NYC Part 1: Exploring & Women's Jam

Week 19: NYC
Life has been crazy lately but I want to get this post out while I'm still sore from the event! (And while I can still remember everything we did).  This past weekend was the Third Annual Northeast Women's Jam in New York City.  There were about 25-30 women this year from all over the U.S. and Canada who came together to support each other in our unique position as women in the parkour community.  This year's schedule included Tompkins Square Park, the Brooklyn Museum, a BBQ and sleepover at Gym Park, a mini symposium, and training at Central Park including Bethesda Terrace, the Ramble and Sanctuary.

I haven't been to NYC since the 8th grade (which was super touristy) so I thought I'd start my trip a little early and go visit my friend, AR, who lives in Brooklyn.  I took a bus up from DC and got there around lunch on Friday.  My friend met me at the bus stop so I wouldn't get lost in the big bad city.  Back in Brooklyn, we walked around her neighborhood and had lunch at the delicious Cafe Ghia where I ordered a potato bowl (basically all of the deliciousness of brunch--eggs, potatos, bacon, cheese--mixed together in a bowl) and enjoyed a Bee's Knees Honey Latte.  Yum.  Next, we headed into the city.

On the L into Manhattan, my friend and I were talking when all of a sudden she interrupted me, they're gonna dance... pointing to the other end of the car.  Eyebrows raised, I turned to see a group of four guys about 12-17 years old gathering everyone's attention and setting down a boombox.  And then, sure enough, they started dancing.  Doing tricks with their hats, hip hop-style movement, and playing with the poles to swing and flip around.  Most people on the train were uninterested, probably used to this sort of performance, but I couldn't get enough.  This would never happen in Washington, D.C. and if it did, I'm sure a security officer somewhere would find a reason to stop it ASAP.

Already feeling a bit overwhelmed by the city, I was relieved to find myself on the elevated train tracks turned beautiful green space called the High Line.  It was perfectly calm and refreshing with lots of plants and trees and grassy spots and benches.  A wonderful escape.

After a lazy happy hour with friends and dinner back at AR's flat, I got in bed early to be well-rested for my adventures the next day!

Saturday
We started the day at Tompkins Square Park which has three different bar set ups that provide an awesome place to train.  You can climb in and out, on top of, around, under and over the bars.  I learned a few new moves and we played a really fun new game that's a creative version of tag.  I want to bring it back to the gym in DC--giving credit to the creator, of course!

After playing at TSP for a couple of hours, we headed out to grab some lunch, but not before stopping at Pogopalooza! You heard me, Pogopalooza is a thing.  Extreme pogo-ing.  They had a whole obstacle course set up (that we would have loved to use for parkour training) that the contestants were pogo-ing on.  Backflips.  Kick flips.  Jumping and other craziness.  There was even a kid from St. Petersburg.  This is serious sh**.  Not part of the original plan, but we couldn't resist once we saw it.

Next, we went to play at the Brooklyn Museum.  There were lots of things to do there including wall runs, balance, and jumping.  I learned a new vault on the rails and after what felt like hours of playing with jumps in the grassy step area, I finally managed to plyo the entire set.  It was an awesome feeling because after doing precisions up and down the steps for a while, I was convinced I couldn't do it without a pause in between.  But after resting and going back to it, I finally did it! Woohoo!

As the group started tiring out, some of us got fro-yo from a nearby food truck and we all hungout by the wall before heading towards Gym Park to BBQ and spend the night.

Gym Park was a little gymnastics center that was possibly the cleanest gym I've ever seen.  Seriously.  So.  Clean.  I was ecstatic as usual to play on the spring floor and we set up a couple of really cool obstacle courses using the mats, rings, bars, balance beams, and the big round mat with a hole in the center... which is surprisingly difficult to land inside when swinging past it on the rings.

Finally, it was time for lights out and I settled into my bed... err... the gym floor... with a sweatshirt as my pillow and my body in front of the fan.  This was not very well thought out because I woke up in the middle of the night freezing with the fan blowing on my toes.  Luckily, one of the girls noticed me curled up in the fetal position and offered me her blanket.  Thank you!!

To Be Continued...

