Two of my favourite icons of the 20th century are Bruce Lee and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Although Bruce left us over 35 years ago he is still one of the most revered martial artists and film stars of our time. Arnold is still with us and still proving himself as a man on a mission. This is my hypothetical, means nothing comparison of two incredible individuals.
Physique
If you're a muscle man, someone who wants to be as
big as possible then you're going to think Arnold is the main man here.
Let's be honest, some 27 years have passed since Arnold was a
professional bodybuilder and yet he till tops many people's lists for
the best bodybuilder of all time. Check out the photo below...
His arms were awesome. The shot of him in Pumping Iron after he does the set of concentration curls shows just how enormous his arms were.
They really do look as big as melons. The triceps just hang off the back like meat hanging in a cold room. The biceps are off the scale. Huge, peaking biceps with the perfect amount of veins running down the middle of them. They were cool arms! Not many people can truly pull off the straight arm pose like Arnold did.
His chest is legendary too. Thick, striated and fully developed with a ribcage to match. He was one of those lucky ones that have chest muscles that sweep into the armpit all the way thus looking good even from the side. I know the 'booby' look isn't everyone's cup of tea but Arnold's chest development was top draw.
Matching his chest was his back. Often I felt his back was overlooked because of Franco's unreal development in that area. You can't overlook it. As Ken Waller said 'It's got fingers all over it. It's like a road map back there'. Now that's a compliment!
Perhaps his weak points, his legs let him down a little. Being
around 6ft 1" Arnold was never a big squatter. Not that tall men can't
squat because they can. He certainly was able to bring weak points up
as he did with his calves (or did he?) but maybe he liked the look of a
rather freaky upper body sat on big but not enormous thighs and
hamstrings and then having large calves to accentuate the whole look
even more. Whatever it was he certainly had one of the most influential
physiques in history and one that I am not afraid to admire.
Bruce Lee was as obsessed as any bodybuilder is about his physique. He was constantly dieting, exercising and refining not just the art of Jeet Kune Do but also his exercise regime.
He was of average height (5'7") with a small wiry bone structure. He instinctively knew that a muscular man in lean physical condition was just as impressive on screen as a larger less defined man. Actors and directors use this trick even today, making sure actors are leaner rather than bigger has far more impact on the big screen. Bruce's physique though was way beyond what anyone had seen up to that time in the 60's and into the 70's.
He may have been small but he was magnificently developed. He had the original washboard abs with serratus muscles to compliment them. His lat flare was as good as any top bodybuilder, sweeping from the top of his back down to his waist. He may not have had big legs but boy could he jump! Despite the serious back injury (more on that later) he built himself up with weights, simplified plyometrics and of course his martial arts.
If you look at some of the poses from famous pictures you'll see tremendous forearm development.
It was seeing pictures of Bruce doing pronation, supination, levering exercises and heavy wrist and reverse curls that initially got me into grip training. The man simply trained every part of his body and it showed.
Not only that here's a man who relied on agility and speed and yet he was training with weights when the term 'muscle bound' was still being mentioned by the general public. He knew that progressive weight training as well as his other physical conditioning work was the way to put the real muscle on his small but perfectly honed frame.
So who wins? Well, I can't choose myself. I do enjoy being a little bigger than the average Joe but you can't deny the awesome appeal of Bruce's shredded look. As a strength athlete though I probably have to go with Arnold if I was forced too. Not only that there's been too many good shots of him in movies where his physique has made such an impact. Conan the Barbarian, Predator, Commando, Terminator and even Twins used his physique to their advantage making Arnold a truly original action hero.
In Part II we'll natter about the fitness buzz word 'functionality' with your two masters of muscle.
Ahh Arnold. I have to say he was the first bodybuilder to make an impression on me. Over the years there have been many: Bertil Fox, Mike Menzter, the Barbarian Twins and many more. But Arnold has, like Lee, become more of an Icon, more than a bodybuilder.
For me now I seem to favour the more out there it is the more I like it. If it's strongman it's the strongest, if it's powerlifting it's some superheavy with a nose bleed squat that inspires me. It needs to be almost insane level madness because I want my own strength to be on that level.
Arnold and Lee both were out there in their time and made the same impression on many as they did on me then - but now...? Now for me they are to be admired as trendsetters, the first of the few and occasionally I'll see a photo that shows just how good they were (back shot of Arnold taken by Butler as he walked down a cliff face set of steps and in Butlers book shows an ungodly back shot). I'm not looking for the next bigger, stronger freak of nature - whether another Arnold or Lee is out there - I don't know.
Posted by: Steve Gardener | May 09, 2007 at 06:15 AM
Arnold has gotten no small amount of grief for his legs over the years. But, I have seen some shots of him "displaying" his legs to an advantage, and they are certainly as good as anyone elses of that era. Maybe not the biggest, but certainly not small.
Arnie had an interesting build and/or physique. In some shots (as in the clip you presented) he looks very big and impressive and it is easy to see why he was the best of the best. In other shots, particularly in an "off season" mode, but in his prime, he looks very tall and lanky (albiet muscular) and not so big and beefy. That may be due to the way he cycled his training and/or any "assistance" he may have been using at the time, which was obviously a lot less than modern bodybuilders.
Anyhow, good luck on the new blog, and I am looking forward to reading it regulalry.
Posted by: auraofpeace | May 09, 2007 at 11:06 AM
The first book I bought on strength training/bodybuilding was Arnold's Encyclopedia of bodybuilding.
The pictures in this book are inspiring. Arnold's biography is inspiring (he lifted in his garage in cold winter). And his physique: well i prefer the physique he had, than Coleman's or Cutler's.
Comparing Arnold with Bruce is like comparing two different things.
Arnold can be admired for his perseverance (he made it in hollywood & i'm sure he'll be president one day) & his physique.
Bruce to me, is more a philosophy. I get more inspired by his discipline & his power development. his books are great reads.
Posted by: Mehdi | May 10, 2007 at 12:29 PM
I agree Bruce is more about philosophy. The idea with this article is to compare their iconic status using all the assets each man possesses from their physical to their emotional. Stay tuned for more...great comments guys!
Nick
Posted by: Nick McKinless | May 11, 2007 at 07:50 AM
Great Arnold. Beautiful and strong bi shapes. I like it. I see this video and enjoy. I never see such healthy body and strong bi-shape. Thanks for sharing this one.
Posted by: אומנויות לחימה | February 06, 2012 at 05:41 AM