Parkour

In this instructable you will learn the art of Parkour.(Another variation is known as free running)This instructable will start out with what you need to do before you can start parkour because you need the strength, speed, and flexibility to survive this sport. if you do something stupid that gets you hurt it isnt my fault!

Step 1: Physical training

The Physical training is one of the most important parts of parkour. In the next few steps I will show you what you should be doing to get stronger and how to raise you endurance. When you are doing the physical training you should always have someone with you to encourage to keep going. If you are tired tell yourself to keep going never quit unless you absolutely have to! Also you should stretch before and after every time you exercise! (dont bounce because you could hurt yourself badly)

Comments

[RSV26]

whats a sisser kick??

[RSV26]

can you show how not to do it?

[RSV26]

this is the only thing i can not do .

[RSV26]

we do this in karaty

[ked1997]

I love parkour, and the tutorial. Usually other tuts would require paying or logging in, i just skipped those.

[Kryptonite]

Can we get a step about the difference between Parkour and Freerunning? And maybe something about the philosophy behind Parkour? That'd be great :D

[patriots8888]

I know parkour is an actual sport and its the fastest way to get from point a to b…Freerunning is more tricks like flips and backflips etc.

[Kryptonite]

I practice parkour and it's a pet peeve of many Traceurs when 'tricking' is mistaken for 'Parkour'.

[patriots8888]

cool i like to do parkour too

[lenny_hernandez]

thats a bad position you should never get your butt so lifted, that affects your back and can give you trouble in the future

[brupbacher]

"your butt so lifted" what does that mean exactly? Are you saying that in the diagram the squat goes too low or stays too high?

[lenny_hernandez]

not at all, you can go as low as you can handle, but your back should always be in a 90º position

[monterto]

free running isn't a variation on parkour, it's just the movements without the silly philosophy.

[milamber]

no its parkour without purpose so its like freestyle parkour rather getting form point a to point be as effectively and quickly as possible u do flips and other unnecessary yet fun things

[duck-lemon]

You couldnt be any more wrong, except maybe if you said that the way you do parkour is the same as freerunning, oh wait you did!

[monterto]

As far as I know they are the same thing. Running climbing jumping to get from point A to point B. Freerunning is a name used that, like I said, doesn't bind the movements to any philosophy. If I'm still wrong or unclear, correct me. But it really doesn't matter, cause if I was going to go do some parkour or freerunning I'd end up vaulting and jumping just the same.

[The Jamalam]

parkour = efficient
freerunning = aesthetic. does that clear things up?

[monterto]

This doesn't clear anything up because they movements are still the same, Just with a flip here or there.

[The Jamalam]

no, not really. With parkour you won't need kashes or dashes, and no flips or wall spins, only wallruns when you need. Freerunning you use whatever you want, possibly inventing what you do.

[XI3]

well you can kind of put it this way. free running is the more flashy version of parkour. both are pretty cool to watch but Parkour is a little more practical (like running from cops maybe lol) parkour can get you from point a to b with minimal effort while free running will end up with you wasting a little bit of energy showing off. thats what my take on it is.

[monterto]

It doesn't matter

[kibbler]

Yeah, actually, it does...

[XI3]

?? cant really tell the context behind that. can you elaborate?

[Kazeem]

Xl3, you are correct in what you say, that free-running is a more aesthetically pleasing form of parkour, using more round-about routes, and often wasting energy on flips, wall-spins and fanciful moves, whereas parkour is an efficient A-B, no frills kind of activity. Also, to monterto, Yes, it does matter, as they have diverged and became two different things. Some people can get quite tetchy about points like this so try to take into account what people say. Hope i've cleared some things up...

[monterto]

not really

[XI3]

well it really does matter what they are called. you would never call rugbee (sorry bad spelling) and football the same thing would you? they are essencially the same thing, but they are two different variations of a very similar game. as for the differences, its really simple. lets say you are a Tracuer (a person who does parkour) your main goal is to get somewhere (lets say a roof) as quickly and efficiently as possible. this means no extra flips or anything like that, just running, jumping, and climbing. if you are a freerunner however, you will not neccesarilly want to get to the top of the roof, unless you want to do a backflip off of it or somthing. you would look around and see a wall and do a wall flip or wall spin off of it. very showoffy. then you might see a rail and want to do a broken arm spin or somthing. sooner or later you miight end up on the roof, but you will waste a ton of energy and time doing so. Parkour was designed to be helpfull in an emergency. how would doing a flip help you get away from a crazy ax murderer, or push someone out of the way of a bus. the problem is that a lot of Tracuers also do free running, so while they are filming for a youtube vid or somthing they might want to add a flip here or there to make the vid a little more flashy. true parkour is basicly a martial art and a disipline. while freerunning may use a lot of the moves as a Tracuer would use, it is more about freestyle and looking good, while Parkour is all about usefullness in a tough situation. my last words. put it this way. there is a difference between downhill skiing and ski racing, but the line is a little more blurred with this argument. you definatly can tell the diff between racing and freestyle.

