It’s also a good way to procrastinate and to avoid taking that leap you know you should take. And the more you think, the harder it gets to act. Perhaps because you want to keep that comforting sense of security and avoid the risk of wrecking that feeling.
Thinking has its place. It can help you plan a somewhat realistic route to your goal and help you avoid future pitfalls. Overthinking is however just a habit that will help you waste a lot of time. It’s more useful to replace that habit with the habit of just doing it.
Learn about yourself in interactions : “To know oneself is to study oneself in action with another person.”
The one person that is the hardest to get to really know may be yourself. Studying yourself while you are alone may result in some insights. But it’s also likely to produce a lot of made up thought loops and doubts in your mind. A good way to really learn more about yourself is study yourself in interactions with other people. How people react and act in these interaction can over time teach you a lot. And what you think and how you react can perhaps teach you even more.
What you see, feel and hear in other people may be a reflection of you. The things you learn by thinking this way may not always be pleasant, but they can be enlightening. They help you to see yourself and also how you may be fooling yourself. And these powerful insights can be very valuable for your personal growth. So, in interactions with others, try asking yourself: what is reflected?
Be proactive : “To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.”
It’s easy to get locked into a reactive mindset. You just follow along with whatever is happening. You do what the people around you do. You react to whatever is going on.
And so you get lost in your circumstances. This way of thinking doesn’t feel too good. You tend to feel powerless and like you are just drifting along.
A more useful and pleasurable way of living is to be proactive. As Bruce says: to create opportunities despite the circumstances around you. This feels better and provides better results. But on the other hand it’s also more difficult. It’s easier to just drift along in the reactive stream of life. And if you want to be proactive then you may have to take the lead quite often. And that can be scary.
Still, living proactively is so much more rewarding and exciting.
Be you : “Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.”
Just being yourself is a hard thing to do. You may do it sometimes. And other times you may forget or fall back into old thought patterns. Or you may imitate someone else.
And that comes through too. And it may work.
What are you really thinking about today? “As you think, so shall you become.”
Perhaps the most basic statement of how we work. Think about what you are thinking today. What do those thoughts say about you? About your life? And how well do they really match your plans for your life and your image of yourself?
Do not divide : “Take no thought of who is right or wrong or who is better than. Be not for or against.”
This is a very useful and powerful thought. It is also one that obviously is hard to live by. Why? I believe it’s because the ego loves to divide and find ways to “add more” to itself. It want’s to feel better than someone else. Or more clever. Or prettier. Or cooler. Or wiser.
How can you overcome this way of thinking and feeling?
To me it seems to boil down to not identifying so much with your thoughts or feelings. That doesn’t mean that you stop thinking or feeling. It just means that you realize – and remember in your everyday life – that the thoughts and emotions are just things flowing through you.
You are not them though.
You are the consciousness observing them.
When you realize and remember this it enables you to control the thoughts and feelings instead of the other way around. It also enables you to not take your thoughts too seriously and actually laugh at them or ignore them when you feel that your ego is acting out. When you are not being so identified these things you become more inclined to include things, thoughts and people instead of excluding them. This creates a lot of inner and outer freedom and stillness. Instead of fear, a need to divide your world and a search for conflicts.
" Zen is not " attained " by mirror-wiping meditation , but by " self - forgetfulness in the existential ' present ' of life here and now. "
We do not " come " , We " are ."
Don't strive to become ,but me."
“Above all, never cheat on any exercise; use the amount of weight that you can handle without undue strain.”
Learning is definitely not more imitation or the ability to accumulate and conform to fixed knowledge.
Learning is a constant process of discovery and never a concluding one.
The enemy has only images and illusions behind which he hides true motives.
Destroy the image, and you will break the enemy.
"Don't fear failure. Not failure, but low aim is the crime. In great attempts it is glorious even to fail." Don't let fear stop you!
Do not run away ; let go.
Do not seek, for it will come when least expected..
The localization of the mind means its freezing. When it ceases to flow freely as it is needed. It is no more the mind in its suchness....
Classical forms dull your creativity. Condition & freeze your sense of freedom. You no longer "be" . But merely "do".
"Artless art" is the artistic process within the artist ; its meaning is " art of the soul " ...
All vague notions must fall before a pupil can call himself a master....
We have more faith in what we imitate than in what we originate.
We cannot derive a sense of absolute certitude from anything that has its roots in us. The most poignant sense of insecurity comes from standing alone: we are not alone when we imitate. It is thus with most of us!
We are what people say we are. We know ourselves chiefly by hearsay.
Meditation :
So before I go and spend sometime within my mind, if you are seeking out an answer, some peace, or are looking to cultivate the life you want. If you are looking to move forward and leave behind the perils of the past or the anticipation of the future. Do yourself a favor and find meditation in your life.
To understand your fear is the beginning of really seeing...
What is defeat? Nothing but education;
Nothing but the first step to something better.
Like everyone else, you want to learn the way to win but never to accept the way to lose. To accept defeat, to learn to die is to be liberated from it. So when tomorrow comes, you must free your ambitious mind and learn the art of dying.
The three most difficult things in life are:
1. To keep a secret.
2. To forget an injury.
3. To make good use of leisure.
A good fight should be like a small play, but played seriously. A good martial artist does not become tense, but ready. Not thinking, yet not dreaming. Ready for whatever may come. When the opponent expands, I contract. When he contracts, I expand. And when there is an opportunity, I do not hit. It hits all by itself.
“As long as I can remember I feel I have had this great creative and spiritual force within me that is greater than faith, greater than ambition, greater than confidence, greater than determination, greater than vision. It is all these combined. My brain becomes magnetized with this dominating force which I hold in my hand.”
"I am not easily discouraged, I readily visualize myself as overcoming obstacles, winning out over setbacks, achieving 'impossible' objectives."
“Martial arts, like any art, is an unrestricted athletic expression of an individual soul.”
“Today, your sidekick became a tool to unlock a spiritual gate. There was spiritual loosening along with physical loosening, a sort of unconcerned immersion in oneself. The original sense of freedom was there. Congratulations! The sidekick took the place of the ego.”
"With emotional content, not anger!"
“Students should learn something new each class, but one or two new actions are enough for one session. Each lesson should reward the student with pleasure, satisfaction of achievement, and the sense of vigorous, joyous movement.”
“To live content with small means;
to seek elegance rather than luxury,
and refinement rather than fashion,
to be worthy not respectable
and wealthy, not rich;
to study hard, to think quietly,
to talk gently, act frankly;
to bear all cheerfully, do all bravely,
await occasions, hurry never.
in other word,to let the spiritual,unbidden,
and unconscious grow up through, the common.”
“The unconditioned mind intuits truth – Bring the mind into sharp focus and make it alert so that it can immediately intuit truth, which is everywhere. The mind must be emancipated from old habits, prejudices, restrictive thought processes and even ordinary thought itself.”
“Void-ness is that which stands right in the middle between this and that. The void is all-inclusive, having no opposite – there is nothing which it excludes or opposes. It is living void, because all forms come out of it and whoever realizes the void is filled with life and power and the love of all beings.”
“Not being tense but ready.
Not thinking but not dreaming.
Not being set but flexible.
Liberation from the uneasy sense of confinement.
It is being wholly and quietly alive, aware and alert, ready for whatever may come.”
Are you putting limits on your own life? Believing that you're not capable of something? As Bruce Lee warns, limits don't stay on what you've put them on. They spread and infect like a poison, all aspects of your life. Limits are like a deadly virus, weakening your mind, telling you "you can't". Reverse these limits by removing your fear of failure. You can achieve your goals, some may take longer than others, but THEY ARE POSSIBLE to reach. Allow yourself success, and go above and beyond your dreams!
