Bruce Lee Workout Routine

BRUCE LEE, the name that needs no introduction whatsoever. People all over the world not only adulate him but also aspire to be like him.

The impression that he left in the world of martial arts and physical fitness is unparalleled. From performing two-finger pushups to throwing a one-inch punch that was powerful enough to knock his opponents off the ground, Lee was indeed a superhuman.

But what was so special about Bruce Lee’s workout routine that made him the greatest martial arts icon of all time? Well, this post is going to present before you a descriptive answer to that question. Let’s get started.

Bruce Lee’s Workout Principles

Bruce Lee has always been known for his jaw-dropping martial arts moves and lightning-fast speed. But that doesn’t mean that he only relied on practicing martial arts in his training program.

To become the most accomplished martial artist of all time, he incorporated various exercising disciplines into his workout program.

From including classic bodybuilding style workouts that allowed him to gain strength and muscle mass to performing intense cardiovascular workouts to keep his endurance levels at peak, Bruce Lee ensured to train every aspect of his physique. That way, he developed a physique that not only looked good but also performed at superhuman levels.

Bruce Lee’s Daily Routine

Bruce Lee was a fanatic when it comes to training. He used to train 6-7 days a week. Every single day he used to train for at least 3 hours. His exercise routine included weight training sessions, cardiovascular training, and martial arts-oriented training.

Bruce Lee’s workout split for the week looked like the following:-

Monday

• 9:20–9:30 AM: Warm-up
• 9:30-9:49 AM: Running
• 12:00–12:45 PM: 500 punches, 300 finger jabs
• 3:00–3:55 PM: Leg squat, leg stretching (pulley, stand), hook kick
• 7:30–7:50 PM: 100 finger jabs, 200 punches
• 9:00-9:30 PM: Sit-up 4 sets, side bend 4 sets, leg raises 4 sets

Tuesday

• 9:20-9:25 AM: Warm-up
• 9:27-9:41 AM: Run
• 11:30-12:35 PM: 500 punches, 400 finger jabs
• 3:00-3:45 PM: Squat, 3 sets of punching with weights, 20 minutes with a light bag and 3 sets of a heavy bag
• 5:15-5:45 PM: Sit-ups 5 sets, side bends 5 sets, leg raises 5 sets
• 8:20-8:24 PM: Isometric training for forearms

Wednesday

• 7:00-9:00 AM: Gung Fu workout
• 9:00-9:15 AM: Warm-up
• 9:20-9:50 AM: 500 punches (back fist), Skip rope 3 sets
• 10:00-10:30 AM: 500 finger jabs
• 11:05-11:15 AM: Run
• 3:05-4:00 PM: 4 sets of high kick stretching, 4 sets of side leg stretching (left & right) 4 sets, 3 sets of pulley hip extension 3 sets, 3 sets of right leading hook kick, 3 sets of rear left hook kick

Thursday

• 10:35-10:45 AM: Warm-up
• 11:15-12:20 PM: 500 left punches, 500 right punches
• 12:53-1:07 PM: Run
• 3:05-3:25 PM: Punching with weight and paper, skip rope
• 10:05-10:53 PM: Sit-up 4 sets, leg raises 4 sets, side bends 4 sets, isometric training for forearms/wrist

Friday

• 9:25-10:13 AM: 500 right punches, 500 left punches
• 11:00 AM: Chi Sao (Wing Chun) practice with Chuck Norris
• 4:10-5:00 PM: Leg stretching (pulley & stand), straight & side, work on left side kick
• 8:30 PM: Sit-up 5 sets, leg raises 5 sets, side bend 5 sets, isometric training for forearms/wrist

 Saturday

• 9:10 AM: Warm-up
• 10:40 AM: 500 punches, 300 finger jabs

Sunday

• 10:00 AM: 500 right punches, 500 left punches, leg stretching, Chi Sao (Wing Chun) practice
• 11:30 AM-12:00 PM: isometric training for forearms
• 9:10 PM-9:55 PM: Abs & waist, sit-up 5 sets, side bend 5 sets, leg raises 5 sets, stop by the gym

Bruce Lee’s Workout Routine

The prime objective of Bruce Lee’s workout routine was to work on each element of fitness. It was not only confined to lifting weights or punching the heavy bag. Instead, it incorporated exercises that targeted to work on his overall strength, speed, agility, and muscular and cardiovascular endurance.