Girls Parkour Meet Up #1

For the last several weeks, K and I have been in the process of planning the first ever DC girls parkour meet up.  It finally became a reality this weekend (Saturday 7/20) at Gateway Park in Rossylyn, VA.  It took a surprising amount of work for a small get together, but we made it through the hiccups and were able to put on an awesome event.  There were about a dozen of us which was the perfect size for our first meet up.  Most girls were from the nearby DC/VA area but we had one come all the way from Harpers Ferry!

There were a lot of first-timers so we started with a fun warm up and then went into the basics.  We had several different stations in various parts of the park working on jumping & landing, rolling, don't-fall-in-the-lava, vaults, balance, and cats.  The park is an awesome location because there's so many things you can play on and there's a lot of space to spread out.  You just have to please the park police and help them understand you're not there to reenact a crazy Russian parkour video... I actually had to tell them we weren't planning on jumping off the catwalks or doing anything "extreme, dangerous, or risky".  I do not have a death wish, Ma'am.  We're here to train, play and have fun in a safe and respectful manner.  It took a few conversations, but I think we're almost on the same page...

It was weird being in a "coaching"/leading role instead of training with everyone.  While I wasn't standing still the whole time, it was different for me to be focused on everyone else's skills rather than my own.  It was fun to watch others make progress though, and to get feedback from them.  I loved being able to create such a fun event for everyone.  K and I worked really well together, switching back and forth as we taught the next skill and introduced the next game.  Overall just a really fun and awesome day! And very hot and sweaty... we picked one of the hottest days of the summer.  Oops.

The meet up lasted about two and a half hours, concluding with a stretch in the shade.  I think the girls who came had a great experience.  A couple admitted that it wasn't their thing but they were glad they tried it, while others said they couldn't wait to come back for next month's meet up! Yay!

"Do a Backwards Giraffe!"

Week 18: Day One

This week's theme is jumping.  So tonight, we worked on rolling.

Class started with a jogging lap around the block while passing balls to each other along the way.  We only dropped a ball once (totally not my fault... okay, maybe) and had to do one burpee.  Afterwards, we each settled into a corner and started to work on our rolls.  Forwards, right, and left.  We focused a lot on form and proper technique.

While learning the sideways rolls, someone pointed out that it was a lot like a video game roll that you would use so you can continue shooting.  Playing off of this idea, a game was created.  One person would be in the spotlight, awaiting directions to roll one way or the other.  But as soon as they were told which way to roll, we could throw balls at where they were standing so if they hesitated too long they'd get hit.  And when they completed their roll, they had a ball to throw back at us.

Things got confusing when we started using backwards rolls and two rolls at once and then somebody yelled Giraffe! and this really confused the roller.  How does one do a giraffe? A better question is how does one do a backwards giraffe?

Moving on to slightly more serious things... as we were working on dive rolls on the big red mat, I remembered I made a deal with R, one of the instructors, that I would get my kong vault on the box downstairs (big square about waist-chest high and a few feet wide).

Since we made this pact (he agreed to help me achieve this goal), I've been practicing a lot of ground kongs, and doing a standing hip drive (standing in front of a box, then bending my knees slightly and driving my hips up to the ceiling), and working on my split foot take off.  Apparently it paid off.

I went downstairs with R to work on it at the end of class tonight.  I started with 10 standing hip drives to get in the zone and then started taking off from a few steps away, just focusing on getting my hips up and onto the box, not trying to clear it yet.  My feet were going way farther than where I planted my hands which means I was getting the hip part right.  I kept getting closer and closer to the other side of the box which was awesome, but then I freaked out a bit.  I got to the point where I could totally clear it but my left foot kept tapping down, like I was scared to just fly forwards and trust my feet to follow.

I kept pushing though and when I finally cleared that box (and did it five more times so it would stick) I screamed with excitement and jumped in the air.  WOOHOO!! I DID IT!! It's been about four months since I started training and it's taken me just about that amount of time to get a good kong vault.  I talked to four different instructors for help, and several other traceurs tried to help me during that time too.  Finally, some combination of their advice and my training paid off.  It definitely made my night.  Now I just have to practice it often enough that I don't go back to my fearful ways.

Note: If my grammar & syntax has gone out the window lately, it's because I'm so busy at work that I can't even remember that someone gave me money for a taxi unless I write it down.  True story.