The perfect way is only difficult for those who pick and choose. Do not like, do not dislike; all will then be clear. Make a hairbreadth difference and heaven and earth are set apart; if you want the truth to stand clear before you, never be for or against. The struggle between “for” and “against” is the mind’s worst disease.
The law of non-interference with nature is a basic principle of Taoism [stating] that one should be in harmony with, not rebellion against, the fundamental laws of the universe. Preserve yourself by following the natural bends of things and don’t interfere. Remember never to assert your self against nature; never be in frontal opposition to any problems, but to control it by swinging with it.
To doubt is to think, and thought is the only thing in the universe whose existence cannot be denied, because to deny is to think.
" Remember, my friend, to enjoy your planning as well as your accomplishment, for life is too short for negative energy. "
Yin & Yang : Do you really know what it means?
Basically, all process is cyclic, everything contains its opposite, it’s the forever who came first, the chicken or the egg? With Yin and Yang, there is no separation. As you can see in the symbol itself, when the dark part starts to become its fullest, the white part begins. And when the white part seems to end, the dark part begins. You will also notice that there is a spot of white in the dark part, and a spot of dark in the white part. The whole concept that you cannot have light without darkness, and vice versa. And, nothing is necessarily good or bad, just the cycle of life. All states, events, and circumstances can all have Yin and Yang qualities.
What’s Yin?: it’s at the core, sinking, condensed, and internal. Think substantive, cold, watery, heavy, soft, delicate. Yin is considered female. (Now, don’t get uppity with me here, ladies, everything balances out!)
What’s Yang?: is at the surface, rising, dispersed, and external. Think active, expanding, dry, large, loud, hot. Yang is considered male.
You must have complete determination. The worst opponent you can come across is one
whose aim has become an obsession. For instance, if a man has decided that he is going to bite off your nose no matter what happens to him in the process, the chances are he will
succeed in doing it. He may be severely beaten up, too, but that will not stop him from
carrying out his objective. That is the real fighter.
“The measure of the moral worth of a man is his happiness. The better the man, the more happiness. Happiness is the synonym of well-being”
"Love is like a friendship caught on fire. In the beginning a flame, very pretty, often hot and fiery, but still only light and flickering. As love grows older. our hearts mature and our love becomes as coals, deep-burning and unquenchable."
Use only that which works, All knowledge leads to self-knowledge..
Thank You
Tuesday, February 16, 2016
Just Bruce Lee on JKD & Training
Jeet Kune Do is a finger which points to the moon. But please do not be overly concerned with the finger and miss the beautiful moon...
I have not invented a "new style," composite, modified or otherwise that is set within distinct form as apart from "this" method or "that" method. On the contrary, I hope to free my followers from clinging to styles, patterns, or molds. Remember that Jeet Kune Do is merely a name used, a mirror in which to see "ourselves". . . Jeet Kune Do is not an organized institution that one can be a member of. Either you understand or you don't, and that is that.
There is no mystery about my style. My movements are simple, direct and non-classical. The extraordinary part of it lies in its simplicity. Every movement in Jeet Kune Do is being so of itself. There is nothing artificial about it. I always believe that the easy way is the right way. Jeet Kune Do is simply the direct expression of one's feelings with the minimum of movements and energy. The closer to the true way of Kung Fu, the less wastage of expression there is. Finally, a Jeet Kune Do man who says Jeet Kune Do is exclusively Jeet Kune Do is simply not with it. He is still hung up on his self-closing resistance, in this case anchored down to reactionary pattern, and naturally is still bound by another modified pattern and can move within its limits. He has not digested the simple fact that truth exists outside all molds; pattern and awareness is never exclusive. Again let me remind you Jeet Kune Do is just a name used, a boat to get one across, and once across it is to be discarded and not to be carried on one's back.
Efficiency: An attack which reaches its target in the least amount of time, with maximum force.Directness: Doing what comes naturally in a disciplined way.Simplicity: Thinking in an uncomplicated manner; without ornamentation.
When you study violent encounters, one fact tends to stand out time and again: The prepared fighter almost always wins. But being prepared requires more than just training.Long before self-defense experts and military analysts adopted the phrase “situational awareness,” Bruce Lee taught us that we must always be aware of our surroundings. Or as Lee would say, “The best surprise against a surprise attack is not to be surprised.”
“One must be ready to act without knowing what situation will present itself.”
Bruce Lee Training Philosophy Concept .1
SEEK THE TRUTH :
You have to consciously want to know the truth and look for it. Seek the reality of combat for yourself. Don’t rely on what your instructor, past masters or other martial artists tell you is the truth. Do your own homework. You won’t learn by copying your neighbor’s homework.
Take every opportunity to study what really takes place in an assault or self-defense situation — not just physically but mentally, too. What impact did fear, anxiety and anger have on the situation?
Bruce Lee Training Philosophy Concept .2
BECOME AWARE OF THE TRUTH :
Know what you’re looking for and don’t be in denial when you discover it. Martial artists who have devoted years to training in a traditional system and practiced according to what they’ve been taught is the truth sometimes have difficulty accepting that they might have spent years studying a lie. They not only might have studied a lie, but they also might have spent years training according to that lie.
The important thing is to not dwell on the lie. Be thankful that you’ve become aware of it, then adjust your training to what you now know is real.
Bruce Lee Training Philosophy Concept .3
PERCEIVE THE TRUTH :
Perception is everything — in life and in the martial arts. Make your perceptions as total in nature as you can. Gather as many facts as possible on the subject or situation before forming a perception.
Bruce Lee Training Philosophy Concept .4
EXPERIENCE THE TRUTH :
When you discover what you perceive to be a truth, put it to the test. In most cases, that means putting on the protective gear and going full contact in a realistic scenario.
This is an extremely important part of discovering the truth, one that many people fail to do. Bruce Lee was fond of saying that you cannot learn to swim without getting in the water. Likewise, you cannot learn to fight without fighting.
A word of caution about determining whether the truth you’re experimenting with has any value: If that truth involves using a new technique with which you’re unfamiliar, don’t be too hasty to discount it if it fails. We all know it takes time to master a new technique. The failure of the technique could stem from poor execution rather than poor design.
A learned man once went to a Zen teacher to inquire about Zen. As the Zen teacher explained, the learned man would frequently interrupt him with remarks like, “Oh, yes, we have that too. …” and so on. Finally, the Zen teacher stopped talking and began to serve tea to the learned man. He poured the cup full and then kept pouring until the cup overflowed. “Enough!” the learned man once more interrupted. “No more can go into the cup!” “Indeed, I see,” answered the Zen teacher. “If you do not first empty the cup, how can you taste my cup of tea?” I hope my comrades in the martial arts will read the following paragraphs with open-mindedness, leaving all the burdens of preconceived opinions and conclusions behind. This act, by the way, has in itself a liberating power. After all, the usefulness of the cup is in its emptiness.
'You must learn defeat. Like most people you want to learn to win. To learn to die is to be liberated from it. When tomorrow comes, you must learn to die and be liberated by it.'
10 Amazing Strategies That Will Change Everything
1) GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE
Be happy, but never satisfied.
Being satisfied is tantamount to giving up. It is admitting that you’re alright with just being good, but not great. Yes, we should accept the things that we cannot change, but we should also be striving to improve every day. By being satisfied, we are making an excuse for not working hard to improve.
2) GO WITH THE FLOW
Be like water, my friend.
This is perhaps one of Bruce Lee’s most famous quotes. Water has many attributes. It is fluid and it flows anywhere, changing direction and shape as required. To be like water is to be adaptable to our surroundings. We cannot be too steadfast in our ways because it may hinder us from acquiring new knowledge and experiences.
3) SET YOUR OWN EXPECTATIONS
I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations, and you’re not in this world to live up to mine.
