Brett and Kate McKay share in The Art of Manliness an exhaustive introduction to parkour, the sport “where you jump from buildings and vault over walls.”
Yeah. That sport where you jump from buildings and vault
over walls. Many men are drawn to parkour even if they’re not entirely sure
what it is. It’s captivating to see someone move through an environment in ways
we had previously not conceived of, and inspiring to witness the human body
pushing the very limits of its capabilities. Plus, it just looks like so much
fun and it seems like an important skill to have during the zombie apocalypse
when you’ll need to be able outrun a pack of vicious brain-eaters (depending on
your theory of their bipedal capabilities, of course).
To learn more about parkour I visited the Tempest Freerunning Academy in Los
Angeles to talk to parkour/freerunning instructor, stuntman, Ninja Warrior
veteran, and epic handlebar mustache owner Brian Orosco .
Parkour is all about moving through your
environment efficiently and naturally. Parkour practioners, who are
often called traceuers (from the French for ‘to trace’), jump,
climb, and vault over obstacles in their path. Their goal is to get from point
A to point B as efficiently as possible.
The history of parkour is actually pretty fascinating.
It got its start in France and has its roots in military escape and evasion
tactics and 19th century physical culture. In fact, the word “parkour”
originates from the French phrase “parcours du combattant:” the obstacle
course-based method of training used by the French military. So while we think
of parkour today as simply an interesting form of recreation, it was actually
developed as a tactical skill and way to build the fitness of soldiers.
Parkour and freerunning get used interchangeably. While
they share a lot in common, there is a small difference.
Parkour is simply about maneuvering through your
environment efficiently using jumps, swings, and vaults. No need for
flips, wall spins, and other acrobatics. With freerunning, efficiency is less
of a concern, and you can throw in these types of cool-looking acrobatic
movements as well.
So when you’re watching YouTube videos of people doing flips
and spins off walls, that’s freerunning; if they’re just jumping and vaulting
over urban obstacles without acrobatics, they’re doing parkour.
Read the continuation of this article here for more on the basics of parkour.
Have you tried parkour? If yes, then let me know what you think of this urban workout. Add me, Brittany Perskin, on Facebook and let’s trade stories about this exciting sport!
