Are you interested for yourself or for your child?
- What is Parkour?
- Parkour is simply an art of movement: the constant training of body and mind in order to move freely and confidently through any environment. Parkour Generations, an organization in London, England, is known for having some of the most experienced athletes in parkour. Their website contains lots of information (written and video) dedicated to explaining the true nature and function of parkour. One of Parkour Generations’ directors, Dan Edwardes, also wrote The Parkour and Freerunning Handbook, which provides a fundamental knowledge of the sport as well as useful tutorials of the basic movements.
Duncan Germain, known in the parkour community as TK17, created an extensive documentary on parkour, called Pilgrimage. David Belle (the founder of parkour) met with Duncan and fully endorses this documentary. Whether you’re new to parkour or not, Pilgrimage is an excellent resource for learning more about the true nature and history of the sport.
- What is Freerunning?
- Essentially, freerunning is parkour. The word was coined by the producers of the documentary Jump London in order to better explain to English audiences the French word “Parkour.” Today, the term freerunning usually describes a style of movement that is closely related to parkour, but focuses on creative and expressive movements (tricks, flips) instead of raw efficiency. Freerunning can be seen as more about freedom in movement, while parkour is about excellence in movement. However, the two terms can still be used interchangeably. As Parkour Generations explains, Freerunning, Parkour, and L’Art du Deplacement are all different names of one discipline.
- Isn’t Parkour dangerous?
- Yes, but to the same extent as more formal sports, such as, gymnastics, soccer, baseball, martial arts, football, and etc. Parkour, just like all these sports, is built of basic fundamental movements (which are quite safe to learn) that require lots of training and practice to develop. People do not go outside and start leaping from rooftop to rooftop, but instead develop necessary skills of jumping and landing. The majority of parkour training is spent conditioning as well. The body is the base of parkour and in order to develop a tough body to handle the tough environment, conditioning must be done.
- Do I need any experience to begin?
- You don’t need any experience to begin! Of course, having an athletic background is plus, but it is not needed. Parkour is meant to help any person to better understand their own bodies and environment. The training that is implemented focuses on strong foundation of basic movements that everyone can benefit from.
- Do I need to be physically fit?
- Physical fitness is extremely important to the sport, but our classes provide the conditioning needed. The reason we condition so much is to make our bodies tough as iron in order to handle the stress and impact from the movements. It is not enough that our muscles are strong, but the skeletal structure must be strong as well. Conditioning strengthens the ligament and tendons (they connect bones and muscles together) allowing you to be able to use your body strenuously even as you get older! The training and conditioning will give you the physical fitness that is needed for the safe practice of parkour.
- Is parkour only for guys?
- While men may naturally have more upper-body strength that makes getting started in parkour that much easier, there are many highly-skilled female parkour practicioners (traceuses) around the world. The truth is that it will often take a longer period of consistent conditioning for women before they are able to really progress in their movements.
In many cases, parkour takes a bigger commitment for women–braving the male-dominated meets, engaging in strenuous training to see results, and overcoming doubt in their own abilities. But all the struggle can make it even more worthwhile. The art is so new that we don’t yet know what heights of skill the female body is capable of reaching in parkour. Washington traceuse Janine Cundy has written a great article about how to get started.
- What will I need in order to participate?
- All you will need is a pair of athletic shoes and yourself!
- How can I get started?
- The best way to get started is to attend an outdoor session, one of the classes, or contact us. Depending on your locale, we can offer instruction and/or advice to begin your parkour training.
- What does a typical class/session look like?
- Indoor classes are about one to two hours in length, depending on class. Each class begins with a strenuous warm-up/conditioning period. We then go over parkour specific movements, application and technique. Then if time permits we have a cool-down period.
Outdoor sessions last about hour. We begin with a warm-up/conditioning period. Followed by an introduction to the application and technique of parkour specific movements. Stephen and Jonathan will guide over, under, and through obstacles, providing you with advice that will keep you safe. The outdoor sessions are very relaxed. This is a great time to ask Stephen and Jonathan questons that you may have. They will be more than happy to help you!
- Is it better to start in a gym or outside?
- Although this may seem strange, it is actually better to start outside. Beginning outside will give you a better prespective of how to train parkour. Gyms tend to give people a false sense of ability due to the pads and spring floors. People get used to these tools and struggle with application in normal everyday of environments.
Parkour is all about functionality and moving in our environments. Attending an outdoor session will give you a better understanding of the precaution and risks that are a part of parkour. With no padding or spring floor, you will also better understand what your body can handle and its capabilities.
After your introduction to parkour outside, the gym is seen as merely a place to refine movements in a safe place. The gym is not a time of crazy stunts, but a time of practice and refinement.
- Can I train on my own?