As human beings, we often strive to please others. We want validation and acceptance from our peers because our ego tells us that this is what we need. Stop listening to your ego and focus on getting validation from the person that matters the most – yourself. Set your own expectations and remember what an amazing human being you are! Not only will this give you an incredible confidence boost, but it will also make you realize that you can do whatever you want in life.
4) BE BRAVE ENOUGH TO OWN UP TO YOUR MISTAKES
Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them.
We are all human, and we are all bound to make mistakes at some point in our lives. No matter how big the mistake is, there is always a chance to make it right. We should not be afraid to confess when we have done something wrong and accept the consequences of our actions. We should have the courage to own up to our mistakes and focus our energy on learning from them.
5) BE YOURSELF
Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.
In a time when everyone’s lives are plastered on social media for the world to see, it can be difficult to stay true to yourself and not become a victim of a popularity contest. Thanks to social media, it is just that much easier to emulate celebrities, bloggers, or even people in our social circle. Unfortunately, we end up losing ourselves in the process. Being your true self is so much easier – you won’t have to work so hard trying to be someone that you’re not.
6) LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST
The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering.
We often decide not to take risks because we are afraid of the outcome. But what if we decided to ignore that little voice inside our head telling us “no” and embraced a leap of faith instead? By doing so, we are living life to the fullest. We are savoring every moment while making life truly memorable. Go on, enjoy!
7) DEDICATE YOURSELF TO ONE TASK, AND YOU WILL BECOME AN EXPERT AT IT
I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.
Practice and patience are everything, especially if you want to become successful in martial arts. To become an expert at anything requires steadfast commitment, laser sharp focus, and countless repetition. Dedicate yourself to becoming the very best at what you do.
8) DON’T WAIT FOR OPPORTUNITIES, CREATE THEM
To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.
Sometimes, we get too caught up with waiting for the perfect moment to start something. The time will NEVER be perfect. Instead of waiting, why not take a chance and make things happen yourself? Even if it is easier to sit around and be reactive, why not be more proactive? Don’t ever be afraid to take chances!
9) BE HONEST
If you don’t want to slip up tomorrow, speak the truth today.
Ever since we were young, our parents have always told us that honesty is the best policy. This is one of the single greatest pieces of advice you will ever receive. Being honest with yourself and others is always the best option. Honesty builds trust, and trust is the foundation of every meaningful relationship.
10) STAY CALM
A quick temper will make a fool of you soon enough.
Nothing good ever happens when tempers flare. When you lose your temper, you become irrational. You are more likely to act out of impulse. At this point, you probably aren’t even thinking straight, and how you react may turn into something that you will eventually regret. Instead of losing your temper, why not count to three (yes, that actually works) and reflect on the situation before you react.
May the legacy of Bruce Lee and his teachings live on through eternity.
4 Training Lessons We Can Learn From Bruce Lee :
Lesson .1: Organize Your Workouts by Similarities :
Lee himself divided things up different. One of his innovations was to train different aspects of his martial arts on different days. Similar in many ways to a modern split program that might feature strength training one day and conditioning the next, this allowed him to focus better on a smaller number of skills each session.
Punches – Mon/ Wed/ Fri:
Jab-Cross-Hook-Overhand Cross-Combinations-Speed bag workout
Kicks – Tues/ Thurs/ Sat:
Side Kick-Hook Kick-Spin Kick-Rear and Front Thrust Kick-Heel kick
These exercises would be performed on a variety of implements from heavy bags to focus mitts to shadow work.
Lesson 1:
To split your training into similar actions each day so that you can put more energy into each skill individually.This allows for greater focus as well as making sure your sessions are a reasonable length instead of marathon four-hour sessions. Practicing for such long periods of time will usually mean you are performing each skill or movement poorly, rather than at the peak of your ability. Why train to perform sub optimally?
Lesson 2: Keep It Simple :
To keep your assistance training simple. Most people need to remember that they lift to assist their other activities, not to compete in lifting. You should be looking for the lifts that have the smallest learning curve, yet give the most transfer. The other noteworthy part is that Lee didn’t waste his time on endless reps of body-weight only exercises. He stuck to known rep ranges for strength and challenged himself to gain strength. These low rep ranges elicit changes in the body’s ability to fire muscles, not in changing their size, keeping Lee fast and light, yet able to hit like a truck.
Lesson 3: Roadwork Does Work :
Another piece of Lee’s training puzzle we should note from a function point of view is his use of running and skipping for fitness.Roadwork has fallen out of vogue with today’s crop of HIIT inspired trainers yet all the real greats of fighting have done some form of running, from Ali to Lee.
Bruce would run 4 miles (6kms) three times per week at the start of the day. He would often perform these sessions as a Fartlek type workout, speeding up for short bursts before settling back into his regular pace again. The other three days Lee would skip for thirty minutes at a time. He believed it helped keep him light on his feet as well as helping his fitness. On these days he would also add another forty-five minutes of cycling on an exercise bike for extra fitness work.
Lesson 4: Abdominal Work Is a Good Thing :
The final piece of his training puzzle was targeted abdominal work. His ripped waist was clear evidence of time spent on many hard reps. Abdominal training has fallen out of favor in the last few years as research emerges that spinal flexion can cause disc herniation. However, elite athletes all over the world for decades have all believed strongly in supplemental abdominal work.
Research is unclear about whether or not the muscles of the midsection should be trained with high or low reps but Lee favored many high rep sets. Typically using three exercises for five sets each daily. A typical midsection workout might be:
Side bends – 5 sets to failure.Leg raises – 5 sets to failure.Sit ups – 5 sets to failure
Looking at how Lee was so far ahead of his time with the rest of his training it wouldn’t surprise me at all to if he was doing some of these days for high reps with low loads and other days with heavy loads and only two to three reps at a time.
The four take away lessons from Bruce Lee’s training are:
Split your sessions into smaller chunks so you can better focus on improving skill.Strength train, but keep your main focus on your art. Look to find the simplest exercises you can and milk the most you can from them.Don’t neglect roadwork and other endurance work as these form a key role in overall fitness, health, and body composition.Targeted abdominal work links the whole thing together and allows better power production as well as forming a protective shield during fighting.
A fight is not won by one punch or kick. Either learn to endure or hire a bodyguard. Forget about winning and losing; forget about pride and pain. Let your opponent graze your skin and you smash into his flesh; let him smash into your flesh and you fracture his bones; let him fracture your bones and you take his life. Do not be concerned with escaping safely — lay your life before him.
The great mistake is to anticipate the outcome of the engagement; you ought not to be thinking of whether it ends in victory or in defeat. Let nature take its course, and your tools will strike at the right moment.
The combatant should be alive in sparring, throwing punches and kicks from all angles, and should not be a co-operative robot. Like water, sparring should be formless. Pour water into a cup, it becomes part of the cup. Pour it into a bottle; it becomes part of the bottle. Try to kick or punch it, it is resilient; clutch it and it will yield without hesitation. In fact, it will escape as pressure is being applied to it.
When you're talking about fighting, as it is, with no rules, well then, baby you'd better train every part of your body!
The best fighter is not a Boxer, Karate or Judo man. The best fighter is someone who can adapt on any style. He kicks too good for a Boxer, throws too good for a Karate man, and punches too good for a Judo man.
When you fight, if it is a real fight, use every tool that you have, use your whole body. Use your fists, your legs, your fingers, your head if you have to, and hit them in every vulnerable spot, the balls, the eyes etc. to win...
Before I studied the art, a punch to me was just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. After I learned the art, a punch was no longer a punch, a kick no longer a kick. Now that I've understood the art, a punch is just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. The height of cultivation is really nothing special. It is merely simplicity; the ability to express the utmost with the minimum. It is the halfway cultivation that leads to ornamentation. Jeet Kune-Do is basically a sophisticated fighting style stripped to its essentials.
