Training Log 1

[Haku]

Hello everyone!

It's about time I get around to this...I was supposed to start making “progress posts” throughout the year, but school took up a LOT of my time. But now that summer is finally here, I have much more time to practice what I love most - Parkour, Freerunning, and Tricking. I only had time to practice for maybe 1 or 2 hours every 3 days or so during the school months, but I have created a schedule for this summer that consists of 6 days of practice from afternoon till sundown. This upcoming Monday will mark the beginning of the second week of the training schedule. So far, the first week is working great. Also, I hopefully can get more in touch with the community!

Speaking of getting in touch with the community, why don't I introduce myself briefly? You may call me Haku. I am located in the Bay Area of California. I am 15 years old, turning 16 soon. I started to practice Parkour/Freerunning 2 years ago, off and on. Because of school, I was not able to get out much, but what I missed in practice, I've made efforts to make up for it in studying the philosophy and growth of PK/FR. Before I started to practice PK/FR, I was a overweight, out of shape gamer who played video games whenever possible...sometimes up to 12 hours at a time. I couldn't even hang on a monkey bar for more than 2 seconds, and I couldn't jog a lap without being winded. I got my start when I saw the “Russian Street Climbing” video by the Dvinsk clan on YouTube. Once I started, my life changed completely. I became able to do things I could never imagine doing. The philosophy was very appealing and the community seemed so helpful. Conditioning became a desire rather than a pain, because it was going towards a “greater cause”; Parkour. That fire is still burning strong, and I hope it does forever.

My goal this summer is to do the best that I can, become more fit, and learn a lot. I also aim to refine my skills, and to overcome mental blocks and fears that are preventing my progress. I really want to make up for lost time. So, I will make as best of an effort as I can to keep updating this, not only with my status, but with questions, thoughts, and the occasional picture/video. Recording progress is essential to proper progression, and I will do anything to achieve good progress.

So, I have a question for everyone: In your opinion, what does it take to be a “good” Traceur/Traceuse?
Is a practitioner “good” because they can do the most “moves”? Have great flow? Are brave and adaptable with a new obstacle? Is someone “good” if they try to do, for example, a simple vault, that is difficult for them, but yet they try very hard and really break the move down until they successfully do it? What makes a “bad” Traceur/Traceuse?

I'll post my opinions in the next update, and hopefully I'll have a video by then. Be safe and keep training!

[SafeNSure]

Great first blog...

To your questions:
- among other things necessary to be a “good” Traceur/Traceuse (love the quotations on good here...), the first two the pop into my mind, are: "training hard" and "staying humble"...
- the second is: learning parkour is the hard work of slow (yet continuous) progression...
- the third: safety first! Third not because of least importance, but because obvious.
What good are we (to ourselves and to others) if we are injured?
- for more on "being good" = "being skilled", I recommend this thread (aptly titled "What determines a practitioners skill level")
:)

- there's no “bad” Traceur/Traceuse, IMO.
Only, occasionally, “bad” people: they usually share a fair amount of "stupidity"...
;)

- Passion, dedication, loyalty, fairness, patience, etc. are such Universals that cannot be restricted to “good” Traceur/Traceuse, but needs to be extended to “good” people.

Keep us posted on your journey and your progress!