

Bruce Lee in Exile:
Why I Shadowbox Demons Instead of Sparring Humans
My silent workouts are in solitude focusing on the whole body. From pain always being off balance my entire life, I always aim for balance in my execution of lifting or squats. I do not have a workout partner because it will slow me down. I'm too focused on the pain to chat with others; its between me and the pain.
The legs are the first and most important part of my body to strengthen. I'd like to not listen to their whispers of death to me again, so I knock out all the leg machines first.
I mix it up a little bit with 3 sets of 10 on a leg machine with 25 pushups in between each set. So by the time I'm done with the leg machines, I've already done 200 pushups too. (Regular pushups and Diamond pushups)
I listen to what my body wants me to do next. When my legs have reached their max to where the pain becomes too much, I mix in chest and shoulder machine. The shoulder machine is sacred to me because it shows me how far I've come to lift 100 pounds over my head 10 times with no clavicle or blade pain anymore.
I make sure to always drink water in between sets.
Also, I mix in working on the punching bags too to work on my injured shoulder. I practice elbow hits mixed with wrist and fist punches, creating my own rhythm until I feel the body scream to stop. Increasing speed as the session continues. The punches are always evolving; I work on speed and precision. First it's good to start off punching the bag slowly to gain precision. Walk around the bag while punching increasingly fast as possible, usually in 3 sets of punching until the body screams to stop.
Since my goal is to never be in a fight, I focus next on One Hit KO's. With different types of punching bags (bean bags) my favorite is the big white bags that move back on a track depending on how hard you hit it. I practice the one direct punch that could save my life over and over again until my fist and body demand to stop.
The pullups are usually next. 3 sets of 10. This is also a sacred exercise because I was unable to perform pullups for many years. Now I can do pullups with no issues at all due to the becoming friends with my demons. While working on pullups, I also mix in pulldowns to work on triceps.
From the constant pain in the shoulder, some days are better than others, it makes me nervous to do certain exercises with my shoulder, like the 'bear hug' with the cables. Sometimes I don't even attempt, but those times it does happen, I surprise myself on how far I've come. Never give up.
After the attempt to stare pain in the face with the cables, it's time to move on to the free weights. This is where the fun begins, the freedom of knowing I can lift so much weight over my head without a spotter is incredible. Although there have been times I have put myself in danger with testing my shoulder and stamina to where I accidentally drop 50-pound dumbbells out of nowhere from my hands losing grip from over working my grip. People should stay away from me when I use free weights.
I tried the bench press on my own and found myself asking for help to get the heavy bar off of my face. I won't be bench pressing much until I can fully trust my shoulders, which should be real soon. Since I work on my shoulder with the machine of 3 sets of 10 already, I only work on 50 pounds in each hand on the bench with it slightly laid back, 2 sets of 10 with the incline changed each time. I can't trust my shoulder to do free weights directly over my head.
While working on free weights, I noticed a 60-pound dumbbell can be used behind my head to work out my triceps with 3 sets of 10. This exercise is sacred also because I once put myself in tremendous pain for many months trying to begin this routine, I had to stop all muscle gain attempts for a long time until the pain in the shoulder blade stopped. And it was low weight when it ripped my shoulder blade. So now me doing 60 pounds is ridiculous. So, don't give up if you can't do something, work with your body and connect to your pain to find harmony. Also, while working on triceps, it's good to try other arm routines to enhance your overall arm strength.
After everything is done, including the punching bags. The main event is the bicep curls. I work on standing and sitting while curling. I have found I can curl 40 pounds with ease. After 10 curls with each arm standing, I move to doing curls while sitting, 10 regular sitting curls with each arm.
Then lastly, the Concentration curl. This lets the focus be on the strictly the curl of the arm, and it drives me wild that I can do it. The injured shoulder makes the left arm curl slightly weaker than the other arm curl.


I was never exiled by the world. I walked out of it by choice — because the demons I carry are more honest than the smiles of strangers.

1. Exile is the Dojo
> I don’t train in a gym with coaches yelling.
I train alone in exile — on the beach, by the car, in parking lots under the stars.
Not to fight people.
But to fight the invisible wars that most can’t see.
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2. Why I Don’t Spar or Get Hit
> I survived a traumatic brain injury when I was a child.
One wrong hit to my head — I could die.
So I don’t spar.
I don’t wrestle.
I train differently.
> My collarbone was shattered years ago. It took years to rebuild the strength in that side.
Punching is my rehab. My resurrection.
Every strike is an act of reprogramming pain into precision.
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3. My Style Isn’t Boxing or Jiu-Jitsu — It’s Warrior Presence
> I’m not trying to learn a sport.
I’m not trying to earn a belt.
I’m trying to survive with dignity and rise with power.
> I train in:
Speed
Control
Breath
Precision
Stillness between punches
> I punch with soul.
I punch with history in my bones.
I punch because I was once broken.
And now I’m returning as something stronger.
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4. Why I aim to Punch 5,000 Times a Day Like Bruce Lee did
> Bruce Lee trained in exile too.
He studied. He trained alone.
He hit the same target over and over again — until the punch became a truth.
> I punch because the demons don’t stop.
I punch because the system doesn’t rest.
I punch because the silence holds a rhythm, and I’ve learned to move with it.
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5. Final Thought: My Martial Art Has No Name
> This isn't MMA.
This isn't karate.
This isn’t anything you can define —
Because it’s mine.
> I am training to be precise in chaos.
I am training to be calm in a storm.
I am training to never be caught off guard again.
> I punch because I survived.
I shadowbox because it’s how I stay sane, focused, and powerful.