There is only one type of body, 2 arms, 2 legs, etc that make up the human body. Therefore, there can only be one style of fighting. If the other guy had 4 arms and 2 legs, there might have to be a different one. Forget the belief that one style is better than the other, the point of someone that does not just believe in tradition, but actually wants to know how to fight is to take what you need from every martial art and incorporate it into your own. Make it effective and very powerful, but don't worry if you are taking moves from many different arts, that is a good thing.
In combat, spontaneity rules; rote performance of technique perishes...
Jeet Kune Do uses no way as way. The consciousness of self is the greatest hindrance to the proper execution of all physical action...
In Jeet Kune-Do, physical conditioning is a must for all martial artists. If you are not physically fit, you have no business doing any hard sparring. To me, the best exercise for this is running. Running is so important that you should keep it up during your lifetime. What time of the day you run is not important as long as you run. In the beginning you should jog easily and then gradually increase the distance and tempo, and finally include sprints to develop your 'wind.' Let me give you a bit of warning: just because you get very good at your training it should not go to your head that you are an expert. Remember, actual sparring is the ultimate, and the training is only a means toward this. Besides running, one should also do exercises for the stomach — sit-ups, leg raises, etc. Too often one of those big-belly masters will tell you that his internal power has sunk to his stomach; he's not kidding, it is sunk and gone! To put it bluntly, he is nothing but fat and ugly...
In building a statue, a sculptor doesn't keep adding clay to his subject. Actually, he keeps chiseling away at the inessentials until the truth of its creation is revealed without obstructions. Thus, contrary to other styles, being wise in Jeet Kune-Do doesn't mean adding more; it means to minimize, in other words to hack away the unessential...
Before I studied the art, a punch to me was just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. After I learned the art, a punch was no longer a punch, a kick no longer a kick. Now that I've understood the art, a punch is just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. The height of cultivation is really nothing special. It is merely simplicity; the ability to express the utmost with the minimum. It is the halfway cultivation that leads to ornamentation. Jeet Kune-Do is basically a sophisticated fighting style stripped to its essentials....
Knowledge in martial arts actually means self-knowledge. A martial artist has to take responsibility for himself and accept the consequences of his own doing. The understanding of JKD is through personal feeling from movement to movement in the mirror of the relationship and not through a process of isolation. To be is to be related. To isolate is death. To me, ultimately, martial arts means honestly expressing yourself. Now, it is very difficult to do. It has always been very easy for me to put on a show and be cocky, and be flooded with a cocky feeling and feel pretty cool and all that. I can make all kinds of phoney things. Blinded by it. Or I can show some really fancy movement. But to experience oneself honestly, not lying to oneself, and to express myself honestly, now that, my friend, is very hard to do.
The highest technique is to have no technique. My technique is a result of your technique; my movement is a result of your movement. A good JKD man does not oppose force or give way completely. He is pliable as a spring; he is the complement and not the opposition to his opponent’s strength. He has no technique; he makes his opponent's technique his technique. He has no design; he makes opportunity his design. One should not respond to circumstance with artificial and "wooden" prearrangement. Your action should be like the immediacy of a shadow adapting to its moving object. Your task is simply to complete the other half of the oneness spontaneously.
Practice all movements slow and fast, soft and hard; the effectiveness of Jeet Kune-Do depends on split-second timing and reflexive action, which can be achieved only through repetitious practice.
When performing the movements, always use your imagination. Picture your adversary attacking, and use Jeet Kune-Do techniques in response to this imagined attack. As these techniques become more innate, new meaning will begin to emerge and better techniques can be formulated.
The old-fashioned punching speed bag teaches you to hit straight and square; if you don't hit it straight the bag will not return directly to you. Besides learning footwork, you can hit the bag upward too. Another important function is that after the delivery of the punch, the bag will return instantaneously and this will teach you to be alert and to recover quickly. The bag should not be hit in a rhythmic motion but instead in a broken rhythm. Actually fight the bag as if it is your opponent.
Non-telegraphic Punch
Jeet Kune Do features the non-telegraphic principles of fencing, and this sets the style distinctively apart from the classical styles of Kung fu and boxing. For example, Jeet Kune Do utilizes their footwork and the principle of thrusting your hand before your body, which makes it almost impossible to parry or block speed punches such as the back fist, jab or lead punch.
The idea of non-telegraphing is to initiate your punch without any forewarning (tensing your shoulders or moving your feet or body) so your opponent does not have enough time to react. If you punch with jut a slight motion of your feet or body, you have “telegraphed” or warned your opponent of your intention.
The secret is to relax your body and arms but keep them slightly weaving. Whip your hand out loosely so your shoulders don’t become tense, and clench your hand an instant before contact. And keep a poker face. You don’t want to telegraph your intentions.
Bruce Lee’s Weight Training :
(Part 1)
Bruce Lee never bragged about his muscular body, but he was proud of it, especially of his highly developed abdominal muscles. When Bruce wore loose clothing, he looked like a normally built guy. But underneath the clothing, he was a man with extraordinary muscles.
Bruce had to work hard to develop those muscles. “I used to have a big, soft belly,” he explained. “My stomach protruded and I looked terrible for a young guy. I decided to streamline my waist.”
From that revelation, Bruce took up weight training. He was always a bundle of energy. He was like a small kid who would never tire. If he had his mind set to do something, nothing could have stopped him.
He combined weight training with his regular workout.
He spent as much as four hours in his garage, hardly taking a break, as he worked on the equipment, built by his students to his specifications. He designed his weight-training workout to avoid bulky muscles that might interfere with his performance. For instance, he did not want muscles that restricted the movement of his elbows.
“You must tuck your elbows in quickly when a blow is directed to your midsection,” he explained. “Some bodybuilders are so bulky that they have no way to defend the solar plexus area with efficiency. They can’t cover the area with their elbows, so when they use another method to protect it, they leave other parts of their body open. Weight training is supposed to help you, not screw you.
Bruce Lee’s Weight Training :
( Part 2 )
Bruce concentrated heavily on his abdominal muscles because he believed that the body is “the biggest target and the least mobile. The more muscles you have around your abdomen, the more blows it can take.” Bruce’s body was covered with ripples of muscles. Broad-shouldered and narrow waisted, he was the envy of even bodybuilders.
To Bruce, training was a full-time job. Even while watching television, he would be in motion. He would do his sit-ups very slowly, his body descending slower than ascending. “You’ll get more benefit by doing them slowly,” he said. “It’s not the number of repetitions, but the way it’s done.” When he wasn’t doing sit-ups, he would be squeezing a rubber ball or pumping a pair of dumbbells. Desiring accolades, many times he would ask a friend or acquaintance to place a hand on his abdomen or leg to “feel my stomach muscles” or “feel how hard my legs are.” Bruce wasn’t particular about what he ate. He avoided cigarettes; wine and liquor, but never refused a cup of hot tea. He would eat anything: pork, chicken, fish, beef, and vegetables. His favourite dishes were Chinese and Japanese. He was a big believer in Chinese Ginseng and Royal Jelly extracts. He felt they helped with his speed and reflexes and also supplied nutrition he needed. Scientific studies have shown Royal Jelly the food of the Queen Bee does help with quicker reflexes.
Although he was small man, 5-foot-7 and 135 pounds, he had a voracious appetite. In a restaurant, he always ordered an additional plate of food for himself- one serving was not enough. He also drank a lot of water, probably because he perspired so much.
Bruce took a daily amount of Vitamin pills, Protein Powders, Ginseng and Royal Jelly as mentioned above, apparently influenced by the bodybuilding magazines he subscribed to and the books on Oriental Medicine he had in his library. He prided himself on being healthy by taking proper nutritional products to accompany his workouts .
