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Athlete’s Corner: Change the pace with parkour

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Darryl Stingley stays in shape by pretty much being a super hero who can run up walls. /OW Photo courtesy of Jason Lewis (692
Darryl Stingley stays in shape by pretty much being a super hero who can run up walls. /OW Photo courtesy of Jason Lewis

With the evolution of action sports, young athletes are getting off of the football field and basketball court. They are picking up skateboards and rolling around on bikes seeking the next thrill. These kids are adrenaline junkies.

Within this group, some did not see a need for something with wheels to launch them into their death defying trick.  Some of them—who are more athletically gifted and throw caution to the            wind—participate in parkour, or free running, which is a sport where the athlete jumps over or through random objects that they come across.  One of those athletes is Darryl Stingley. While he has no relation to the former NFL player, he certainly is built like a guy that would be on the football field.

For Stingley, parkour is his form of exercise, as he has to thrust his body into unthinkable positions, and more importantly, he has to be able to land properly. He gets a lot more out of this than spending an endless amount of time at the gym.

“This is more enjoyable because you have freedom, where as if you are on a treadmill or you’re in an aerobics class, you’re kind of just doing whatever the instructor says,” said Stingley, who is a professional parkour athlete and instructor at Tempest Freerunning Academy, 19821 Nordhoff Pl #115, Los Angeles. “Or if you’re on a treadmill, you’re just staring at a wall or at a television while you run. In this, it is very mental. You have to overcome fears, and at the same time you have to understand how your body works.”

Now, the average person is not going to start jumping off walls and hopping over random obstacles. But there are now parkour gyms that have padded walls and obstacles, transforming the venue into a huge playground. Just about anybody can learn the movements, and just like with any exercise program, there is a learning curve.

“It was tough in the beginning, because a lot of the movements were things that you don’t normally do or see,” Stingley said. “Nothing that I did in my average sports life transferred over to this, so it was kind of difficult to make the change and try to get more body control. But the more you do it the more it becomes natural.”

Stingley grew up playing soccer and performing martial arts, but when he saw a documentary called Jump London, he had to try it.  Now he has a body of a super hero, and he can run up walls like one too.

The sport is catching on with the younger generation, and small children are getting into it because it is similar to gymnastics. There is no weight lifting required, but parkour athletes are extremely strong, just like gymnasts, because of the amount of advanced calisthenics that is involved. There are a lot of pull-ups, pushups, lunges, squats, jumps, and other body weight exercises. Plyometric training is also a key part of parkour.

Athletes from other sports, especially CrossFit, have migrated to parkour as a change of pace from their normal routine.

“They come in and say that they have the biggest jump ever, and then they see that we really have the biggest jump,” Stingley laughed. “And then they want to get on our level. They understand that it is completely different to do it the way that we do it. It’s a big change of pace for their workout.”

People who are just looking for a different means of getting in shape are starting to take up parkour in the safety of these new gyms.  No experience is needed to get started.

“When we teach our classes we start at their level,” Stingley said. “If they’re basic and can barley walk on all fours, can barley do a roll, then that’s where we start with them. We cater to the individual, but we also want to get them a good workout, so we keep them moving.”

For anybody who is looking for a change of pace in their workout, parkour may be right up their alley.

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