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Well it’s that time of year, it’s cold out, the ground is snow covered, and Traceurs all across the country have gone into hibernation for the winter. I’ve made it my personal goal this winter to continue training as hard as I can and I’d like to see the community as a whole mirror my effort. That being said, I understand that there are some complications inherent in winter training but that doesn’t mean you can’t train every aspect of your Parkour game all through the winter.
Skills Training – First off, go out and train! After all of this past summer’s improvement it’d be a shame if you got rusty over the winter. Although it may be cold, training hard (and smart!) just once a week will help keep you motivated, focused and in rhythm. The most important aspect of winter training is the warm-up. Be sure to spend at least 15 minutes getting your heart rate up before doing anything rigorous. You can start with some jogging then progress to joint rotations and finish your warm-up with some dynamic stretching. Continuous exercise is best in the winter as it prevents your body temperature from dipping too low. When training in snow and ice, practice being light on your feet and work on your control. Avoid the ice when running and use this as an opportunity to train foot placement and precision landing technique. Wear gloves if you have to, just be sure not to rely on them too much for grip. It helps to dress in layers so you can take them off as you warm up. Try training basic techniques in a parking garage to avoid the elements. Always be aware of your environment and make sure to stay well within your limits when training on unforgiving winter terrain. In addition to outdoor training, it’s great if you can gain access to a gymnastic gym. If not there’s still plenty you can work on! As mentioned earlier all you need is a hard floor to drill QM and rolls. Practice rolling forwards and backwards, right and left out of QM. Stick to the ground and keep your center of gravity low. Really focus on how your body feels and use this time to work out any kinks in your rolls. You can also train static holds like L-sits, hand stands, planches, and elbow levers inside with almost no space at all. This might also be a good time to invest in a one inch thick mat to work on some tricking if you want to improve that over the winter. Fitness - Use the winter as an opportunity to work on the foundation of your PK game, your fitness. To work strength, get in a gym and work heavy lifts, ring dips, muscle-ups, hand stand push-ups, isometric holds, and squats. Without strength there is no power, speed, or agility. Make strength the focus of your winter training. Set definite (objective) goals for yourself( I’d like to be able to do a 20 lb weighted ring muscle-up or I’d like to hold a flag for 10 seconds) and then devise a workout routine that will help you meet those goals (See Steven Low’s How to construct your own workout routine: http://www.americanparkour.com/smf/index.php?topic=4663.0). Power is essential to a Traceur’s jumping and climbing abilities. To increase the power of your jumps train Olympic lifts, incorporate plyometric exercises into your workouts (only if you have a solid strength foundation), and most importantly jump! To improve upper body power train weighted pull-ups, weighted dips, clapping push-ups, ect. Last year Michigan Parkour had access to a full sized gym with a basket ball court. We’d get in there and have the club start out by doing 5 lengths of QM. Although it was grueling, the progress made was impressive. After just a few sessions like this improvements could be seen in every group member. Mix circuit training, burpies, and vaults (if feasible) into your workouts to keep your blood pumping and work on cardiovascular endurance. Train high rep squats, pushups, climb-ups and pull-ups to improve strength endurance. It’s easy to think “I’m going to be in doors, so there’s no way I can work agility”. This is simply not the case. There are many ways to build balance and agility indoors. You can jump rope, balance on a basketball, build yourself some precision trainers and practice in your house. If you have a gym with an indoor basketball court, you can work high knees and karaoke. Use your imagination, balance and agility training can and should be fun. Over all, just be creative in your winter training, if you put your mind to it you can use this time to make huge gains. Train smart, |
