Bruce Lee

[Wanderingdragon]

A great and innovative martial artist, with a work ethic that made him absolutely the best external fighter of alllllll time, his internal work not widely publicized, so I don't know. But his willingness to experiment with new training methods and dietary supplements lead me to wonder if his untimely death wasn't a side effect of the use of steroids. I would suggest that this was a time when the use would have been considered cutting edge and a true enhancement given that no side effects were known. I began thinking while watching the special last night on the History channel , I think it was "How Bruce Lee changed the world ". Truly a loss, I often wonder where the state of Kung Fu would be today had he lived , much like music had Jimi lived or any of the great innovators for that matter

[Bill]

Steroids usually do not affect ones health.

[everything]

state of kung fu: it's amazing with his derision of the "classical" and "flowery" and promotion of alive training and different ranges of combat that something like the current mma didn't get big in the combat sports area before rorion gracie came along. on last night's show, someone was pointing out bruce using mma type gloves and submission moves in his movie scenes and that was 20 years before ufc 1.

[Bär]

I think he was re-inventing the wheel.

[everything]

the wheel had started to lose its way

[Strange]

i do not have any proof nor did i do any research, but i just think that he died of unnatural causes.
like the Divine Spear Li Shuwen. my own conspiracy theory is that he step on too many toes on his way up.

in a TV interview i saw, Bolo Yeung said that there is only one Bruce Lee in the world, its not possible to have another one like him.
i agree. but i do not agree with his training methods or his modification of yong chun quan.

it is also very sad for him to lose his son the way he did. i think some wanted his line to end.
but like i said i do not have any proof; just my own thinking

[zenshiite]

With regards to Brandon Lee's death... Bruce's line was already effectively over because Brandon refused to inherit the martial skills of his father.

[Michael]

Steroids usually do not affect ones health.

I started taking anabolic steroids in 1969 and never stopped. It was addicting, mentally addicting. Now I'm sick, and I'm scared. Ninety percent of the athletes I know are on the stuff. We're not born to be 300 lbs or jump 30 ft. But all the time I was taking steroids, I knew they were making me play better. I became very violent on the field and off it. I did things only crazy people do. Once a guy sideswiped my car and I beat the hell out of him. Now look at me. My hair's gone, I wobble when I walk and have to hold on to someone for support, and I have trouble remembering things. My last wish? That no one else ever dies this way.

[Strange]

of course, if eventually your own son decide not to learn any form of martial art at all; he would still be your own son

[Chanchu]

Strange I think you are right about the death of Bruce Lee- "he died of unnatural causes"
Many HK people believe this-

The TV show was corny lots of flash and balderdash but the facts remain- he had a huge effect on action movies and martial arts- he was the first Asian mega star in the west and he was a great martial artist.

RIP

[Bill]

Lyle Alzado is the only person who blames steroids for his cancer. There is no medical evidence to support this. Even his doctor disagrees with him as to the cancers cause.

[Ian]

I am so sick of hearing about bruce lee.

[Bill]

Here is a story I heard from a professor at L.B. State who had Linda Lee in one of his classes and told him this. Bruce was taking a western medicine for headaches and when he was in Hong Kong he wanted to also try chinese herbal medicine, which he did. The combination of the two drugs had a very bad effect an Bruce and that is what killed him.

[Steve James]

I remember the myths about Lee's death well. First there was the "assassinated by the monks" for giving away cma secrets. Then there was the explanation that he had gotten in trouble with the Triads. Then there was the "overdose on marijuana." Then came the Chinese medicine. This was all in spite of reports that he died mostly of exhaustion. The stuff about steroids is news to me, but, actually, I wouldn't doubt that Lee would have tried them. They were not always illegal.

As an aside on the health effects of steroids. http://www.nida.nih.gov/Infofacts/steroids.html

AAS and mental health
Taken together, the preclinical, clinical, and anecdotal reports suggest that steroids may contribute to psychiatric dysfunction. Research shows that abuse of anabolic steroids may lead to aggression and other adverse effects.1 For example, many users report feeling good about themselves while on anabolic steroids, but extreme mood swings can also occur, including manic-like symptoms that could lead to violence.2 Researchers have also observed that users may suffer from paranoid jealousy, extreme irritability, delusions, and impaired judgment stemming from feelings of invincibility.

What Other Adverse Effects do AAS Have on Health?

Steroid abuse can lead to serious, even irreversible health problems. Some of the most dangerous among them include liver damage, jaundice (yellowish pigmentation of skin, tissues, and body fluids), fluid retention, high blood pressure, increases in LDL (bad cholesterol), and decreases in HDL (good cholesterol). Other reported effects include renal failure, severe acne, and trembling. In addition, there are some gender- and age-specific adverse effects:
For men—shrinking of the testicles, reduced sperm count, infertility, baldness, development of breasts, increased risk for prostate cancer
For women—growth of facial hair, male-pattern baldness, changes in or cessation of the menstrual cycle, enlargement of the clitoris, deepened voice
For adolescents—stunted growth due to premature skeletal maturation and accelerated puberty changes; adolescents risk not reaching their expected height if they take AAS before the typical adolescent growth spurt

In addition, people who inject AAS run the added risk of contracting or transmitting HIV/AIDS or hepatitis, which causes serious damage to the liver.

[Bill]

I don't think that exhaustion causes the brain to swell. Which is what happened to Mr. Lee.