RD Fitness Dare: Bruce Lee Workouts

In case you missed it, the Rampant Discourse staff announced a Fitness Dare to challenge ourselves to get more physically fit in 2020. The first component of my plan is to follow through on the DDP Yoga workout schedule. The other component is to incorporate some exercise routines inspired by the late, great Bruce Lee.

Given my proclivity for all things Bruce Lee, it should come as no surprise that I would aspire to exercise like him. I had the below image hanging on my college dorm room wall.

Of course, it would be nigh impossible for me to dedicate as much time as he did to perfecting his body. Instead I am using the exercise routines being published in the Bruce Lee Official Collector’s Edition magazines.

So far there four routines, each one focusing on a different area of the body: abs, arms, back, and legs. Some of the exercises are ubiquitous (e.g. sit-ups) while others are more elite (e.g Dragon Flag). Below I have copied the verbatim description of each exercise from its corresponding magazine issue. Even for the common exercises, the descriptions include number of reps and other metrics I will use to pace myself.

My plan is to do one routine each day I don’t do a DDP Yoga session. In the beginning that means rotating between abs, arms, back, and legs on Tuesdays and Thursdays. When the DDP Yoga schedule ramps up to four days per week, I’ll either drop down to one Bruce Lee routine per week or attempt to do a second one on the weekend. My weekdays just don’t have the time to do multiple workout sessions in a single day.

So, read on for the description of each Bruce Lee exercise. And please go out and buy the Bruce Lee Official Collector’s Edition magazine. It really is a quality product that I enjoy reading cover to cover whenever a new issue is released.

Abs

(from Bruce Lee Official Collector’s Edition Vol. 5)

• Sit-ups: The granddaddy of all calisthenic ab workouts, the sit-up, when performed properly, is a classic for a reason. Bend your legs at the knee and place your feet flat on the ground for even balance. Cross your arms at your chest or place them behind your head and set up, drawing your body upward with your core and stopping at a full upright position. Beginners should go for 10 reps at a time.
• Leg raises: Lie down on the floor with your legs straight in front of you, with your hands underneath your glutes and lower back if you want extra support for your pelvis, and slowly raise your legs to the ceiling while keeping your legs straight and together. This move will help sculpt your core while also giving extra support to your hip flexors, which will add flexibility to your everyday life.
• Dragon Flag: Made famous by Rocky IV‘s training sequence, the Dragon Flag was first popularized in martial arts circles by Bruce himself. The expert-level ab workout consists of lying down on a flat or declining bench, grabbing the sides with both hands, and beginning to create tension in the entire body, beginning with the traps, arms and chest muscles and descending down to the legs. Now bring your entire body slowly up until only your shoulder blades are touching the bench.
• Seated oblique twists: Often performed with a medicine ball or other weight held in front of the torso, twists target your love handles specifically. For an extra challenge, you can elevate your feet before taking your desired number of reps. Try sets of 10 until you feel your form slipping.
• Frog kicks: Also known as a seated knee-up, this simple exercise can be a valuable supplement to the normal sit-up. From a flat position on the mat, bring your knees and chest together by folding your body in half. Repeat sets of 10 until your form fades.

Arms

(from Bruce Lee Official Collector’s Edition Vol. 6)

• Dumbbell French press: One of the few exercises that works all three tricep heads, the French press is vital for upper-arm strength. Take a dumbbell in each hand while laying on your back on a bench. Press the weights straight up in front of you. Now slowly lower them down again. Start with three sets of 10 to 12 reps.
• Push-ups: Place your hands on the ground shoulder-width apart and put your feet together. Straighten your body out so your arms are stretched outward. Lower yourself to the ground until your nose is an inch away, keeping your body straight. Push back up to the original position. Start with three sets to failure.
• Two-hand (barbell) curl: Standing with you feet shoulder-width apart, hold a barbell in front of you with your palms facing outward and your arms at yours sides. Curl the barbell upward with both arms until the bar is about an inch from our shoulders. Return it to the original position. Start with three sets of 10 or until failure.
• Dumbbell circle: Hold a dumbbell in each hand and bring your arms up straight at your sides until they are parallel with the floor. Now move your arms forward, upward, backward and downward to create 12-inch circles in the air with your weights. Try three sets to failure.
• Reverse (barbell) curl: Standing with your feet shoulder-width apart, hold your hands at your sides, this time with your palms facing inward. Repeat the same curling motion from this position until your knuckles are an inch from your shoulders. Start with three sets of 10 or until failure.

