Off-Topic The Accidental Parkourist

[Timmer C]

I was doing a morning run this morning along a sleepy boulevard, and I soon realized that the best way to maintain social distance from people walking their dogs or otherwise using the sidewalk was for me to run along the edge of the landscaped central median. Then, due to lack of cars, I found myself regularly jumping between the median and the street. Then I found myself jumping onto the edge of the concrete planters, These edges weren’t wide enough for my normal running technique, but I still moved quickly along them, jumping down as necessary to avoid plants then jumping back up, At one point, I balanced along a new utility pole that was still vertical on the ground, and I sometimes was jumping on and off of benches and other such things. Nothing I did was impressive looking and not once did I have delusions that I was an acrobat and capable of doing flips, etc. But I can honestly say that this was the most pleasant run I’ve had in a long time. And all that I was trying to do was make the most of my runs when the parks are closed, the Chicago lakefront and other trails are closed, and running on the sidewalks while maintaining social distancing is challenging.

 

[ali]

Yes, free running is just that: efficient running in different terrain. No need for back flips.
Some basic jumps, precision landings, vaulting, wall climbs, balance drills/running, great fun.
Free running is all about efficiency, in running form/posture and efficient obstacle clearance or efficient adaptation to your environment, getting from A to B to C efficiently as possible.
And with efficiency comes graceful movement.
Movement is movement, as they say.

 

[Timmer C]

Yes, free running is just that: efficient running in different terrain. No need for back flips.
Some basic jumps, precision landings, vaulting, wall climbs, balance drills/running, great fun.
Free running is all about efficiency, in running form/posture and efficient obstacle clearance or efficient adaptation to your environment, getting from A to B to C efficiently as possible.
And with efficiency comes graceful movement.
Movement is movement, as they say.

“Efficient running in different terrain”, yes. Thank you for your thoughts. Though I still enjoy sprinting, my taste for distance running still hasn’t fully recovered from a four year block of time involving 3 marathons and a bunch of half marathons. So many of these events are focused around largely unvarying terrain, not counting the incline/decline from hills and bridges. Today’s run really awoke something in me. Each and every time I jumped onto or off of something, I had to be fully present, fully aware, so I do successfully land what I am trying to do. (I certainly do not what to have to go seek medical attention in the current pandemic environment.). Running like this becomes a means of exploration of my environment rather than just left right left right again and again and again.

 

[Timmer C]

One of the gotchas that can befuddle adult runners is this: They can be so focused on whether or not they are “serious” runners that they lose sight of whether or not they are having any fun with their running.

I’m continuing to explore different ways of interacting with my environment as I run. I’m not doing anything Instagram-worthy, but I don’t care. Sometimes I am fast, as I sprint along, and sometimes I am slow, as I evaluate whether or not something I am about to jump onto, etc. will support my weight, etc. I like the way my pace varies naturally without having to get into all of the formulas for target pace, recovery periods, etc.

 

[ali]

They can be so focused on whether or not they are “serious” runners that they lose sight of whether or not they are having any fun with their running.

And so, in life......