It’s a well-known fact that Bruce Lee's forearms were incredibly developed. Bob Wall, who worked with Bruce in two movies stated, "Bruce had the biggest forearms proportionate to anybody's body that I've ever seen. His forearms were huge. He had incredibly powerful wrists and fingers." Taky Kimura, Bruce's first assistant instructor and oldest friend noted, "If you grabbed hold of Bruce's forearm, it was like grabbing hold of a baseball bat." My teacher Dan Inosanto told me, "Bruce had such a powerful grip that he could take you to the ground simply by grabbing one of your wrists and squeezing. The pain was so intense that even if you wanted to hit with your free hand or kick you couldn't. He would also use his forearm like a club to smash into your arms and knock them aside. "
Forearm/grip strength is an important asset in Jeet Kune Do (as well as any other martial art), and comes into play in all facets of fighting including offense, defense, and countering. The primary reasons for forearm/grip strength include:
Strong wrists and forearms are vital for support when punching -- what good is it if you can punch with lightning speed but hurt your wrist every time you hit something?
A strong grip is essential for trapping opponent’s arms, grappling, pinching, etc.
Forearm/wrist strength can enhance your ability to resist the application of wrist locks, armlocks, etc.
Well-developed forearms can also be used as a weapon to hit with and crash through an opponent’s defenses.
Powerful wrists and fingers also help to protect against and reduce the risk of injuries to this part of your body.
Total forearm/grip strength is dependent on the strength of the forearm muscles, and the tendon and ligament power in the hands and fingers. As with other areas of the body, muscle groups work against each other in pairs to provide stability (extension/flexion, for example). For this reason, it's important that to work for 'balanced development' around the associated forearm joint, and devote equal time and effort to working opposing muscle groups. Using this balanced approach will help you achieve “functional forearm/grip strength."
A certain amount of forearm strength is developed in all forms of weight training where the hands are used (bench press, lat pulldown, etc.) However, the development you will receive is far from the maximum, and none of these exercises, in themselves, will fully develop the type of strength you want in Jeet Kune Do. Exercises specifically designed for the forearm (wrist, hands and fingers) can be isolated from general body movements and require little expenditure of energy. Also, the tendons and ligaments of the hands and fingers don't require rest periods as long as those required following a strenuous all-round strength development program. For this reason some form of grip exercise can be done 5-6 days per week.
Forearm/Wrist Exercises
The following are primary weight-training exercises an individual can use for forearm development:
Palm-up Wrist Curls - This exercise develops the wrist flexors. Place the forearms in full support across an exercise bench or other flat surface (you can also use your own knees), with your hands hanging over the edge and holding the weight in a palm-up grip. Raise the weight in a curling motion toward the inside of your forearm, contracting the flexors as much as possible. Slowly lower the weight to its original position.
Palm-down Wrist Curls - This exercise develops the extensors, and is performed in exactly the same manner as the palm-up wrist curls except that your hands are palm down and you raise the back of the hands with the weights upward.
Ulna Flexion - The forearm muscles involved in wrist adduction are the target of this exercise. Use a “single-ended dumbbell” (often referred to as 'Thor's Hammer') Stand with the un-weighted end in your hand and with the weight facing directly behind you. Relax the wrist and allow the weighted end of the dumbell to angle downward. Using only your wrist, contract the muscles and raise the weight up behind you as high as possible, then slowly lower the weight.
Radial Flexion - This exercise targets the wrist abductors. It's done in exactly the same manner as the exercise for ulna flexion, except that the weighted end of the dumbell now points in front of you. Keeping your arm as straight as possible and using only your wrist, raise the weighted end as high as possible, then slowly lower it.
Supination - Pronation (Leverage Bar Twists) - This exercise works the forearm muscles involved in turning the forearm to a palm-up or palm-down position. Place your forearm on an exercise bench (or your knee) and hold the single-end dumbell with the weighted end up and forming a ninety-degree angle with your arm. Slowly rotate your forearm, lowering the weight as you turn the wrist to a palm-up position (supination), then rotate the bar to a palm-down position (pronation). Be careful to control the weight throughout the entire motion.
Wrist Roller - Hold the wrist roller with your hands in a palm-down position and your arms extended directly out in front of you at shoulder level. Revolve the bar by rolling your wrists until the cord is rolled up completely. When winding the bar up, turn the top of the bar away from you. Lower the weight by unwinding the cord and turning the top of the bar towards you. Note - You can also reverse the positions and roll the weight up by turning the top of the bar towards you, and away from you as you unwind it.
Wrist Roller (Alternate Version) - The wrist roller can also used by standing on a high box or chair and allowing the arms to hang in front of the body instead of directly out. This method does not tire the shoulders.
Reverse Curls - This exercise strengthens the extensor muscles and helps target the brachioradialis muscle in the forearm. Stand holding a barbell ( or dumbbells) with your hands in a palm-down position, about shoulder width apart. Curl the weight upwards until it touches your upper chest, then lower.
The following exercises can also be used to develop forearm and finger strength:
Fingertip pushups - Start with using all of the fingers and gradually reduce the number of fingers you use.
Gripping a rubber ball -- practice squeezing it with emphasis on different fingers in different arm positions such as the wrist bent downwards or upwards, with the arm straight or bent at the elbow. The ball can be squeezed with thumb and anyone, two, three or four fingers in singles, paired together or total grip positions.
Use sponge or spring wrist grippers, and "Power Putty."
Any type of rope-climbing or climbing activity.
There are numerous variations of each of the above exercises, so don’t be limited to only using those listed here. Finally, regardless of the methods used, it's advisable to change the exercise (i.e. wrist curl, gripping machine, wrist roller, etc.) occasionally. The variety will work the muscle groups at different angles and give you better overall development.
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