Parkour: The Perfect Exercise for all-round Fitness?

Choosing a type of exercise that is fun and enjoyable to you is a crucial factor in staying committed to training consistently. It is natural that whatever skill we choose to practice we improve on specifically. For example, someone who trains weightlifting 3x a week consistently, is likely to find over time that they can naturally lift heavier weights. However, training weightlifting in isolation is unlikely to improve other fitness aspects significantly, such as flexibility and cardio-vascular fitness. Unless of course the weightlifting training is accompanied by other training methods such as running and yoga on other days.

In this article we take a look at a few reasons why training Parkour could the perfect option for building all round fitness. We also take a look at the benefits that training in a class or group with friends can have to our wellbeing and mindset.

The most evident reason that Parkour can be a great exercise for building all-round fitness, is that the movements in the discipline helps improve a variety of traditional training fundamentals. For example, the aspect of Parkour of moving from A to B naturally usually involves running over a fair distance. This leads to you collecting a substantial step count per training session. In this way Parkour can be used as a tool to help build your cardio-vascular fitness.

On the other hand, Parkour can also be a great way to improve your strength and build muscle. Aspects of training Parkour such as vaulting over obstacles and pulling your body weight upwards to reach a new destination, inadvertently uses many of the same muscles as doing traditional body weight exercises. For example, it is widely acknowledged in the Parkour community that Calisthenics exercises such as pull ups and push ups can improve your ability in Parkour and vice versa.

Furthermore, training Parkour is also likely to improve your co-ordination and balance. For example, through practicing jumping from one obstacle to the next. Additionally, the positive impact that Parkour can have to your wellbeing is enhanced by the social aspect that comes from practicing the discipline in a group or by attending a class. Surrounding yourself with other people that have similar interests to yourself, all supporting each other to achieve your goals, is a great way to relieve stress and be sociable. Furthermore, by attending a class at one of our indoor Parkour gyms you also benefit from having a qualified trainer help and encourage you to reach your goals. In this way the reduced time in which you can pick up new skills can also be a great boost to your confidence.

Parkour is a fluid discipline that differs substantially depending on how an individual chooses to approach their training. One week you could choose to do more running, whereas another week you could choose to focus on building strength by doing more vaulting. In this way, adapting your Parkour training is a great way to achieve specific fitness goals as well, depending on how you choose to focus your approach. The examples mentioned in this weeks, article are by no means a comprehensive list of all of the ways that Parkour can improve your all-round fitness. But hopefully has provided some useful examples that demonstrate the numerous benefits that training the fluid discipline of Parkour can have to your overall health and wellbeing.