[monterto]

rugby is more like football (soccer) than football

[monterto]

It doesn't matter what you call it

[Pat Sowers]

you dont have to be so rude you know?

[PKTraceur]

How do you roll from a high object? Do you land, then roll? Isnt this ineffective, asthe main force is taken from your landing? -RoAr

[milamber]

you land on your feet but rather than taking all the force downward you let it throw you forward into a roll

[XI3]

always land on the balls of your feet (just behind the toes), i am fairly new, but when you land on the balls of your feet it gives you the ability to transfer most of your downward momentum into forward momentum. you were right in a sense of landing then rolling, but you need to put them into one motion. NEVER put your hands out in front of you (sorry to contradict the writer) or you could break your wrist. that is the philosophy of any fall, not just parkour. when you drop from a good heigth, tuck your head in, pull your lead hand around your body slightly, and roll from your shoulder, to your opposite hip. this minimizes contact with your spine, and (if you tucked your head in right) will stop you from cracking your skull. it also places your feet in a position to keep on running. look it up on youtube, videos are better than explanation or pics.

[Wolf Seril]

So you put your hands behind you? I would like to see you roll like that without killing yourself.

[PKTraceur]

Well, It's been over a year now, and I'm far more experienced, haha. I've learned how to roll, just a few more kinks to get out. You will have to put your hand in front of you. Wolf, are you on APK?

[Wolf Seril]

I don't think so. I do have an account on UF but I almost never check it. And I did notice that was a year ago, but I didn't want someone to read it and get the wrong idea.

[yourface101]

the boy scouts of america put theyre arms crossed over their chest so is that still ok for parkour training?

[yourface101]

for push ups i mean

[brupbacher]

you mean sit-ups

[freerunnin1]

oh the wing press up... they take a bit getting used 2 but then theyu build u up twice th3 strength :D

[brupbacher]

what is a wing pressup? No luck googling it.

[rugnor]

is treking ok too?

[Pat Sowers]

yes

[matrix828]

last step, last words.
what does "i'm starting the snowball" mean?

lol

~Operator99

[wiilikepi]

Well, if you push a snowball down a hill/mountain, it will grow larger.  I think the author is trying to start that type of an effect with Parkour, but I could be wrong.

[Pat Sowers]

 it is posible

[lop145]

lol shurikun throwing roll

[lop145]

i already do that 15 min a day XD

[georgewu108]

 Yeah. I love planting my hands on the floor. YOu look like Altair when he lands from a fall 

[Pat Sowers]

that photo with th green marks are not me XD

[a_traceur]

Or you can do them navy style and go all the way up past the bar. (Thanks Navy workout vids ;) )

[SK8RGUY]

seen that video team ukemi i think downloaded it about a year ago it helps i do training and work outs alot and parkour is good fun:p

[s1rus]

that second thing isn't a lunge, but it is a great addition to your my workout.

[freerunnin1]

good instructable about pk training but it needs more vaults like the jamalam's instructable... keep up the gd work this site needs more pk/ fr instructables :D

[escargo_mail]

Also if you land on the heels, the shockwaves can shatter your legs and possibly coccyx :)

[freerunnin1]

u have double the comments that thejamalam has lol

[The Jamalam]

...

[cd41]

never knew that

[killer77]

parkour is a way of life dont think that free running is better than parkour "être et durer"

[shikaku]

KONG VAULT!!!!!!!!! and that roll video is a really good one to learn from, i remember using it when I was practicing, or one like it. But there is already a parkour/free running instructable, look before you post. But at least this really is just parkour and no free running, so good label

[Noodle93]

This instructable was published 23 December 2007. The instructable you are referring to was published July 29 2008. Please look before you post.

