A Parkour strength training for beginners is an initial step that leads a tracers through professional. If you imagine the world as a parkour ground, the walls, rails, trees, will feel like useful training tools.
Besides the most common obstacles at schools, parks, and plazas can help upgrade your physical performance. However, one should learn some basic strength movements such as pull, squat, push and skill like landing, jumping, climbing, and vaulting to overcome obstacles metaphorically and literally
Making a stronger athletic foundation by practicing basic parkour strength training is a key and the simplest way. In this guide, we have covered some basic yet effective strength training, especially for beginner traceurs to help them improve the skill level safety and precisely.
Some effective parkour strength training for beginners
Wall dip
Tougher than common push up, this wall dip is an upper body strength exercise that is extremely specific to parkour. This practice helps improve the movements like vaults and the second half of a muscle-up. After performing 8–10+ wall dips with good form, the traceur can start challenging progressions. If you still find it harder, then keep practicing something easier.
Air squat (full ROM)
The full ROM air squat is a basic movement before seriously drilling squatting, landing, jumping. A good squat is a key to land safely that people often feel boring or simple.
Squats should practice through the rest of the life since it helps improve in the sport, help recover from injury. It will still keep healthy after becoming old. However sometimes squatting to hip-below-knee is enough, but one should develop a full squat.
If you are unable to squat low yet, keep practicing your mechanics and mobility to make your ROM greater. Use this basic squat variation for constant improvement. But once you start feeling better, practice deeper ROM, single-leg variations, adding weight, more explosiveness, and jumping/landing.
Kong-up (split-foot, hip-high)
Kong ups are a helpful technique to build basic power and full-body coordination. Imagine it as a 3-dimensional burpee or more complex box jump. This movement will bring you to a squatting position on top of an obstacle. Carefully drill this one with a split-foot stance as this skill will carry over better to climb-ups or kong vaults.
Knees-to-elbows (dead hang)
This Knees-to-elbow from dead hang is a type of tough full-body exercise that needs a stable knees-to-chest tuck. To improve at pullovers, kips, underbars, and laches, the traceur should learn how to lift legs to the torso by using abs and hip flexors. Moreover, this knees-to-chest skill allows practicing many other movements like vaults, backflips, and jumps.
Wall handstand (abs-to-wall)
Generally, a strong handstand is a helpful tool for building balance in the air. It’s a crucial movement, especially for beginner traceurs. By spending time working on the wall handstand will help teach the beginner how to unlock a quality freestanding handstand.
Moreover, it’s an effective method to modify handstand skills and create upper body pushing strength.
Don’t feel nervous if you can’t perform perfectly unless your target is to select on gymnastics or professional circus. For traceurs, it is better to concentrate on improving adaptability and control over handstand variations and challenges.
Broad jump
Broad jumps are mostly used power tests in sport/ and a basic movement skill in parkour. Beneficial for leaping over the gaps, this parkour strength training for beginner helps improve full-body power.
The process starts with standing on feet shoulder-width apart and then it needs to drop into a partial squat while swinging arms behind the trainer.
The performer had to swing his/her arms forward, explode through their lower body to drive him up and forward. Try to practice this strength training movement on different angles and positions to find out the best one for the body.
While airborne, the trainer had to lift knees to chest and enlarge the feet in front of the face to reach the goal. It requires flat ground and padded shoes to perform it sustainably and had to maintain distance from others. If the trainer needs to perform this movement on hard surfaces, he/she should reconsider the landing skill that should be fewer heels heavy and ensure accurate landing on the balls of feet.
Quadrupedal movement (basic, forward)
quadrupedal movement is a typical full-body exercise. It needs to move on all four limbs that allow the performer to pass under the obstacle easily. Besides, it is a useful parkour strength training that helps move between the ground and more upright positions.
The process is started with getting support from hands and feet and ensuring four points of equal weight supply. The trainer’s butt and head should be around a similar height. Then he/she needs to Advance one hand and the opposite foot at a time. Then the performer had to repeat the motion with the opposite hand and foot.
Maintain some distance in between arms and legs to the knees can’t run into elbows while you move. Practice it slowly until you get the hang of the forward movement. Then reverse the motion for practicing the same challenge from a different angle. For the beginner traceurs, it may feel difficult to perform on hands and feet. They can perform it on a soft surface like panel mats, grass and practice it in their hands.
Final words
Parkour strength training is not so easy that you can learn overnight. It needs patient, dedication, and practice to improve the skill level day by day. Besides, it needs a strong mindset to practice constantly.
The parkour strength training for beginners we have mentioned above is easy yet effective that helps increase the skill gradually and lead through pro traceurs. Don’t practice any of the movement in a hurry; realize your strength and skill level to ensure safe and proper parkour learning.