What the heck is Parkour training? And how do you do it? So, you came here with the hope of finally learning something about parkour training. 

Don’t worry; I won’t disappoint you there. Today, we will look at the details of this form of training and how it can help you stay fit and healthy.

Let us first look at the ways parkour is associated with body weight exercises.

Train naturally: parkour is without a doubt one of the best choices for those who are looking for natural movement training.

Intelligent training: parkour principles make it a point to emphasize both use of your environment and even the circumstances as well. It stresses on the need to perform under pressure and you will have to give your best and offer the most that you possibly can.

Training for fun: parkour training inspires people to be creative and the spontaneity associated with it makes training enjoyable and dynamic.

How to do Parkour

If you are still a little clueless as to what this whole parkour thing is, it is nothing but effective movement that is classified as “natural”. Parkour is basically the touch of efficiency that can be applied to different forms of movements that occur in our everyday life.

If you look at the broader picture of things, it also encompasses having a considerate type of attitude towards everything living or even inanimate. Everything can be used as a tool to perform and grow.

This encourages a whole new way of looking at obstacles and objects in our daily life. It basically comes down to celebrating life in the best possible way that you can. It is the kind of movement that you use for the sake of overcoming the barriers that you face in everyday life.

Parkour Training and What It Is Not

Now that I have told you about parkour moves, I am now going to talk about the things that do not fall under this category.

If you thought aerobatics, tricks and even high flips are a part of parkour, they do not exactly fit the need. While these movements help you in overcoming some obstacles, their use is a lot more aggressive. You don’t have to be able to do a backflip to benefit from parkour training.

These advanced moves are a part of parkour but they are only to be used when they become absolutely necessary, or when you’re absolutely ready. First and foremost, you have to be sure that what you are doing is safe and effective. There are parkour movements which are terribly scary and packed with adrenaline, but they are not truly necessary.

Here is a Video you can watch on Parkour

Parkour Can Be Used By Everyone

Figuring out the right method of traversing any kind of obstacle is not terribly tough. It is merely a shift in mindset which you can use for the sake of finding the best possible way to handle the situation and the moment, all the while training your body and mind. Sometimes you will have to work on the same obstacle for multiple weeks.

The developing eye of a traceur will see a lot of ways that can be used to overcome a challenge. There are a lot of conditions over which you will have absolutely no control. You can ignore them but it will be at your own risk because sometimes they hold pivotal importance. When you become familiar with the conditions and tap the most out of it, you will be able to benefit the most.

At the same time, there are conditions that are under your control. These include the ones that are related to your body’s readiness and your mind as well. You must excel in ways through which you can exercise complete control over them. When you do so, you will be much better prepared for them going forward.

Be in Control of Your Life with Parkour

Whatever you do in your life, it is either simple or difficult because you allow it to be so. The aim of parkour is merely to make you realize what an obstacle is. When you have an obstacle in front of you, you can execute it in a very short time frame, given you are preparing for the same and are willing to get creative and take a calculated, prepared risk. However, if you are offered no preparation time, the same task may turn out to be difficult.

When you are doing something truly challenging and maybe even shit scary, you can come to either of the conclusions, “That’s totally easy,” or, “This shit is scary.” When you are standing atop a huge hill and you look down at the tiny pebbles or even the flowing river, you will have a pit of dread in your stomach. That is the feeling that everyone gets; this is natural. If you have trained yourself for the event well in advance, the dread may be a lot less than what it would otherwise be.

This is why it is advised to train thoroughly, in advance and ongoing. Good parkour moves is extremely easy; however when it comes to aggressive and even fast-paced parkour, it can be badass and at times terribly complex. If you want to emulate the type of parkour that we see on YouTube, you will have to stress your body and mind, stretching your limits way beyond what it is used to. Your time per movement should change from let’s say 5 seconds to less than half a second and this is going to increase the difficulty level by ten times or possibly more. Everything will have to change accordingly as well, but life is full of obstacles.

Did you get the hang of what parkour training is all about?

Now let’s get moving.