The following table will give you an idea about how one of the earliest workouts of Bruce Lee looked:-

Lee used to follow the above-mentioned workout routine thrice a week.

Old-school weight training was a crucial part of Lee’s training program. It fetched his body with strength gains as well as enhanced his overall musculature. But Lee always made sure to not overdo it. This is because he never wanted to compromise his flexibility and speed. He always preferred building a ‘balanced’ physique.

To ensure that his body doesn’t get used to following a certain training protocol, Lee made it a point to keep switching his workouts. He often used to change the order of the exercises or their respective number of sets and reps. Lee relied on isometric training as well to work on his forearms and grip strength.

Bruce Lee’s workout routine later went on to incorporate circuit training as well. Circuit training not only helped in enhancing his strength and muscular gains but also worked on his muscular and cardiovascular endurance levels.

Talking about Bruce Lee’s cardio workout routine, he preferred performing exercises like running, skipping, and cycling. To get the most out of them, he performed them with a high-intensity approach.

The following table will give you a more detailed overview of Bruce Lee’s workout routine. It enlists the exercises that contributed significantly towards Lee’s god-level athletic performance. Let’s have a look:-

 Lee went on to renovate the above-mentioned workout routine which looked like the following. He followed it 3-times a week.

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Apart from performing all the above-mentioned exercising styles, Lee never forgot to train for what he is known for, which is martial arts. His martial arts-oriented workout routine included stretching, form practice, wooden dummy training as well as training that focused on perfecting his kicks and punches.

His martial arts-oriented training looked like the following:-

Warm-ups

Bruce Lee always ensured to go through a well-structured warm-up routine before getting started with his training sessions.

He once had a back injury while performing good mornings without warming up beforehand. It proved to be detrimental to his training performance. From then onwards, he always made it a point to properly warm-up before his intense workouts sessions.

Ab training

Bruce Lee always paid special emphasis to his ab workouts. That’s why he was always seen sporting his ripped and chiseled 6-packs. Lee relied on performing high rep sets and he used to go till failure in each of the sets. One of his ab workouts looked like the following:-

• Side bends- 5 sets to failure
• Leg raises- 5 sets to failure
• Sit-ups- 5 sets to failure

Running

Bruce Lee relied on running to work on his cardiovascular endurance. It also aided him in keeping his body fat percentage to single digits.

Usually, he used to run 4 miles thrice a week. He incorporated the Fartlek type method in his running routine. This method required him to increase his speed for short amounts and return to a steady-state of running.

Peripheral Heart Action (PHA) Training

This training approach is designed to keep the blood circulating in one’s body instead of pooling it in certain muscle groups. It incorporates full-body circuit training. Lee’s PHA training approach looked like the following:-

Bruce Lee took no rest between the exercises. This training was combined with a traditional weight-lifting regime as well.

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Repetitions are the key

Talking about Lee’s martial arts related training regime, repetitions were of greatest importance. He used to throw numerous kicks and punches on the heavy bag or while doing shadow boxing to perfect his technique. This was the secret behind his proficient lightning-fast fighting moves. In his own words,

“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.”

Final Words

One thing that we all can learn from Bruce Lee’s workout plan is that he never over-complicated his training. He kept it simple, yet intense.

The effectiveness of his training style can be known from the fact that his workout programs still act as a reference point for many martial artists and athletes of the current generation and would continue to be. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Bruce Lee was a visionary and his training approach was far beyond his time.