Cardiovascular Training

To get the ripped, cut or defined look, Cardiovascular training is a must. Before I talk about what exercises Bruce did to get his killer six pack, I would like to talk about how he got his muscles so defined. If you think the way to getting defined muscles is working out your abs till it hurts to bend over than you don't understand how building definition works. Don't worry though I thought you had to do a million sits up to do it at first too. According to Brandon Lee, Bruce's son, he often considered aerobic or cardio training to be "Real World Power." He used this term because you use cardio training more frequently in your day to day life than we do lifting things. This holds true for most of us but some don't make use of either.

Getting defined muscles goes hand in hand with cardio because your goal is to eliminate as much body fat as possible while still retaining muscle. Many can burn off all the fat but then the muscle burns with it. There is no sense in working to get a cut body but then adding on to the problem. 45 minutes a day of cardio is a good amount of time to burn off any excess fat. It will vary from person to person but too much more or too much less than that amount of time will result in muscle loss or you will not get the definition you are looking for.

Bruce knew 2 things about cardio training. He knew that if he wanted to get "ripped" than he would need to engage in some serious cardio training. He also knew that most fights did not end in one punch or in one move. He knew it would involve a lot of moving around and that the moving you do is more intense than even your average jogger could withstand. When Bruce would run he would go fast sometimes, slow other times, he would shuffle his feet sometimes, sometimes he would burst into a really intense dash and then slow it down, he would run backwards sometimes. The point is that he made his average jogging into a way to train for a fight, a fight can use an extreme amount of energy at any given moment and other times you may only use very little.

Bruce Lee Cardio Exercises

These are a couple of cardio techniques that Bruce used to master his cardiovascular system. He always changed the way he did things and I'm sure he would encourage you to do the same. If you find a cardio technique that works really good for you than thats all that matters. If it's ineffective for you than you should feel no obligation to continue forth. Figure out what works best for you, even that means altering or changing exercises so they are more efficient for you or more appropriate for your level of conditioning. Increasing or decreasing weights or reps is the best way to go about doing this.

1. Stepping-Stepping is as simple as it sounds and can increase your endurance if done properly. To perform this exercise grab a stepping stool, chair, or anything similar. It should be about Foot and half for men and 1 foot to 14 inches for women according to TAOETHB. Lead with your right foot for one minute and then with your left foot for one minute. Careful not to train one leg more than the other, this is called over training. Stretching after every two minutes or doing an ab workout will increase your endurance. Repeat and increase until you can do it for 30-45 minutes unless you have other cardio exercises you are going to do after.

2. Jogging/Running- Jogging was by far one of Bruce's favorite exercises. He brought running shoes with him wherever he went so he wouldn't skip a day. He enjoyed it for it's simplicity and it's efficiency to do where ever, unlike many other sports or exercise that require equipment or a facility. He didn't do it to strengthen his legs but rather to define his muscles, improve his heart, and enhance his lungs. He also found it very relaxing to do.

Ways to enhance jogging include:

* Lift knees high when jogging
* Jog in sand
* Jog up a hill
* Stand straight up
* Breathe with your abs
* Jog heel to toe
* Jog on balls of feet
* Jog flat footed
* Wear ankle weights
* Sprint for 1 minute than Jog for 5 minute intervals

3. Jumping Rope- Mr. Lee used jump rope to increase speed and his power of his lungs. Jumping rope has the added benefit of helping to straighten your spine. It is definitely the most high endurance of all cardio and gives you an upper body work out as well. Lee was a fan of the speed rope because of how much faster you go when compared to the jump rope. A 10 minute session of speed rope is equivalent to 30 minutes of jogging. A weighted jump rope can aid in building upper body strength.

Bruce Lee Circuit Training

Circuit training is a way of training to keep blood flowing to multiple muscle groups. This has the benefit of making muscles stronger and endurance is increased. It simulates a fight better than normal flushing methods because the whole body is used and blood is flowing every where. The idea is to not get blood congested in any one area. It's better for the blood to be pumping everywhere, some claim it will build you better muscles but one thing's for sure it's a more economic way to workout. Basically a way of getting Total Fitness all in one shot.

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