Bruce Lee is best known as a martial artist, but he also studied drama and philosophy while a student at the University of Washington. He was well-read and had an extensive library. His own books on martial arts and fighting philosophy are known for their philosophical assertions, both inside and outside of martial arts circles. His eclectic philosophy often mirrored his fighting beliefs, though he was quick to claim that his martial arts were solely a metaphor for such teachings. He believed that any knowledge ultimately led to self-knowledge, and said that his chosen method of self-expression was martial arts.His influences include Taoism, Jiddu Krishnamurti, and Buddhism.On the other hand, Lee's philosophy was very much in opposition to the conservative world view advocated by Confucianism.John Little states that Lee was an atheist. When asked in 1972 about his religious affiliation, he replied, "none whatsoever".In 1972, he was asked if he believed in God, and responded, "To be perfectly frank, I really do not".
" No matter what you want to do, don't be nervous
(you should not let your muscles nor your mind be effected by nerves).
Just keep calm.
No illusion and no imagination,
but to apprehend the actual situation you are in and find a way to deal with it.
No excessive action is needed. Just keep your body and mind relaxed to deal with the outside emergency."
2. The Eyes
The eyes should be able to pick up as much information as possible prior to and during engaging the physical struggle. Watching the elbows and the knees is essential to get the best result.
Also at no time, should the practitioner blink or turn his head because he would give away the most important instrument which supplies him the visual information of the current situation.
Shadowboxing and Sparring:
(Part 1)
Additional endurance exercises are shadowboxing and sparring. Shadowboxing is a good agility exercise that also builds up your speed. Relax your body and learn to move easily and smoothly. At first, concentrate on your form and move with lightness on your feet until it becomes natural and comfortable — then work faster and harder. It is a good idea to start your workout with shadowboxing to loosen your muscles. Imagine your worst enemy stands before you and you are going to demolish him. If you use your imagination intensely, you can instill into yourself an almost real fighting frame of mind. Besides developing stamina, shadowboxing increases your speed, creates ideas and establishes techniques to be used spontaneously and intuitively. Going several rounds is the best way to learn proper footwork.
Shadowboxing and Sparring :
(Part 2)
Too many beginners are too lazy to drive themselves. Only by hard and continuous exercise will you develop endurance. You have to drive yourself to the point of exhaustion (“out of breath” and expect muscle ache in a day or two). The best endurance training method seems to be a lengthy period of exercise interspersed with many brief but high-intensity endeavors. Stamina types of exercise should be done gradually and cautiously increased. Six weeks in this kind of training is a minimum for any sports that require considerable amounts of endurance. It takes years to be in peak condition, and unfortunately, stamina is quickly lost when you cease to maintain high-conditioning exercises. According to some medical experts, you lose most of your benefit from exercises if you skip more than a day between workouts.
“Training for strength and flexibility is a must. You must use it to support your techniques. Techniques alone are no good.”
The Four Take Away Lessons From Bruce Lee’s Training Are:
1.Split your sessions into smaller chunks so you can better focus on improving skill
2.Strength train, but keep your main focus on your art. Look to find the simplest exercises you can and milk the most you can from them.
3.Don’t neglect roadwork and other endurance work as these form a key role in overall fitness, health, and body composition
4.Targeted abdominal work links the whole thing together and allows better power production as well as forming a protective shield during fighting.
Principles Of Distance In Attack :
1. Using the longest to get at the closest.
2. Economical initiation (non telegraphic).
3. Correct on-guard position (S.P.B.K.S.).
4. Constant shifting of footwork to secure the correct measure (Broken Rhythm).
5. Catching the opponent's moment of weakness, physically as well as psychologically.
6. Correct measure for explosive penetration.
7. Quick recovery or appropriate follow-ups.
8. Courage and decision.
Principles Of Distance In Defense :
1. Combining sensitive aura with coordinated footwork.
2. Good judgment of the opponent's length of penetration, a sense for receiving his straightening weapon to borrow the half-beat.
3. Correct on-guard position (S.P.B.K.S.).
4. Use of controlled balance (in motion) without moving out of position (Evasiveness).
Explosive footwork is important for both offensive and defensive purposes. In offense, explosive footwork allows you to maintain compound attacking range. In defense, explosive footwork allows you to disengage quickly from a range of overwhelming assault. 5 important factors for explosiveness of your footwork:
1. Master basic footwork.
2. Proper body posture.
3. Powerful legs.
4. Equal weight distribution.
5. Raised (back) heel.
Breaking Opponent's Distance :
1. Creating a false sense of distance.
a) Short jab to extended jab.
b) Short cross to extended jab.
2. Stealing a Step.
a) Foot to hand.
b) Jab to Jab
Don'ts :
Don't cross-step. Cross stepping is the process of crossing one foot in front of the other when moving. Risks and dangers:
1. It severely compromises your balance.
2. It restricts tool and technique implementation.
3. It prohibits explosive footwork.
4. It prohibits evasive footwork.
5. It promotes structural breakdown.
6. It contorts your stance.
Don't be airborne.
Don't turn your back to the opponent.
Don't straighten your knees.
Enjoy Training and stay healthy. Drink lots of water..
Thank You
I have not invented a "new style," composite, modified or otherwise that is set within distinct form as apart from "this" method or "that" method. On the contrary, I hope to free my followers from clinging to styles, patterns, or molds. Remember that Jeet Kune Do is merely a name used, a mirror in which to see "ourselves". . . Jeet Kune Do is not an organized institution that one can be a member of. Either you understand or you don't, and that is that.
There is no mystery about my style. My movements are simple, direct and non-classical. The extraordinary part of it lies in its simplicity. Every movement in Jeet Kune Do is being so of itself. There is nothing artificial about it. I always believe that the easy way is the right way. Jeet Kune Do is simply the direct expression of one's feelings with the minimum of movements and energy. The closer to the true way of Kung Fu, the less wastage of expression there is. Finally, a Jeet Kune Do man who says Jeet Kune Do is exclusively Jeet Kune Do is simply not with it. He is still hung up on his self-closing resistance, in this case anchored down to reactionary pattern, and naturally is still bound by another modified pattern and can move within its limits. He has not digested the simple fact that truth exists outside all molds; pattern and awareness is never exclusive. Again let me remind you Jeet Kune Do is just a name used, a boat to get one across, and once across it is to be discarded and not to be carried on one's back.
Efficiency: An attack which reaches its target in the least amount of time, with maximum force.Directness: Doing what comes naturally in a disciplined way.Simplicity: Thinking in an uncomplicated manner; without ornamentation.
When you study violent encounters, one fact tends to stand out time and again: The prepared fighter almost always wins. But being prepared requires more than just training.Long before self-defense experts and military analysts adopted the phrase “situational awareness,” Bruce Lee taught us that we must always be aware of our surroundings. Or as Lee would say, “The best surprise against a surprise attack is not to be surprised.”
“One must be ready to act without knowing what situation will present itself.”
Bruce Lee Training Philosophy Concept .1
SEEK THE TRUTH :
You have to consciously want to know the truth and look for it. Seek the reality of combat for yourself. Don’t rely on what your instructor, past masters or other martial artists tell you is the truth. Do your own homework. You won’t learn by copying your neighbor’s homework.
Take every opportunity to study what really takes place in an assault or self-defense situation — not just physically but mentally, too. What impact did fear, anxiety and anger have on the situation?
Bruce Lee Training Philosophy Concept .2
BECOME AWARE OF THE TRUTH :
Know what you’re looking for and don’t be in denial when you discover it. Martial artists who have devoted years to training in a traditional system and practiced according to what they’ve been taught is the truth sometimes have difficulty accepting that they might have spent years studying a lie. They not only might have studied a lie, but they also might have spent years training according to that lie.