Beginners’ Training

If you’ve done some kind of body weight circuits, you’re already somewhat prepared for parkour training . Ideally, you need to learn your own body’s movement limitations and abilities, this makes it easier to learn parkour. You should try and immerse yourself in activities like yoga, swimming, running, boxing and so on because such activities help you in keeping your body in strong physical shape.

Here is a basic routine for Parkour that you should follow.

10 squats

10 push ups

10 leg lifts

10 pull ups

Basically, you should perform 2 sets from this list and repeat it every day. If a part of this list seems to be too hard for you, you can choose to reduce a few reps per set—but developing strength in these body weight movements is pivotal to the body control necessary for parkour. The main idea is to start with a limit you are comfortable with and then every week, push yourself a little more. Here is another way you can make further progress.

Every week, try to add 1 or 2 reps to your exercises.

When you have managed to double the total reps for your exercise, you can go ahead and add one whole set to your workout session as well.

After you have achieved your limit, you should now try to perform every rep even faster and more explosive as well.

I am always looking to challenge myself even more and tackle new exercises as they come my way, you should do the same.

Getting To The Good Stuff

Concentrate On Jumping

You will have to practice jumping using your whole body. You could use the stairs as a prop for example. Try and be relaxed and then maintain the right upright posture and try to land softly on your toes. Ideally, jump from a little height before you expand your workout even further. Mostly, I have seen that 1 – 2 steps should be fairly easy. If you want to step it up further, you can settle for 3 to 4. 5 to 6 steps would be difficult and if you hit beyond 7, you should be well trained.

Here’s a Video of me doing 22 steps…I guess white man can jump.

Also, you should make it a point to sip on some H20 after each set too as this will get tiring. Don’t fall back on energy drinks or soda; they‘re bad habits. As you must have already noticed, I didn’t talk of steady cardio here. However, I do love sprinting and I have the capability to sprint as much as 300 yards on the trot.

Make it a point to ensure that your exercises and jumps are at 100% effort and form-focused, but don’t end up crippling your body. Ideally, the thing you need to keep in mind is to try and push your own limits and still define the upper limit which your body can handle.

Plyometric boxes can be extremely useful in this effort too. If you have access to rubber barbell plates, you can stack these on top of the box as you increase your max height. For safety’s sake, stick with the rubber plates; the grip is entirely necessary.

Catching up with Difficulty

Some of us tend to over exert our bodies, unaware that this overtraining can do more harm than good. This is something you need to be careful of. Do not start off at such a high pedestal that you can’t settle at the start. This will upset your whole training rhythm and create larger trouble for you as you create unnecessary strain on your body. You should push yourself but make sure that your body can adjust at an equal pace.

You need to be the best possible judge of your capabilities. There are a few people I know who have sprained their ankles or even pulled muscles because of their over zealousness attitudes. You need to know where and how to draw the line. There are advanced parkour moves that you can try as well. However, before you set your heart on those, you need to carry out the following with impeccable fluency.

Jump 24” high and catch hold of rails or ledge for carrying out pull ups.

Jump high and then tuck your knees so that you can land gently on your picnic table or even the bench.

Broad jump at elevation of 4-6’ and land with perfect balance.

Carry out plyometric push-ups with ease.

If you are done with these, time to step the bar a little higher.

Parkour Advanced Training

Never forget shoulder rolls as they are elusive and fun. You need to be sure that you are aware of how to shoulder roll meticulously before you start doing them. Don’t just chuck it; this isn’t the x-games. There are a lot of training videos that will teach you how to perform advanced parkour moves, just be sure you follow the same safety parameters and exercise awareness of your limitations.

Traceurs who are new to this should carry out 10 push ups and 10 pull ups in sets of 3. Remember, you are as strong as your weakest muscle and do not overkill it.

Conclusion

Are you going to be super yoked from Parkour training?

Unlikely. However, I can tell you by training this way and incorporating varying ways of exercising into your life, you will develop extremely functional strength and be prepared for almost anything life has to throw at you. Stay motivated and watch the right training videos, then go all out and make the world your gym.

-Terry Asher