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by Chris Kessler
You
step onto the wall. Some distance away from you is a similar wall, four
feet tall, with a thickness about the size of your palm. You think to
yourself, “I am going to precision this.” Your heart is racing,
your arms are out in front of you, ready to be swung down, and then
out again. Your knees are slightly bent. What do you do? You step down,
disappointed.
All
of us have experience this annoying, safe, limiting emotion called “Fear.”
It is what drives us, it is what gets our adrenaline pumping, and it
is what holds us back time and time again. However, something strange
happens when you are around others. You can step up to the wall and
jump, land, and laugh it off. Why? Inner-competition. Regardless of
our feelings on competition, we always seem to push ourselves just that
little bit further when we are with people.
Most
people who are reading this now do not have that “luxury” and must
rely on themselves for that extra push. But, how do we get it? How can
we will ourselves to do that which scares us? This is something that
people in every art, discipline, and sport have to deal with at one
point or another. There is no quick and easy cure for fear. It is not
a disease or an ailment. It is simply a part of life. Fear is what keeps
us alive. We must embrace it and understand it.
The
only way to overcome our own mental obstacles is to break it down into
smaller steps. You have already stepped up to the brink of improvement;
you have given yourself a challenge, now you must work towards the result.
To do this you must assess your movement before you move. In this way,
parkour is more mental than physical. Without knowing it, we all do
this. Whether we literally sit down and ponder the movement, or just
size up a jump seconds before our feet leave the ground.
If
you physically cannot will yourself to do any movement, step down or
away from the obstacle and think about it. Let me use the kong vault
as an example. There are four main parts to a kong: The run up, the
take off, the vault, the landing. Many people have trouble with this
vault because of the fear of clipping their feet and hitting the ground
on the opposite side of the obstacle. While these fears are valid, they
can be quickly dispersed with a careful assessment of the obstacle.
Step
1: The run up. While this may seem a trivial inclusion into a kong vault,
it is quite necessary. You may think to yourself, “I know how to run,
it is getting over the obstacle that is the problem!” However, the
beginning of any movement is foot placement. Stand close to fifteen
feet away from the wall that you will be vaulting. From here take long
steps (that will simulate your stride while running) towards the wall
to work out where will be the best foot to take off of and how close
to the wall you need to be.
Step
2: The take off. Generally, for kongs used to get over lower obstacles,
you need to use a 1-2 take off. That is, your less dominant foot is
placed down, and then in a shorter, more powerful stride, your dominant
food is placed down. While between your less dominant step and final,
dominant step, your knees should bend slightly, and your body should
begin to lean forward. Once your dominant foot has been placed, use
both feet to push yourself up and forward into your jump, bringing your
legs up behind you.
Step
3: The vault. While this is the step that brings people the most fear,
it is one of the least important. Your work is already done. Your body
is rising up and above the obstacle already, all you need to do now
is redirect that upward momentum into forward momentum. This is accomplished
with the use of your hands. Place them towards the opposite end of the
obstacle that you are vaulting. Too close to your side and you may not
clear it, depending on the obstacle. Reaching towards the opposite end,
your fingers may curl around the opposite edge, or simply lay your hands
flat on the top of the obstacle. This is where the “pull” occurs.
Pulling with your hands takes that upward momentum and transfers it
into immediate forward momentum. Yet, here comes the nerve-racking part.
What to do with your feet! While many beginners let their hands linger
on the wall and pull their feet through, this is not effective. To get
the most efficient, fluid vault, you must release your hands just before
your feet come through your arms.
Step
4: The landing. The landing can be one of two things, either a mirror
image of the take off, or a roll. This all depends on the height of
the obstacle. With a low obstacle, you should land in the 1-2 foot position.
Land on your less dominant foot, followed by your dominant foot, thus
putting yourself in an excellent position to run away. If your obstacle
is higher, then you need to land in a roll (there are excellent tutorials
for that in and around APK).
If
you can break down a seemingly simple vault into so many steps, then
you give yourself different pieces to work on. This allows you to see
the movement from all sides and hopefully eliminate the fear. If you
can imagine, realize, and work on all parts of the movement, then you
will know that you can do it.
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