Bruce Lee : Badass, Philosopher, Stoner

Bruce Lee is famous for his amazing martial arts skills, rock-hard body and insane workout regiments. Before I delve into what other feats he should be known for, watch these videos. He just can’t be human:

Yes, he is using nun chucks, not a paddle.

2 Finger Push-Ups???

Sidenote: In that last video where Lee punches his partner Bob Baker from 1 inch away, Bob reportedly said, “I told Bruce not to do this type of demonstration again. When he punched me that last time, I had to stay home from work because the pain in my chest was unbearable.”

According to Wikipedia, Lee’s other physical feats included:

* Lee’s striking speed from three feet with his hands down by his side reached five hundredths of a second.[61]
* Lee’s combat movements were at times too fast to be captured on film at 24 frames per second, so many scenes were shot in 32 frame per second to put Lee in slow motion
* In a speed demonstration, Lee could snatch a dime off a person’s open palm before they could close it, and leave a penny behind
* Lee would hold an elevated v-sit position for 30 minutes or longer
* Lee could throw grains of rice up into the air and then catch them in mid-flight using chopsticks
* Lee could thrust his fingers through unopened cans of Coca-Cola. (This was when soft drinks cans were made of steel much thicker than today’s aluminum cans)
* Lee performed 50 reps of one-arm chin-ups
* Lee could break wooden boards 6 inches (15 cm) thick
* Lee could cause a 300-lb (136 kg) bag to fly towards and thump the ceiling with a sidekick.
* Lee performed a sidekick while training with James Coburn and broke a 150-lb (68 kg) punching bag
* In a move that has been dubbed “Dragon Flag”, Lee could perform leg lifts with only his shoulder blades resting on the edge of a bench and suspend his legs and torso perfectly horizontal midair.

Lee also created his own martial arts style called Jeet Kuno Do (JKD), which translates to “Way of the Intercepting Fist.” However, JKD cannot truly be called a style because Lee defined it as having no style. The goal was to be adaptive to the situation instead of relying on specific rules and moves like most classical martial arts. He wanted JKD to be “simple, direct and non-classical. It is the direct expression of one’s feelings with the minimum of movements and energy.” A great example of this is Lee’s famous 1-inch punch which utilized almost no movement but still delivered tremendous force to the victim. Water was actually the specific metaphor Lee used to describe JKD because it so fluid, adaptive and powerful. Water can erode the largest of rocks and takes on the shape of whatever container it is put into. Likewise, a true JKD master should be able to change his fighting style to fit each environment and opponent.

JKD taught that one should conserve as much energy as possible by countering attacks with attacks instead of defensive maneuvers. More specifically, one should parry attacks while punching simultaneously. The advantage of parrying over blocking is that it uses less energy because it uses the opponent’s energy against them and puts them off balance, leaving room for a subsequent attack in their moment of weakness. Lee also taught that kicks should only be delivered to the middle and lower parts of the body as high kicks simply wasted energy and put the fighter at more risk.

Bruce Lee’s epic run as the martial arts king of the world sadly ended in 1973 when he was just 32 years-old. Upon having a intense headache, he took a pain-killer called Equagesic which contained both aspirin and a muscle relaxer. Lee was found later that night unconscious and was pronounced dead at the hospital an hour or so later. The autopsy concluded that he had an adverse reaction to the muscle relaxer, causing his brain to a deadly size. The autopsy also showed that there were trace amounts of cannabis in his system, which the doctor originally tried to blame for the death. However, upon further investigation, the ignorant doctor was shown to be incorrect as cannabis cannot realistically kill anyone.

So Bruce Lee. Wonder of the martial arts world. Trainer of 3 United States Karate Champions. Paradigm of physical fitness and health. Marijuana Smoker. Fancy that..