[shikaku]

ahh. sorry. i usually click recent when i get on the site, i had forgotten that i had followed a related link. my bad. but it's still a good instructable. i thought you were adding

[2hochn]

Great Video, i only knew the basic roll.

[The Jamalam]

Here is my instructable
It is a collaboration

[Noodle93]

I'm just starting this. This should become a collaboration for moves.

[Pat Sowers]

whata you mean by a collaboration of moves? Because i am gana add moves in when i can.

[The Jamalam]

as in click edit, then click collaboration near the top of the green box!

[Noodle93]

A collaboration with other people so they can add in moves. I gotta learn more than the lazy vault now :( I'm satisfied with two days of parkour though. I suck but you know... I need to learn this turn vault.

[Pat Sowers]

yeah if u know of someone who would like to help please tell me.

[The Jamalam]

ME HELP!

[Noodle93]

I could write some, I mean, I'm only a beginner but I know the names of most of the moves.

[Pat Sowers]

yeah you can help!

[Noodle93]

Sweet thanks! I'll add in some vaults and landings.

[Pat Sowers]

nice have fun!

[blackdemonicfire]

Very Nice Instructable. I've been doing free running/parkour for about 3 months now actually.... got any advice on flips? I can do front and back perfectly into my pool, just not ready to do them on land yet... =/

[The Jamalam]

use a trampoline?

[thinker]

depends on how you mean flips
do you mean running and putting your hands down then flipping over in the air, do you mean like when you run towards a fence with arms outstretched place hands on it and then almost roll over the fence but using your speed as momentum, or do you mean running into a flip in the air?
i would advise doing the first one with a friend around to help in case you fall and do it on grass for a soft landing, rather then try landing standing up, land doing a safety roll, and then eventually try land in a solid crouch or standing
and
for the last one, dont jump high do a low flip and land in a roll ( on grass) , then do higher flips (still landing in a roll), then land while running our momentum off (you may stumble the first few times) then land in a solid-state
Either way, its gonna take practice =]
and i wouldnt advise doing aerial flips much while running until you have Complete Control
because the landings can be slightly more difficult due to the difference in your sense of balance

[Pat Sowers]

i dont do them much but i would say dont wimp out when your doing them because u will get hurt if you do it half ass. when you flip you want to be as small as u can so you have less drag. thats about all i can tell you because i dont do them much. hope it helps!

[The Jamalam]

Hi pat, i was wondering whether you could go to edit and turn this into a collaboration? I have moves to add, videos to post etc. This would be an even better instructable!

[V-Man737]

I understand it is more safe to cross your arms over your chest for sit-ups, as putting them behind your head can cause neck injuries...

[Pat Sowers]

true but both ways work. its up to the person doing it to pick what they like more

[SuperCoPilot]

try rowing it exercises back, legs, arms, and core

[The Jamalam]

can you make this instructable into a collaboration? because i have a lot of time on my hands atm, and could write some stuff in (front flips, cat balances, rotation vaults, how to properly do wall springs, gainers/j-steps etc.)

[hac]

Definitely. There's way too much stuff in Parkour for just one person to write about. Please share. :( Also this is just the technical part of Parkour, and it would be cool to talk some about the philosophy of it.

[cry_wolf]

There is a difference between parkour and free running, parkour is a discipline that stresses getting from on point to another as efficiently as possible while free running contains more asthetic moves. I run a lot of parkour but cant do flip or any crazy stuff like that. I stick with vaults, rolls, and jumps. Being fit is key and having good choes is the most helpful thing while running parkour. You should show moves like the monkey vault, and basic vault, along with a landing roll. All fo whihc are essentials in parkour.

[Pat Sowers]

Yes I know it was a mistake sorry.

[thinker]

hmm also you could add how to run up walls like how to shift the weight from the ball to the toe and spring up and out rather then out and up because it took me a while to master getting over high walls (such as those above 8 or 9 feet) because i couldnt get up them

[knex hater hater]

well,parkour takes gymnastics and tumbleing and puts them together,if you are really good at both of those,you can proudly call yourself a ninja!then you need to learn judo,karate,and how to sowrd,lol.yup.