Making the Impossible Possible

I recently stumbled upon an article written in 2011, 4 Reasons Why Trying Parkour Can Ruin Your Self-Esteem, about a man who tries parkour to fulfill his dreams of becoming Spider-Man and is frustrated and overwhelmed when he realizes that parkour is... well, difficult.  I realize the article is two years old, but I think the themes are still relevant, even as parkour becomes more popular.  I posted the article on my Facebook because there was a snippet of it that I found endlessly amusing.  You can read that excerpt here:

Person: Excuse me, are you going to do anything on that wall?

Me: I'm just- I don't- Not really- I'm, like, just looking at it right now, trying to find out what kind of ... how to do it. What sort of angle I should take when I do ... something, at this wall. And if I should, maybe, use hands? Or feet? On it? I don't- We don't have walls at my other gym, or we do, but they're not part of anyone's routine, ever, they just do ... like, wall stuff. So I guess- No, I'm not going to do anything on this wall, because I don't actually understand the question.

Person: Well I'm going to run up that wall and do a back flip off it.

Me: That sounds good, you should do that. I'm just going to go lean on this pole over here, out of your way.

Other Person: Hey, you doing anything with that pole? I was about to walk straight up it, using a method that I understand, somehow.

Me: That's cool. I was probably just going to go ... sit on a toilet until the gym closes.

Third Person: I'm actually next for the toilet, I'm gonna do handstands on it, maybe flush it with my delts or whatever.

Me: Cool. Very cool.

I thought it was funny because I've often found myself spinning around like an idiot trying to find somewhere to stand so I won't be in the way.  However, a pk instructor I know commented that reading about these experiences make him sad—particularly statements like "a lot of the skills you need for parkour can't really be taught".  I agreed with him, but then his comment stuck with me.  He's right.  It is really sad that someone had this experience.  That as traceurs/traceuses we have somehow failed and made parkour seem like this unattainable mystical talent that not everyone can have.  And that's just not true.

Some of the the article is accurate—people are watching you, there's nowhere to hide, and everything hurts in uniquely humiliating ways.  Three of his four reasons.  I'll get to the fourth in a moment but first I want to address the first three.

Yes, people are watching you.  Some gyms (just like gymnastics centers) have an observation area.  And chances are, the other people training are watching you too.  But in my experience, they're watching because a) what you're doing is awesome or b) they want to help you do it better or maybe even c) they want to try it too.  We can't all be awesome all the time.  But if I mess up while people are watching, no one points and laughs or gets bored and walks away.  Usually they're laughing with me because I'm laughing at myself or they're making sure I'm alive and can keep training.

Next, there's nowhere to hide (as shown through the excerpt above).  This is very true.  Sometimes if I want to just take a break, I have no idea where I should sit/stand because I'm probably in the way unless I leave the room entirely.  This happens in other sports too.  Surfers drop in on each other's waves or don't have patience for the newbie who's been sitting on their board in the line up for the last 30 minutes making friends with the fish instead of riding waves.  But advanced traceurs and beginners have equal right to the space and a beginner should never feel like they're in the way.  The best part about parkour is you can do it anywhere so yes, you're always in the way but the flip side of that is there's always another way to go.

And then there's the aptly named "Parkour Muscle".  His best explanation of why your entire body will hurt after training.  I don't have much to say on this other than yes, you will be sore.  But I don't see that as a reason to deter anyone from training.  If anything, it shows you you're not as fit as you could be.

And finally, the reason that I disagree with: no one can help you.  He mentions that unlike in conventional gyms, parkour "equipment" (your surroundings: walls, stairs, railings, etc.) does not have instructions.  Because you don't need instructions.  Parkour is not supposed to be complicated.  It's supposed to be about interacting with your environment and finding the most efficient way to overcome obstacles in your path.  You don't need a manual to do that.  You just need to be able to move.  It may come more naturally to some people.  It may take a person three weeks to learn a movement that takes someone else one hour.  But I do not believe that there is anyone in the world who flat out cannot do parkour.