- Yes. It is actually very important that you do some training on your own. Solitary training gives you a chance to test yourself mentally. There is no other motivation for training than your own personal reason. You don’t have pushing from friends or coaches. It becomes more of a test of will. You begin to understand more that it is better for your body to give out than your mind to give up.
- What is Parkour?
- Parkour is simply an art of movement: the constant training of body and mind in order to move freely and confidently through any environment. Parkour Generations, an organization in London, England, is known for having some of the most experienced athletes in parkour. Their website contains lots of information (written and video) dedicated to explaining the true nature and function of parkour. One of Parkour Generations’ directors, Dan Edwardes, also wrote The Parkour and Freerunning Handbook, which provides a fundamental knowledge of the sport as well as useful tutorials of the basic movements.
Duncan Germain, known in the parkour community as TK17, created an extensive documentary on parkour, called Pilgrimage. David Belle (the founder of parkour) met with Duncan and fully endorses this documentary. Whether you’re new to parkour or not, Pilgrimage is an excellent resource for learning more about the true nature and history of the sport.
- What is Freerunning?
- Essentially, freerunning is parkour. The word was coined by the producers of the documentary Jump London in order to better explain to English audiences the French word “Parkour.” Today, the term freerunning usually describes a style of movement that is closely related to parkour, but focuses on creative and expressive movements (tricks, flips) instead of raw efficiency. Freerunning can be seen as more about freedom in movement, while parkour is about excellence in movement. However, the two terms can still be used interchangeably. As Parkour Generations explains, Freerunning, Parkour, and L’Art du Deplacement are all different names of one discipline.
- Isn’t Parkour dangerous?
- Yes, but to the same extent as more formal sports, such as, gymnastics, soccer, baseball, martial arts, football, and etc. Parkour, just like all these sports, is built of basic fundamental movements (which are quite safe to learn) that require lots of training and practice to develop. People do not go outside and start leaping from rooftop to rooftop, but instead develop necessary skills of jumping and landing. The majority of parkour training is spent conditioning as well. The body is the base of parkour and in order to develop a tough body to handle the tough environment, conditioning must be done.
- Does my child need any experience to begin?
- You don’t need experience to begin! Of course, having an athletic background is plus, but it is not needed. Parkour is meant to help any person to better understand their own bodies and environment. The training that is implemented in parkour is meant to work from the ground up.
- Does my child need to be physically fit?
- Physical fitness is extremely important to the sport, but our classes provide the conditioning needed for the sport. As the child progresses, his, or her, physical fitness will also grow. Push-ups, pull-ups, and squats are simple, easy ways to develop a child’s physical fitness. The child will be encouraged to not only condition in class, but also at their home.
- Is parkour only for boys?
- While boys may have more athletic experience to help them get started in parkour, there are many girls around the world who love the sport. The truth is that for girls it will often take a longer period of building strength before they are able to really see progress in their movements. In many cases, parkour takes a bigger commitment for girls: a lot of training will be with boys, and it will take lots of push-ups, pull-ups, etc, to gain strength.
Another reason girls are less likely to get involved in parkour is that there isn’t as much media attention on the highly-skilled female parkour practicioners (traceuses) around the world. Annty Marais and Agota Mahop are two of many excellent traceuses that girls can look up to. As long as your daughter isn’t afraid to get in there and try, she will enjoy the accomplishment of overcoming fears and obstacles, and just have fun moving.
- What will my child need in order to participate?
- All they will need is a pair of athletic shoes!
- How can I help my child get started?
- You can bring your child to one of our outdoor sessions or one of the indoor classes offered for their age. They will find out if they really like the sport and instruction. Also, you will be able to talk to other parents and find out more from them.
- How old does my child need to be?
- Children start playing and explore their environment at a very young age. Minimal age we recommend is 4 years old. At this age, they are more willing to listen to instruction.
- What does a typical class/session look like?
- Most of the Kid’s Parkour classes last about 1 to 1.5 hours, depending on the class. Each class begins with a basic warm-up/conditioning period. We then teach your some of basic movements of parkour. We emphasize hard-work and focus so that your child will get the most of his, or her, time there.
Outdoor sessions last about hour. We begin with a warm-up/conditioning period. Followed by an introduction to the application and technique of parkour specific movements. Stephen and Jonathan will guide your child over, under, and through obstacles, providing them with advice that will keep you safe. The outdoor sessions are very relaxed. This also provides a great time to ask Stephen and Jonathan any questions that you may have. They will be more than happy to help you!
- Is it better for my child to start in a gym or outside?
- It is better to begin training parkour outside, but it is also good idea that children begin there training inside. The safer environment will help your child to have more confidence in their abilities, which will lead to an overall better experience outside.
- Can my child train on his/her own?
- Yes! Parkour helps us to move in our normal everyday environment. Playgrounds and backyards are excellent places to practice parkour movements!
