Great Bruce Lee Speed but Effective?

by J lee
(Maine)

Great Bruce Lee Speed but Effective?

OK, I am 15 and I am planning on being a great fighter like Bruce Lee. In my opinion he was the best fighter out there in a lot of aspects. So first off I want to get his body but when I do I want to make my self even better then Bruce Lee.

Bruce was very very fast and in fighting I have learned speed is very important. One of Bruce Lee's quotes was if you want to punch faster then punch faster. Well when I punch it's really fast but if I hit some thing it seems like my fist is just slaping the surface and won't do much damage. When I flex hard and punch so I can do some damage im so slow. How can I fix this?

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Aug 10, 2013
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starstarstarstarstar 		Right .... NEW
by: Steve Peach

I never learned to hit anything effectively until I learned to relax and let the punch or kick go.

I didn't really learn this until I was about 35, because I had little close-quarter fighting experience.

You have to remember that the punches and kicks Bruce Lee used on screen were done for effect and were over-emphasised. He was completely comfortable with his strengths and weaknesses and was thus able to relax in even the most tense situations.

In real life, if Bruce had punched you in the face, you would never have seen it coming, as he was a very experienced street fighter, who never gave any signals to an opponent.

In order to become as capable as Bruce Lee, you are going to have to go out there and fight people, as he did in his younger years. Good luck, because you are going to be in need of it !
Feb 14, 2011
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starstarstarstarstar 		Bruce Lee's Speed
by: Amancay

If you are fast, don't mean that you are really fast, because you have to react to the situation,
to fast a reaction from to far away and you get a counter strike, to slow and you miss an opportunity. And you have to follow through, to stike not on the target but to actual through the target, with of course a good balance on your feet. And you have to use your eyes with peripheral vision when fight. Being fully aware of your peripheral vision allows you to focus on your entire field of vision instead of focusing on just one spot. This should enable you to notice small movements important for fast reactions (Peripheral vision is good at detecting motion). And so to react correct with the right speed.

You noted that tensing up robs you of speed: You try so with tension to hit harder or not, so relax but on the moment you are just to hit you have to tense your muscles. Something that can help you a lot is to tense you mid section of your body to keep tension there, try and you will see that you are more stable and faster.

And don't be striving to be better than Bruce Lee, because with striving you are always on the way to something. Be not on a way but be the way.
Even if you are just to begin with a fighting art, doesn't mean that you are worse then someone who already train 20 years in it, because if you want your fight to the death and never give up can let you win a fight no matter who is your opponent. Just be yourself. So be simple.

And with real fighting if you can not escape anymore: It has to do with your attitude. it has nothing to do with the time spent on training, if someone attacks you defend yourself. Use your intuition.
Of course with training you can be get better and better at things and feel things, but mental you need to have also something in your pocket, others you can train and train with no end always looking for things because you feel or think that you are not good enough. You have to come up for yourself even if you have only one finger left.
Do.....................

Amancay.
Aug 14, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Bruce Lee & speed
by: Stephen Hopper

Hi J,

:~)

You say you are are very fast, but just slap the surface? Strike through the target, not just on it. Body dynamics has a lot to do with effective striking. Choose your instructor wisely.

You've already noted for yourself that tensing up robs you of speed. You have answered your own question. Do not flex hard when you strike. Bruce Lee himself would stay relaxed (not loose or sloppy) until the moment of impact. I'm not entirely sure, but I think he mentions this in "The Tao of Jeet Kun Do".

Oh, and I suggest, rather than striving to be "better than Bruce Lee", strive to be your own man. Strive to be the best you can be in your own right. Doing so, you can only succeed.

Kindest regards,

Steve

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