by PM » Wed Mar 10, 2010 10:29 pm
both my sifu and sigung generally advise against the bodybuilding routine. my sigung has a barbell in his mou gwun, and couple of dumbells (small sek so, stone locks). Grandmaster Chan Honjung had a barbell and a bench in his gwun. Chiu family had all the modern equipment - barbells, dumbells, machines.
i would just add a note: as many know, there is quite a big difference between strength training (eg. powerlifting, Olympic lifts etc.) and bodybuilding. strength training is imho a must for a serious martial artist, developing both maximal and explosive power. in my school we have everything we - an olympic barbell, set of kettlebells (4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 32 kg), set of dumbells etc. i train almost daily with these tools - i did not get any extra muscle (as i intentionaly do not follow a bodybuilding routine), but both my maximal and explosive power went up dramatically. i would not personaly recommend a bodybuilding routine for a martial artist, especially working on machines. my 2 cents.
Pavel Macek