How to Practice Parkour Better Through Science

• Science can help make Parkour better by explaining how to climb walls more effectively and expanding landing possibilities, according to our partner The Conversation.

• A computer simulation thus makes it possible to optimize the placement of the feet on the ground and the wall as well as the effect of the different approach speeds.

• This analysis was conducted by James L. Croft, lecturer in motor acquisition and control.

Have you ever watched in amazement as characters climb walls and jump from building to building in films such as

,

and Casino Royale?

These are not special effects.

The athletes who perform these stunts practice Parkour, an activity practiced worldwide close to gymnastics.

This sport developed from military obstacle courses.

The goal of Parkour is to move quickly and efficiently through a complex physical environment.

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Our research shows that science can help make Parkour better, by explaining how to climb walls more effectively and expanding landing possibilities.

Even if you don't plan on playing the sport, it's an amazing experience to watch.

​Tracers and plotters

Although Parkour has been recognized as an official sport in some countries, it remains impossible to determine how many people practice it around the world.

It is a generally unorganized activity, which is perhaps part of its appeal as a subculture.

To an inexperienced observer, Parkour athletes – known as “tracers” and “tracereuses” – may seem downright reckless, but most of them train hard and develop a wide range of individual skills that they use as they go. pass through their environment.

Some of the individual movements in Parkour are similar to those in other sports, such as gymnastics, athletics, and trail running.

But Parkour has received much less research than other more traditional sports.

This is unfortunate, as these sports share fundamental principles of generating and redirecting momentum, or more specifically, “momentum”.

A better understanding of these principles can benefit all of these activities.

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​Run along the walls

One of the feats that catches the attention of many Parkour viewers is how traceurs run along high walls to conquer new buildings.

To scale tall structures, Parkour athletes run towards the wall and then gain height by projecting their body upwards by pressing against the wall with their feet.

This technique allows them to reach much greater heights than using a vertical leap, and also allows them to continue moving efficiently through urban space.

To investigate how effectively athletes perform this wall run, we embedded a force plate (a device to measure the force applied to it) in the floor and a second force plate in the wall.

We then filmed the participants as they approached the wall.

We observed how the athletes redirected their bodies, with a consistent overall strategy and specific leg actions on the floor and wall.

Although some Parkour guides recommend that athletes lean on the ground and the wall simultaneously, we did not observe this – traceurs always left the ground before touching the wall.

​Redirect momentum

We wanted to better understand the most efficient placement of feet on the floor and wall, and the effect of different approach speeds.

We therefore built a computer simulation capable of optimizing each of these factors.

The model fits well with what we observed – an intermediate approach speed is best – and allowed us to understand why.

While running, horizontal momentum is created (the product of speed and body weight).

Some of this horizontal momentum can be redirected into vertical momentum on take-off, keeping the leg rigid on the ground – much like a pole vault with a rigid pole.

If the approach run is slow, there is less horizontal momentum to transfer to vertical momentum.

The take-off leg must then create vertical momentum using the leg muscles, which is less efficient.

With a very fast approach, the take-off leg has to act as a shock absorber, which wastes energy and negates the benefits of a fast run.

Tracers therefore naturally choose an intermediate approach speed, which allows them to use as little energy as possible to climb the wall.

To climb higher walls, a faster approach may be required, but sufficient leg strength is required.

Higher speed gives more momentum, but it also reduces the time the leg has to generate the "impulse" needed to climb the wall - this is the change in momentum, mathematically the product of force and time.

​Return to the ground

What goes up must come down!

When jumping off a wall, traceurs choose a type of landing based on their height, body mass, and leg power, our research shows.

Landing safely requires dealing with several different forces.

When descending or jumping from a surface, the body accelerates due to gravity.

On landing, the body has a certain amount of movement, determined by weight and speed.

The higher the surface you are jumping from, the greater the speed and amount of vertical movement before landing.

The main task when landing is to dissipate momentum so that pressure and velocity do not exceed biological limits (resulting in muscle tearing or tendon rupture).

The importance of this momentum to be dissipated can be reduced by lengthening the time during which the landing forces are applied, for example by flexing the legs.

It is also possible to redirect the force by converting the amount of vertical movement into rotational movement, with a roll.

This means that the force is directed in such a way as to limit injuries.

The strategies adopted vary according to body characteristics, such as height, weight, strength of bones and joints, muscle strength, flexibility and coordination.

If the chosen strategy is insufficient to manage the momentum, it will result in injuries (muscles or bones).

​Roll to protect yourself

As you might expect, our research shows that one is more likely to roll after a higher fall.

The subjects in our study (nine men and two women) were between 1.58 and 1.87 meters tall and weighed between 54 and 92 kilograms.

At certain heights, a two-legged landing is not possible.

But in this study, the maximum fall height was only 2.4 meters and some tracers chose not to ride even at that height.

People with long legs are able to apply lower force over a longer period by gradually flexing their legs to absorb momentum, while shorter tracers roll for lower heights.

Heavier people have more momentum when falling from the same height as lighter people.

We have found that this influences the likelihood of a roll – heavier athletes are more likely to choose a roll landing when falling from a lower height.

Athletes with greater leg power absorb momentum with their legs to a greater drop height, and athletes with less leg power typically transition to a roll landing at lower heights.

Our file “<strong>PHYSICAL ACTIVITY</strong>”

If one cannot change height, one can adjust body mass and leg power through training.

In practice, this gives more flexibility to choose a landing strategy depending on the situation, rather than being forced to roll to dissipate momentum.

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This review was written by James L. Croft, Senior Lecturer in Motor Acquisition and Control at Edith-Cowan University (Australia).

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