[thinker]

=p
i think im a ninja then
5 years doing parkour (off-and-on)
3 years kung fu
2 years karate
1 year boxing
1 year kick boxing
and my friend has taught me some of the basic kata's (i think thats how you spell it) for nun-chukka's (again spelling of these terms is not my strong point, but you know what i mean ) and also for a short sword (i forget the name) and the longer samurai sword
i also am good with a bow
and got my marksmaship badges with the RAF Cadets and the Army Cadets
=p

[The Jamalam]

check out my forum

[Whaleman]

You should also talk about the principles of Parkour, IE getting from A to B the fastest way possible.

[Pat Sowers]

will do.

[SC-Ghost]

Great instructable. I appreciate how thorough you are with the moves and techniques. Be sure to keep adding to it!

[Pat Sowers]

yeah im gana be doing more soon i hope.

[absolute zero]

i started out on rails. i vaulted of my porch. also start out with more room to run then move closer to whatever you vault over, not move away from it.

[69cobo69]

parkour.neti have been training for a year now and if you like training in parkour i highly recomend looking at parkour.net
also most areas have a community site of local people who practice the art as well witch is also very helpfull for starting out

[yellow elephant]

i run to and from school. about 1.5 miles. every night, i do 100 sit ups, 100 squats, and however many pushups i can.

[Pat Sowers]

good keep it up! cant finish the instructable till it is warm.... its like 20 out right now

[kerpaul]

20 outside? lol i could do this in -20. but thats just me, the insane guy who actually likes being half frozen.

[Pat Sowers]

i like it when it is about 45-60

[kerpaul]

oh we're talking farenheit? i meant -20 celsius :)

[yellow elephant]

big difference buddy. i can do it in the cold but dont really like to.

[kerpaul]

no what i meant was i actually prefer to do it in cold.....anyone CAN do it, its just like you said, no one (except me) wants to lol

[yellow elephant]

where do you live? me in Kansas

[Pat Sowers]

Im in P.A. and its snowing

[yellow elephant]

oh. we got about 2 in. of sleet here

[Pat Sowers]

we have more snow on the way for us

[yellow elephant]

2 day is not my day. i slipped on the ice and scraped my ankle up and then fell on my foot which feels like it is broken, which fortunatly is not.

[Pat Sowers]

wow we have the same luck i need to go to the doctor because i think i broke mt arm.

[yellow elephant]

that sucks man. hope you didnt break arm.

[Pat Sowers]

i hope so too. my side is all torn up so i cant do stuff till i get better. i lost a lot of skin on my side and a god bit of blood. but my arem is black and it swelled up.

[yellow elephant]

my foot is ok. that sucks about your arm. i did the same thing to my knee a few months back

[Pat Sowers]

yeah it sucks.

[FunkNattidelic]

20 Fahrenheit or Celsius? if its 20 Celsius than i would advise you to do it! Here in Canada we are lucky to get that in early spring!

[Pat Sowers]

fahrenheit

[bowmaster]

It is 25 degrees fahrenheit where I am but I am still training.

[yellow elephant]

cant wait for you to finish. what kind of shoes do you recomend?

[Pat Sowers]

uhhhhhh some flexible runnin shoes that are comfortable

[yellow elephant]

i just got my shoes today

[Pat Sowers]

nice! what kind! how much!

[yellow elephant]

i got some asics. they were on sale at JCPenny for like $52.

[Pat Sowers]

nice!

[yellow elephant]

alright, thanks

[yellow elephant]

here in kansas, it is about 27.

[Pat Sowers]

its just a lot easyer to do it when its warm.

[yellow elephant]

i know what you mean

[bowmaster]

Hurry up with the moves!!!!!!

[Whaleman]

Even without the free running, it is still a good instructable on exercising.

[Gjdj3]

I hope you finish this soon because so far it looks good. Nice job!

[Pat Sowers]

thanks. i hope it gets warmer!

[Nick Larson]

noody learned anything new from this instructable

[Pat Sowers]

thats because i havent goten to the part that teaches you yet.

[Nick Larson]

thats stupid dude u should have gotten straight to the point because the stuff u showed in this Instructable everybody knows all the people need is the will and inspiration to do the workout then start practicing their free running skills

[Nick Larson]

for one i think every one knows how to do the exersises that u have in your instructable don't state the obvious and where do u live i live in minnesota and where ever you live it doesn't look that cold

[Pat Sowers]

You must always state the obvious! People may think they are doing something properly but there is a chance that they are not. You are the only one out of over 1000 people who has said something bad about this Instructable. I respect your thoughts but you cant say it is bad until it is finished.

