Posted by Parkour is true situational movement.
It’s great to see so many movement enthusiasts and teachers discovering the power and effectiveness of parkour as a training discipline, something we as practitioners have known for decades.
It’s common these days to see movement teachers learning to take their balance skills to railings, or applying their pulling strength to climbing walls and other obstacles, or learning to jump stair sets or build accuracy through precision; then incorporating these basic skills into their workshops and programmes.
These components that have been central to the parkour method for around 30 years are now being understood to be at the pinnacle of refining and shaping one’s movement capacities to their utmost potential.
The complexities and unpredictabilities that the situational movement of parkour introduces are absolutely vital if you want to truly understand how your body and mind operate as a whole.
The psychological element that parkour adds to movement practice is incredibly important. Without this, your movement capabilities are only being tested in sterilised environments, in controlled and managed situations.
But the reality of movement in an unprepared environment is very, very different. Fear and uncertainty will enter the equation; tiny unpredicted elements will have an outsize effect; surfaces, shadows, materials, grip, weather, height, distractions… all these things come into play, and the brain must now take them into account, demanding much more processing power and far more movement intelligence.
This is what makes parkour so powerful: not the techniques themselves but the framework in which they are given birth itself.
There is a depth to parkour that has barely been revealed; a power in the raw utility that should never be underestimated.
Parkour spoke to me in ways no other movement practice ever had when I began my training over 20 years ago, and I am still listening to its wisdom today.
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Find the way at our Outdoor Classes, every Monday, Wednesday and Sunday at www.parkourgenerationslondon.com
Dan Edwardes 