The important thing is to not dwell on the lie. Be thankful that you’ve become aware of it, then adjust your training to what you now know is real.
Bruce Lee Training Philosophy Concept .3
PERCEIVE THE TRUTH :
Perception is everything — in life and in the martial arts. Make your perceptions as total in nature as you can. Gather as many facts as possible on the subject or situation before forming a perception.
Bruce Lee Training Philosophy Concept .4
EXPERIENCE THE TRUTH :
When you discover what you perceive to be a truth, put it to the test. In most cases, that means putting on the protective gear and going full contact in a realistic scenario.
This is an extremely important part of discovering the truth, one that many people fail to do. Bruce Lee was fond of saying that you cannot learn to swim without getting in the water. Likewise, you cannot learn to fight without fighting.
A word of caution about determining whether the truth you’re experimenting with has any value: If that truth involves using a new technique with which you’re unfamiliar, don’t be too hasty to discount it if it fails. We all know it takes time to master a new technique. The failure of the technique could stem from poor execution rather than poor design.
A learned man once went to a Zen teacher to inquire about Zen. As the Zen teacher explained, the learned man would frequently interrupt him with remarks like, “Oh, yes, we have that too. …” and so on. Finally, the Zen teacher stopped talking and began to serve tea to the learned man. He poured the cup full and then kept pouring until the cup overflowed. “Enough!” the learned man once more interrupted. “No more can go into the cup!” “Indeed, I see,” answered the Zen teacher. “If you do not first empty the cup, how can you taste my cup of tea?” I hope my comrades in the martial arts will read the following paragraphs with open-mindedness, leaving all the burdens of preconceived opinions and conclusions behind. This act, by the way, has in itself a liberating power. After all, the usefulness of the cup is in its emptiness.
'You must learn defeat. Like most people you want to learn to win. To learn to die is to be liberated from it. When tomorrow comes, you must learn to die and be liberated by it.'
10 Amazing Strategies That Will Change Everything
1) GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE
Be happy, but never satisfied.
Being satisfied is tantamount to giving up. It is admitting that you’re alright with just being good, but not great. Yes, we should accept the things that we cannot change, but we should also be striving to improve every day. By being satisfied, we are making an excuse for not working hard to improve.
2) GO WITH THE FLOW
Be like water, my friend.
This is perhaps one of Bruce Lee’s most famous quotes. Water has many attributes. It is fluid and it flows anywhere, changing direction and shape as required. To be like water is to be adaptable to our surroundings. We cannot be too steadfast in our ways because it may hinder us from acquiring new knowledge and experiences.
3) SET YOUR OWN EXPECTATIONS
I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations, and you’re not in this world to live up to mine.
As human beings, we often strive to please others. We want validation and acceptance from our peers because our ego tells us that this is what we need. Stop listening to your ego and focus on getting validation from the person that matters the most – yourself. Set your own expectations and remember what an amazing human being you are! Not only will this give you an incredible confidence boost, but it will also make you realize that you can do whatever you want in life.
4) BE BRAVE ENOUGH TO OWN UP TO YOUR MISTAKES
Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them.
We are all human, and we are all bound to make mistakes at some point in our lives. No matter how big the mistake is, there is always a chance to make it right. We should not be afraid to confess when we have done something wrong and accept the consequences of our actions. We should have the courage to own up to our mistakes and focus our energy on learning from them.
5) BE YOURSELF
Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.
In a time when everyone’s lives are plastered on social media for the world to see, it can be difficult to stay true to yourself and not become a victim of a popularity contest. Thanks to social media, it is just that much easier to emulate celebrities, bloggers, or even people in our social circle. Unfortunately, we end up losing ourselves in the process. Being your true self is so much easier – you won’t have to work so hard trying to be someone that you’re not.
6) LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST
The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering.
We often decide not to take risks because we are afraid of the outcome. But what if we decided to ignore that little voice inside our head telling us “no” and embraced a leap of faith instead? By doing so, we are living life to the fullest. We are savoring every moment while making life truly memorable. Go on, enjoy!
7) DEDICATE YOURSELF TO ONE TASK, AND YOU WILL BECOME AN EXPERT AT IT
I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.
Practice and patience are everything, especially if you want to become successful in martial arts. To become an expert at anything requires steadfast commitment, laser sharp focus, and countless repetition. Dedicate yourself to becoming the very best at what you do.
8) DON’T WAIT FOR OPPORTUNITIES, CREATE THEM
To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.
Sometimes, we get too caught up with waiting for the perfect moment to start something. The time will NEVER be perfect. Instead of waiting, why not take a chance and make things happen yourself? Even if it is easier to sit around and be reactive, why not be more proactive? Don’t ever be afraid to take chances!
9) BE HONEST
If you don’t want to slip up tomorrow, speak the truth today.
Ever since we were young, our parents have always told us that honesty is the best policy. This is one of the single greatest pieces of advice you will ever receive. Being honest with yourself and others is always the best option. Honesty builds trust, and trust is the foundation of every meaningful relationship.
10) STAY CALM
A quick temper will make a fool of you soon enough.
Nothing good ever happens when tempers flare. When you lose your temper, you become irrational. You are more likely to act out of impulse. At this point, you probably aren’t even thinking straight, and how you react may turn into something that you will eventually regret. Instead of losing your temper, why not count to three (yes, that actually works) and reflect on the situation before you react.
May the legacy of Bruce Lee and his teachings live on through eternity.
4 Training Lessons We Can Learn From Bruce Lee :
Lesson .1: Organize Your Workouts by Similarities :
Lee himself divided things up different. One of his innovations was to train different aspects of his martial arts on different days. Similar in many ways to a modern split program that might feature strength training one day and conditioning the next, this allowed him to focus better on a smaller number of skills each session.
Punches – Mon/ Wed/ Fri:
Jab-Cross-Hook-Overhand Cross-Combinations-Speed bag workout
Kicks – Tues/ Thurs/ Sat:
Side Kick-Hook Kick-Spin Kick-Rear and Front Thrust Kick-Heel kick
These exercises would be performed on a variety of implements from heavy bags to focus mitts to shadow work.
Lesson 1:
To split your training into similar actions each day so that you can put more energy into each skill individually.This allows for greater focus as well as making sure your sessions are a reasonable length instead of marathon four-hour sessions. Practicing for such long periods of time will usually mean you are performing each skill or movement poorly, rather than at the peak of your ability. Why train to perform sub optimally?
Lesson 2: Keep It Simple :
To keep your assistance training simple. Most people need to remember that they lift to assist their other activities, not to compete in lifting. You should be looking for the lifts that have the smallest learning curve, yet give the most transfer. The other noteworthy part is that Lee didn’t waste his time on endless reps of body-weight only exercises. He stuck to known rep ranges for strength and challenged himself to gain strength. These low rep ranges elicit changes in the body’s ability to fire muscles, not in changing their size, keeping Lee fast and light, yet able to hit like a truck.
Lesson 3: Roadwork Does Work :
Another piece of Lee’s training puzzle we should note from a function point of view is his use of running and skipping for fitness.Roadwork has fallen out of vogue with today’s crop of HIIT inspired trainers yet all the real greats of fighting have done some form of running, from Ali to Lee.
Bruce would run 4 miles (6kms) three times per week at the start of the day. He would often perform these sessions as a Fartlek type workout, speeding up for short bursts before settling back into his regular pace again. The other three days Lee would skip for thirty minutes at a time. He believed it helped keep him light on his feet as well as helping his fitness. On these days he would also add another forty-five minutes of cycling on an exercise bike for extra fitness work.
Lesson 4: Abdominal Work Is a Good Thing :
The final piece of his training puzzle was targeted abdominal work. His ripped waist was clear evidence of time spent on many hard reps. Abdominal training has fallen out of favor in the last few years as research emerges that spinal flexion can cause disc herniation. However, elite athletes all over the world for decades have all believed strongly in supplemental abdominal work.