[Nick Larson]

yeah but u could of done it all in one instructable

[Pat Sowers]

i was told to start it

[Nick Larson]

by who

[Pat Sowers]

read

http://www.instructables.com/forum/Anybody-here-freerun-andor-parkour/

[Pat Sowers]

that is a pic of me last year when i was at the beach.

[Dave A]

Nice to see someone adding this to Instructables. I'm a traceur too (a parkour practioner). About the chinups I would recoment to point your fingers away from you, so you train merely your triceps and not so much your biceps. This is more practical and efficient foor doing Climb ups later on. Furtheron I would recoment shouldertraining or whatever sort of conditioning with weights, only with your own bodyweight. This way you will train more flexability of your body and movements you can use with parkour. Keep on the good work. I'd like to see some movies and pictures of you practising.

[Pat Sowers]

Do you have any vids that you could show me?

[Dave A]

some of my own training you mean? Here are my vids. Remember I'm still a beginner, started parkour just 7 months ago.

[Pat Sowers]

your geetin there keep up the good work

[Pat Sowers]

good idea. I will add that some time.

[Weissensteinburg]

I'm confused about what you mean by shoulder training with your own body weight...care to clarify?

[Dave A]

You could grap two rails or other elevated, parallel things like two chairs and lower yourself with stretched arms. You can do pushup with your hands wide apart. You could do handstand pushups and there are plenty other possibilities, just search the net for bodyweight exercises+shoulders

[Weissensteinburg]

Thanks, I understand now

[FireandIcebike]

Do you suggest these training exercises in sequence?

[Pat Sowers]

yes

[Weissensteinburg]

That was fast =] Good job!

I can't wait for the next edition =]

[Pat Sowers]

Im going to get started after winter. Its to cold to do parkour right now.

[Cinder2007]

(removed by author or community request)

[Pat Sowers]

good! by the time i can start puttin stuff up you should be in good shape.

[Pat Sowers]

Im going to try to get some more stuff up soon. I have been spending some time with me girlfriend so I have been away from my comp.

[Cinder2007]

(removed by author or community request)

[Pat Sowers]

How many can you do now?

[pyro13]

What is parkour?

[Weissensteinburg]

From Wikipedia:

"Parkour (sometimes abbreviated to PK) or l'art du déplacement[1] (English: the art of displacement) is an activity with the aim of moving from one point to another as efficiently and quickly as possible, using principally the abilities of the human body.[2][3] It is meant to help one overcome obstacles, which can be anything in the surrounding environment — from branches and rocks to rails and concrete walls — and can be practiced in both rural and urban areas. Parkour practitioners are referred to as traceurs, or traceuses for females."

[pyro13]

so it just a running race?

[Weissensteinburg]

nonono..it's a non competitive sport (although you could compete) It uses things like jumping, rolling, etc to move around in a (usually) urban environment quickly.

[pyro13]

So it's like what the black guy in James Bond Cassino Royal does?

[Pat Sowers]

yup

[Weissensteinburg]

I don't remember well enough to give you a good answer.

[GorillazMiko]

awesome, i love parkor, but i think its parkour, right?

[Pat Sowers]

Its been awhile since I have even used the word parkour. That most likely why I misspelled it.

[dchall8]

Back in the 1970s it was parcours (pronounced par-KORE, which is probably how you pronounce parkour). I believe it is French for race course. Back then it was much less a sport than a series of stations for a person to run or walk to and get a little more exercise than simple running. Each station displayed an exercise of some kind which could be done with the aid of the special equipment provided at the station. A typical parcours track at a park might be a half mile long with a dozen stations. I haven't seen one in decades but apparently they have survived, and possibly evolved. Certainly the spelling has evolved.

[Weissensteinburg]

remember to add parkour to the key words - I see you've already added free running and life.

[Weissensteinburg]

I think you're right, I've only seen it as parkour and free running. It would be a good idea to include all three variations in your key words though...just to make it easier for people to find.

[guyfrom7up]

you shouldn't ever have your arm fully extended, it's bad for the joints

[Dave A]

If you only do it slowly it won't be a big problem but if you do it quickly, explosive and repetitively it cán become a problem. I don't think age and flexibility is concerned in here, I'm 34 and very flexible while some teenagers I train with are a lot less flexible

[srikar06]

actually it depends on age and flexability level

[Pat Sowers]

Were did you hear that?

[alhooter]

-1 for homophobia.

[Pat Sowers]

i fixed it