Hello TALONS community and welcome to the introduction of my In-Depth project!
For my skill, I have chosen to learn Parkour. In it’s essence, parkour is a sport first designed to navigate the urban landscape in a way that is quick and efficient, without relying on any outside materials. This practice has evolved into a widely practiced art that focuses on skill, power, speed, and problem solving to traverse unique spaces in a highly efficient manner.
I have always had a passion for trampolining, rock climbing, hiking, rollerblading, and any other intense physical practice for that matter that forces me to push myself. Parkour is the perfect way for me to challenge myself to conquer my fears and learn new skills that will help me improve in other areas of my athleticism as well. I hope that gaining the expertise with the movements I intend to learn will help me gain confidence with committing to difficult climbing moves, and will make me an overall more well rounded athlete by improving my balance, power, and coordination.
I plan to learn multiple variations of four basic movements, and three complex flips, ultimately having the skill and confidence to link these movements together in a number of different environments and situations.
Below is a summarized timetable showing my plan to complete this goal.
| Plan: | Timetable: |
| Research the basic parkour movements | January 10th-12th |
| Find the best places to practice these movements | January 13th-15th |
| Plan the order and methods in which I will practice these movements | January 16th |
| Movement 1: Safety roll. | January 17th-23rd |
| Movement 2: Vault. | January 24th – Feb 6th |
| Movement 3: Precision Jump. | February 7th – 13th |
| Movement 4: Wall Run/Tic tac. | February 14th-20th |
| Combine all tricks, work on transitions, and continue to get more comfortable with movements. | February 21st-27th |
| Start planning how/where I will practice the front, side, and back flip. Set a goal and timeline with mentor. | February 28th |
| Work on front flip progressions. | March 1st-20th |
| Work on side flip progressions. | March 21st – April 10th |
| Work on back flip progressions. | April 11th – May 1st |
| Practice each movement in different environments until comfortable. | May 2nd-15th |
| Connect all movements and continue practice. | May 16th-22nd |
| Prepare and practice for the celebration, demonstration, and presentation of my learning. | May 23rd-30th |
I have already begun the research and planning of where, when, and how I will learn these movements, and I have begun practicing the safety roll, safe landings, and vaults to provide a base for the skills I intend to learn in the future.
To help me follow this plan, I will use the help of my mentor. My mentor for this project is my brother Joseph. He has been doing parkour for many years and is very skilled in the sport. I will use his help to learn each movement, and understand more about what parkour is and how it works. By learning the processes of how tricks are learned, where the best spots are, how to prevent injury, how to get over fear, etc., I hope to gain a level of expertise in parkour that I can use to continue practicing and learn new skills in the future on my own. I will post videos showcasing my progress throughout the weeks to document my improvement.
I am looking forward to learning everything there is to know about this sport, and I hope I can inspire others to pursue similar interests.