Research is unclear about whether or not the muscles of the midsection should be trained with high or low reps but Lee favored many high rep sets. Typically using three exercises for five sets each daily. A typical midsection workout might be:
Side bends – 5 sets to failure.Leg raises – 5 sets to failure.Sit ups – 5 sets to failure
Looking at how Lee was so far ahead of his time with the rest of his training it wouldn’t surprise me at all to if he was doing some of these days for high reps with low loads and other days with heavy loads and only two to three reps at a time.
The four take away lessons from Bruce Lee’s training are:
Split your sessions into smaller chunks so you can better focus on improving skill.Strength train, but keep your main focus on your art. Look to find the simplest exercises you can and milk the most you can from them.Don’t neglect roadwork and other endurance work as these form a key role in overall fitness, health, and body composition.Targeted abdominal work links the whole thing together and allows better power production as well as forming a protective shield during fighting.
A fight is not won by one punch or kick. Either learn to endure or hire a bodyguard. Forget about winning and losing; forget about pride and pain. Let your opponent graze your skin and you smash into his flesh; let him smash into your flesh and you fracture his bones; let him fracture your bones and you take his life. Do not be concerned with escaping safely — lay your life before him.
The great mistake is to anticipate the outcome of the engagement; you ought not to be thinking of whether it ends in victory or in defeat. Let nature take its course, and your tools will strike at the right moment.
The combatant should be alive in sparring, throwing punches and kicks from all angles, and should not be a co-operative robot. Like water, sparring should be formless. Pour water into a cup, it becomes part of the cup. Pour it into a bottle; it becomes part of the bottle. Try to kick or punch it, it is resilient; clutch it and it will yield without hesitation. In fact, it will escape as pressure is being applied to it.
When you're talking about fighting, as it is, with no rules, well then, baby you'd better train every part of your body!
The best fighter is not a Boxer, Karate or Judo man. The best fighter is someone who can adapt on any style. He kicks too good for a Boxer, throws too good for a Karate man, and punches too good for a Judo man.
When you fight, if it is a real fight, use every tool that you have, use your whole body. Use your fists, your legs, your fingers, your head if you have to, and hit them in every vulnerable spot, the balls, the eyes etc. to win...
Before I studied the art, a punch to me was just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. After I learned the art, a punch was no longer a punch, a kick no longer a kick. Now that I've understood the art, a punch is just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. The height of cultivation is really nothing special. It is merely simplicity; the ability to express the utmost with the minimum. It is the halfway cultivation that leads to ornamentation. Jeet Kune-Do is basically a sophisticated fighting style stripped to its essentials.
There is only one type of body, 2 arms, 2 legs, etc that make up the human body. Therefore, there can only be one style of fighting. If the other guy had 4 arms and 2 legs, there might have to be a different one. Forget the belief that one style is better than the other, the point of someone that does not just believe in tradition, but actually wants to know how to fight is to take what you need from every martial art and incorporate it into your own. Make it effective and very powerful, but don't worry if you are taking moves from many different arts, that is a good thing.
In combat, spontaneity rules; rote performance of technique perishes...
Jeet Kune Do uses no way as way. The consciousness of self is the greatest hindrance to the proper execution of all physical action...
In Jeet Kune-Do, physical conditioning is a must for all martial artists. If you are not physically fit, you have no business doing any hard sparring. To me, the best exercise for this is running. Running is so important that you should keep it up during your lifetime. What time of the day you run is not important as long as you run. In the beginning you should jog easily and then gradually increase the distance and tempo, and finally include sprints to develop your 'wind.' Let me give you a bit of warning: just because you get very good at your training it should not go to your head that you are an expert. Remember, actual sparring is the ultimate, and the training is only a means toward this. Besides running, one should also do exercises for the stomach — sit-ups, leg raises, etc. Too often one of those big-belly masters will tell you that his internal power has sunk to his stomach; he's not kidding, it is sunk and gone! To put it bluntly, he is nothing but fat and ugly...
In building a statue, a sculptor doesn't keep adding clay to his subject. Actually, he keeps chiseling away at the inessentials until the truth of its creation is revealed without obstructions. Thus, contrary to other styles, being wise in Jeet Kune-Do doesn't mean adding more; it means to minimize, in other words to hack away the unessential...
Before I studied the art, a punch to me was just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. After I learned the art, a punch was no longer a punch, a kick no longer a kick. Now that I've understood the art, a punch is just like a punch, a kick just like a kick. The height of cultivation is really nothing special. It is merely simplicity; the ability to express the utmost with the minimum. It is the halfway cultivation that leads to ornamentation. Jeet Kune-Do is basically a sophisticated fighting style stripped to its essentials....
Knowledge in martial arts actually means self-knowledge. A martial artist has to take responsibility for himself and accept the consequences of his own doing. The understanding of JKD is through personal feeling from movement to movement in the mirror of the relationship and not through a process of isolation. To be is to be related. To isolate is death. To me, ultimately, martial arts means honestly expressing yourself. Now, it is very difficult to do. It has always been very easy for me to put on a show and be cocky, and be flooded with a cocky feeling and feel pretty cool and all that. I can make all kinds of phoney things. Blinded by it. Or I can show some really fancy movement. But to experience oneself honestly, not lying to oneself, and to express myself honestly, now that, my friend, is very hard to do.
The highest technique is to have no technique. My technique is a result of your technique; my movement is a result of your movement. A good JKD man does not oppose force or give way completely. He is pliable as a spring; he is the complement and not the opposition to his opponent’s strength. He has no technique; he makes his opponent's technique his technique. He has no design; he makes opportunity his design. One should not respond to circumstance with artificial and "wooden" prearrangement. Your action should be like the immediacy of a shadow adapting to its moving object. Your task is simply to complete the other half of the oneness spontaneously.
Practice all movements slow and fast, soft and hard; the effectiveness of Jeet Kune-Do depends on split-second timing and reflexive action, which can be achieved only through repetitious practice.
When performing the movements, always use your imagination. Picture your adversary attacking, and use Jeet Kune-Do techniques in response to this imagined attack. As these techniques become more innate, new meaning will begin to emerge and better techniques can be formulated.
The old-fashioned punching speed bag teaches you to hit straight and square; if you don't hit it straight the bag will not return directly to you. Besides learning footwork, you can hit the bag upward too. Another important function is that after the delivery of the punch, the bag will return instantaneously and this will teach you to be alert and to recover quickly. The bag should not be hit in a rhythmic motion but instead in a broken rhythm. Actually fight the bag as if it is your opponent.
Non-telegraphic Punch
Jeet Kune Do features the non-telegraphic principles of fencing, and this sets the style distinctively apart from the classical styles of Kung fu and boxing. For example, Jeet Kune Do utilizes their footwork and the principle of thrusting your hand before your body, which makes it almost impossible to parry or block speed punches such as the back fist, jab or lead punch.
The idea of non-telegraphing is to initiate your punch without any forewarning (tensing your shoulders or moving your feet or body) so your opponent does not have enough time to react. If you punch with jut a slight motion of your feet or body, you have “telegraphed” or warned your opponent of your intention.
The secret is to relax your body and arms but keep them slightly weaving. Whip your hand out loosely so your shoulders don’t become tense, and clench your hand an instant before contact. And keep a poker face. You don’t want to telegraph your intentions.
Bruce Lee’s Weight Training :
(Part 1)
Bruce Lee never bragged about his muscular body, but he was proud of it, especially of his highly developed abdominal muscles. When Bruce wore loose clothing, he looked like a normally built guy. But underneath the clothing, he was a man with extraordinary muscles.
