What is parkour? – Parkour or Freerunning

So, what’s the difference between parkour and freerunning? Or are parkour and freerunning actually the same thing? It’s a question that not that many people are actually able to answer. Luckily for us, Dan is able to shed some light.

“Freerunning was simply a translation of the French word ‘parkour’ for a 2003 documentary called Jump London,” he says.

“The term freerunning has since been misunderstood to mean a different or offshoot discipline, but historically they are simply different names for the same discipline, or movement.”

Indeed, it’s common to hear that freerunning ‘offshoot’ Dan refers to described as a different art. It’s often said that while parkour and freerunning both involve running, jumping and climbing, the goals and philosophies are entirely different.

Parkour is said to be a practice that sees the athlete take the most direct route possible between two points, whereas freerunning values more self-expression, improvisation, and the use of movements for aesthetics-only, such as flips and twists, that would not be seen in parkour.

You can get a detailed guide to parkour terminology from Edwardes’ company here though, and his team argues that the practise itself is much more important the tag that’s attached to it.

“Freerunning and Parkour have become the most widely used terms to refer to this one discipline,” the site reads, “and this has created various misinterpretations attempting to define them as separate practices.

“In fact they are all different names for one art: the Art of Displacement… With this in mind, we tend to utilise all three names interchangeably to refer to the practice. It is our hope in doing so that people will be encouraged not to attach any great significance to these simple labels and may instead come to focus on what actually matters: the practice.”

What is Parkour? – How to Get Involved

Parkour is often grouped with the likes of BMX or skateboarding in terms of urban culture, but the difference – apart from the fact that parkour can actually be done anywhere, and was as much born in the forests as it was in the city – is that anyone can get involved and learn basic parkour techniques fast, regardless of previous experience, weight, age or wealthiness.

We’re sure you’ve probably seen numerous nasty parkour fails around the internet, but don’t let them put you off. Sure, experience and athleticness is great when you get started, but really, if you’ve got the will, then with some practice and parkour training you can learn some of the parkour basics without any priors at all.

It goes without saying that parkour can be practised near enough anywhere. Parkour in London is the famous one of course, partly due to the fact that a lot of the most watched parkour videos, the likes of the hilariously named ‘Peter Parkour‘, are filmed there.

The reason parkour in London is so big though is simply because it’s such a vast urban environment, and that’s all you really need. Any city will offer a variety of tantalising problems that lend themselves perfectly to parkour.

Parkour classes and parkour training is becoming more popular and more common across the UK from outfits much like the London-based Parkour Generations. A quick Google search should tell you what the scene is like in your area.

Edwardes believes that the best way to train and to learn parkour is to simply do parkour, whether that be on your own or under the expert guidance of a company like his own.

He concludes: “The best training for practical movement skills is to actually do the skills as often as possible.

“We have tried and tested methods for improving these skills by applying the movements in different ways and in different terrains. We’d recommend anyone come train with us and be guided by experienced practitioners so as to avoid mistakes and inefficiencies in learning the discipline – but, in short, if you want to be able to move then start moving!”

For more information on parkour, hit up the Parkour Generations website, or hit up Parkour UK. If you’re still looking for more information meanwhile, check out the video below. It’s only got the 72 million YouTube hits…

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