Whether you're a dancer, a hockey player, a tuba player, or a painter.  A lot of people roll their eyes at me and say well of course you can do parkour, you were a gymnast/cheerleader.  Sure, I have strength and flexibility and I have the ability to set goals and learn physical movement.  But there are also disadvantages, like the way traceuses absorb their momentum rather than "sticking it" or rebounding the way a gymnast would.  A trapeze artist might excel in drills that require upper body strength but struggle when it comes to leg strength.  And an adult may struggle with controlling their fears more than a 15-year old.  But that doesn't mean they can't overcome it.  More than physical background, what matters is mindset, and a willingness to fail.  You are not going to walk in the gym and walk out as a ninja.  I fall.  I get bruises.  I get calluses and rips.. and more rips.  I try and fail.  I try and fail again.  But I keep trying.  And eventually I make it.  And that's the best feeling in the world.

I didn't expect to have so much to say on this but as soon as I started typing, my thoughts started flooding out.  Because where I train, community is important.  Helping each other and supporting each other is important.  And most of all, we believe that anyone can do what we do.  That being said, please don't go outside and try to run up your neighbor's wall or roll over the hood of your car.  What you should do is find a local training center or certified instructor who can teach you the basics in a safe and encouraging way.  And if you're still not convinced, if you're sitting there thinking that's nice, A, but I'm just not in shape/coordinated/badass/etc. enough to do this then please tell me how I can change your mind.

Power and Flow

Week 16: Day Two
The warm up started with 50 split foot "dunks" using tennis balls and the high bars.  This was perfect for me because my split foot take off needs some serious TLC.  It's still a bit of a struggle but I'm not outright failing anymore so there's progress.  To complete our warm up, we did some joint mobility and got ready for our first exercise.

Vault, touch the wall, turn and vault.  First for speed.  Then for minimum steps leading up to and in between the vaults.  This helped us focus on efficiency and flow.  Then we combined these concepts and aimed for speed and flow.  While trying to find the most efficient way to do this route without slowing down, I figured out that tic tac-ing off the wall was easier than halting enough to touch it and push off to go back the other direction.

Our course was expanded to include a few more obstacles—some rails, vault boxes, and mats. Again, we went through for speed, minimum steps, flow, and efficiency.  Because most of us were still struggling with the flow concept, P gave us 1 burpee for every awkward momentum-killing pause we took on the course.  I was trying not to kill my flow so I was very focused on continuing my momentum no matter what.  So focused that when I mentally paused at the rail, my body did not and I got completely tangled up.  After laughing at myself, I was able to get myself back on top of the bar and finish out the course while the class cheered me on.

After we finished playing with that, P announced that we were going to work on his (least) favorite vault—dash vaults.  I actually got so excited I started bouncing a little bit.  I love dash vaults.  As P started explaining the mechanics of the vault to some of the class, I started running dashes with a few others.  We started taking off from farther away to challenge ourselves.  To really push this concept, P turned the vault box so there was more obstacle for us to clear.  This worked really well because it forced me to lean back a little more which helped me fly over the box.  Next, we tried a couple of dashes for height instead of distance.

We had four of the squishy blocks on top of each other.  I didn't know if I'd make it over but the first one I tried I flew across the obstacle, bouncing a teensy bit off the end.  Holy S***! I yelled as I came out of it.  P wanted to catch it on film, but I couldn't do it again.  I get weird when I know the camera is watching for something specific.  If it's there and filming in general, that's fine.  But when it's like okay, do move x then I get distracted.  I did it a couple more times but kept bouncing my butt off the end.  It was still a very impressive butt bounce.

We headed downstairs for the second part of class where we brought out pretty much everything you can vault over to set up a course.  After one practice run, we started running the course for time.  It always takes me a couple of times before I'm really comfortable and flowy, which means it took me a few rounds to shave my time down from 20+ seconds to 19+ seconds and finally to my best time which was a little over 17 seconds.  To give you an idea of what on earth that means... P and B were the most efficient on the course last night and they were running just under 15 seconds.

It was a cool exercise because it pushes your strength physically and mentally.  Physically, because you're running at max. speed while staying in control.  Mentally, because there were some obstacles that I knew there were more efficient ways to get over, but I wasn't quite comfortable trying those ways.  I knew I could do it, but it freaked me out.  Especially when I was going so fast.  Something I'm constantly working on.  Controlling my fear and trusting my body.

Check out this awesome video of class on the APK Academy Facebook Page.  I'm the one in the green shirt and obnoxiously bright shoes :)