Back

(from Bruce Lee Official Collector’s Edition Vol. 2)

• Bent-over barbell row: Hold the barbell palms facing down, bend your knees and bring your torso forward, bending at the waist. Remember to keep your head up. While keeping your torso still, lift the barbell toward you while breathing out. Try three sets to failure with two-minute rests in between. NOTE: If you have back problems, a Low Pulley Row is less high-stress. Even with a healthy back, less than perfect form can lead to injury so be careful to not slouch and always keep your head up.
• Deadlift: The granddaddy of all barbell exercises, the deadlift is a move in which you simply lift a loaded barbell from the ground to waist height and bring it back down. Perhaps more than any other workout listed here, it is imperative to keep one’s back straight while performing the deadlift. When done correctly, this lift is magic for posture as well as overall back strength. Bruce Lee also trained with the stiff-legged variety of deadlift, an advanced move that should only be attempted by veteran athletes. Try three sets to failure, resting your back for two minutes after each.
• Pull-up: The chin-ups overhand and infinitely more evil cousin, pull-ups are an integral (and universally hated) part of any complete workout. If you can’t quite manage pulling your weight up yet, try Negatives. This is a workout where you jump onto the bar with your arms at a 90-degree angle and lower yourself down as slowly as possible. You can also try variants, like pulling up to the back of your neck rather than to your chin, but regardless, do three sets to failure, resting for two minutes between each.
• Punching with dumbbells: This is self-explanatory, but don’t feel the need to give 100-percent power at first. Start by simply going through the motions slowly with a light dumbbell, working up to larger weights and quicker movements. Start out with three sets of five punches per arm with a minute of rest between each.
• One-arm low pulley row: With your opposite leg on a bench and your back straight, bent at the waist, pull a resistance band along the length of you body, working your upper back. If you’re not in the gym or don’t have resistance bands, the same workout can be done with a kettlebell or dumbbell. Start with three sets to failure (in this case, when your form breaks), resting two minutes after each.
• Hyperextension: Lay facedown on a hyperextension bench. Your upper thighs should be flush against the large pads. Cross your arms in front of you, optionally holding a weight, and bend forward as far as you can while keeping our back flat. Return to upright. This is one rep. Start with three sets of five and work your way up. When you can do three sets of 10, add weight and start over.

Legs

(from Bruce Lee Official Collector’s Edition Vol. 3)

• Step-ups: Using a ledge, step or sturdy box between 6 and 18 inches high, place one foot on top. Keeping your shoulders and back straight, raise your body up using the strength of the leg on the box. Step down with your first leg. Repeat on the opposite side for two sets of six reps each with a minute’s rest in between.
• Walking lunges: One of the most common leg exercises, lunges strengthen each leg individually while working each of the muscles in your lower body. Walking lunges are more easily performed than described. Start with one foot 3 feet (give or take) in front of the other, with your toes facing the same way. Drop your back knee until it’s just above the ground – don’t let it touch. Then power through your front heel, stepping so both feet are in the same position. Step out with your other leg, drop your back knee down, then drive up and step together again. Repeat for two sets of six reps on each leg with a minute’s rest in between.
• Dumbbell deadlifts: Keeping your back flat the whole time, hold two dumbbells, positioning your hands so your palms face your body. Hinge at your hips, bend your knees and lower the weights down in front of your legs. Dig in with your heels, keep your shoulders back and lift your chest. Stop at the bottom of the movement. Next, use your hamstrings and glutes to pull your body upright. Repeat for two sets of six reps with a minute’s rest in between.
• Calf raises: A true classic for absentmindedly working out on otherwise lazy days, calf raises can be performed on any stair or slightly raised platform. With your legs just inside of shoulder width, stand with the balls of your feet on the edge of the step. Stand all the way up on your toes and slowly move as far down as you can comfortably go while maintaining balance. Repeat for three sets of 20 reps, resting 30 seconds between each set.
• Wall sits: Requiring only a sturdy wall, the wall sit is simple. And an absolute monster. With your feet shoulder-width apart and approximately 2 feet from the wall, lower yourself down so that your back is against the wall and your knees are bent at a 90-degree angle. Sit and enjoy the burn for two sets until failure, resting two minutes in between.

By the time I’m done with 13 weeks of these workouts, I fully expect to look like this:

Well, maybe I should tone down my expectations. But I hope to see some more definition in my arms and abs, especially.

Now it’s time to follow the advice hanging on my workout area wall.

Travis Hudson

Chief Editorial Officer at Rampant Discourse

Software developer by day. Member of the literati by night. Full time father of one son and one daughter. Music enthusiast. Comic book defender. Cultural deconstructionist. Aspirant philosopher. Zen but not Zen.