Bruce had to work hard to develop those muscles. “I used to have a big, soft belly,” he explained. “My stomach protruded and I looked terrible for a young guy. I decided to streamline my waist.”
From that revelation, Bruce took up weight training. He was always a bundle of energy. He was like a small kid who would never tire. If he had his mind set to do something, nothing could have stopped him.
He combined weight training with his regular workout.
He spent as much as four hours in his garage, hardly taking a break, as he worked on the equipment, built by his students to his specifications. He designed his weight-training workout to avoid bulky muscles that might interfere with his performance. For instance, he did not want muscles that restricted the movement of his elbows.
“You must tuck your elbows in quickly when a blow is directed to your midsection,” he explained. “Some bodybuilders are so bulky that they have no way to defend the solar plexus area with efficiency. They can’t cover the area with their elbows, so when they use another method to protect it, they leave other parts of their body open. Weight training is supposed to help you, not screw you.
Bruce Lee’s Weight Training :
( Part 2 )
Bruce concentrated heavily on his abdominal muscles because he believed that the body is “the biggest target and the least mobile. The more muscles you have around your abdomen, the more blows it can take.” Bruce’s body was covered with ripples of muscles. Broad-shouldered and narrow waisted, he was the envy of even bodybuilders.
To Bruce, training was a full-time job. Even while watching television, he would be in motion. He would do his sit-ups very slowly, his body descending slower than ascending. “You’ll get more benefit by doing them slowly,” he said. “It’s not the number of repetitions, but the way it’s done.” When he wasn’t doing sit-ups, he would be squeezing a rubber ball or pumping a pair of dumbbells. Desiring accolades, many times he would ask a friend or acquaintance to place a hand on his abdomen or leg to “feel my stomach muscles” or “feel how hard my legs are.” Bruce wasn’t particular about what he ate. He avoided cigarettes; wine and liquor, but never refused a cup of hot tea. He would eat anything: pork, chicken, fish, beef, and vegetables. His favourite dishes were Chinese and Japanese. He was a big believer in Chinese Ginseng and Royal Jelly extracts. He felt they helped with his speed and reflexes and also supplied nutrition he needed. Scientific studies have shown Royal Jelly the food of the Queen Bee does help with quicker reflexes.
Although he was small man, 5-foot-7 and 135 pounds, he had a voracious appetite. In a restaurant, he always ordered an additional plate of food for himself- one serving was not enough. He also drank a lot of water, probably because he perspired so much.
Bruce took a daily amount of Vitamin pills, Protein Powders, Ginseng and Royal Jelly as mentioned above, apparently influenced by the bodybuilding magazines he subscribed to and the books on Oriental Medicine he had in his library. He prided himself on being healthy by taking proper nutritional products to accompany his workouts .
Bruce Lee is best known as a martial artist, but he also studied drama and philosophy while a student at the University of Washington. He was well-read and had an extensive library. His own books on martial arts and fighting philosophy are known for their philosophical assertions, both inside and outside of martial arts circles. His eclectic philosophy often mirrored his fighting beliefs, though he was quick to claim that his martial arts were solely a metaphor for such teachings. He believed that any knowledge ultimately led to self-knowledge, and said that his chosen method of self-expression was martial arts.His influences include Taoism, Jiddu Krishnamurti, and Buddhism.On the other hand, Lee's philosophy was very much in opposition to the conservative world view advocated by Confucianism.John Little states that Lee was an atheist. When asked in 1972 about his religious affiliation, he replied, "none whatsoever".In 1972, he was asked if he believed in God, and responded, "To be perfectly frank, I really do not".
" No matter what you want to do, don't be nervous
(you should not let your muscles nor your mind be effected by nerves).
Just keep calm.
No illusion and no imagination,
but to apprehend the actual situation you are in and find a way to deal with it.
No excessive action is needed. Just keep your body and mind relaxed to deal with the outside emergency."
2. The Eyes
The eyes should be able to pick up as much information as possible prior to and during engaging the physical struggle. Watching the elbows and the knees is essential to get the best result.
Also at no time, should the practitioner blink or turn his head because he would give away the most important instrument which supplies him the visual information of the current situation.
Shadowboxing and Sparring:
(Part 1)
Additional endurance exercises are shadowboxing and sparring. Shadowboxing is a good agility exercise that also builds up your speed. Relax your body and learn to move easily and smoothly. At first, concentrate on your form and move with lightness on your feet until it becomes natural and comfortable — then work faster and harder. It is a good idea to start your workout with shadowboxing to loosen your muscles. Imagine your worst enemy stands before you and you are going to demolish him. If you use your imagination intensely, you can instill into yourself an almost real fighting frame of mind. Besides developing stamina, shadowboxing increases your speed, creates ideas and establishes techniques to be used spontaneously and intuitively. Going several rounds is the best way to learn proper footwork.
Shadowboxing and Sparring :
(Part 2)
Too many beginners are too lazy to drive themselves. Only by hard and continuous exercise will you develop endurance. You have to drive yourself to the point of exhaustion (“out of breath” and expect muscle ache in a day or two). The best endurance training method seems to be a lengthy period of exercise interspersed with many brief but high-intensity endeavors. Stamina types of exercise should be done gradually and cautiously increased. Six weeks in this kind of training is a minimum for any sports that require considerable amounts of endurance. It takes years to be in peak condition, and unfortunately, stamina is quickly lost when you cease to maintain high-conditioning exercises. According to some medical experts, you lose most of your benefit from exercises if you skip more than a day between workouts.
“Training for strength and flexibility is a must. You must use it to support your techniques. Techniques alone are no good.”
The Four Take Away Lessons From Bruce Lee’s Training Are:
1.Split your sessions into smaller chunks so you can better focus on improving skill
2.Strength train, but keep your main focus on your art. Look to find the simplest exercises you can and milk the most you can from them.
3.Don’t neglect roadwork and other endurance work as these form a key role in overall fitness, health, and body composition
4.Targeted abdominal work links the whole thing together and allows better power production as well as forming a protective shield during fighting.
Principles Of Distance In Attack :
1. Using the longest to get at the closest.
2. Economical initiation (non telegraphic).
3. Correct on-guard position (S.P.B.K.S.).
4. Constant shifting of footwork to secure the correct measure (Broken Rhythm).
5. Catching the opponent's moment of weakness, physically as well as psychologically.
6. Correct measure for explosive penetration.
7. Quick recovery or appropriate follow-ups.
8. Courage and decision.
Principles Of Distance In Defense :
1. Combining sensitive aura with coordinated footwork.
2. Good judgment of the opponent's length of penetration, a sense for receiving his straightening weapon to borrow the half-beat.
3. Correct on-guard position (S.P.B.K.S.).
4. Use of controlled balance (in motion) without moving out of position (Evasiveness).
Explosive footwork is important for both offensive and defensive purposes. In offense, explosive footwork allows you to maintain compound attacking range. In defense, explosive footwork allows you to disengage quickly from a range of overwhelming assault. 5 important factors for explosiveness of your footwork:
1. Master basic footwork.
2. Proper body posture.
3. Powerful legs.
4. Equal weight distribution.
5. Raised (back) heel.
Breaking Opponent's Distance :
1. Creating a false sense of distance.
a) Short jab to extended jab.
b) Short cross to extended jab.
2. Stealing a Step.
a) Foot to hand.
b) Jab to Jab
Don'ts :
Don't cross-step. Cross stepping is the process of crossing one foot in front of the other when moving. Risks and dangers:
1. It severely compromises your balance.
2. It restricts tool and technique implementation.
3. It prohibits explosive footwork.
4. It prohibits evasive footwork.
5. It promotes structural breakdown.
6. It contorts your stance.
Don't be airborne.
Don't turn your back to the opponent.
Don't straighten your knees.
Enjoy Training and stay healthy. Drink lots of water..
Thank You
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