If you’ve only ever been doing Freerun/Parkour training then the issue of conditioning has probably arisen. As with any other athlete you need to understand the need to condition your body for the rigors of play or competition. Little or no physical preparation for Freerun/Parkour simply predisposes you to injury and ultimately, stifles untapped potential. Proper strength and conditioning can facilitate your development as a practitioner. For the beginner almost any kind of training will yield an improvement. The type of program you follow will affect the training adaptations you achieve, so following a bodybuilding or powerlifting workout wouldn’t be the best course of action for obvious reasons.

I’m commonly asked for beginner workouts and how to start training forFreerun/Parkour, so I’ve come up with a series of fun workouts designed to train the different strength facets required. Each “animal” set up has a set of goals to achieve so that when you hit those goals you move towards the next stage so here are the Gibbon, Chimp and Gorilla templates. These are just simple ‘templates’ to give an idea of goal setting and structuring workouts but also a sense of progress. See where your strength targets lay and see what workout you match up too.

The Gibbon

The Gibbon is aimed at the beginner who wants to try conditioning work for the first time. With primarily bodyweight movements and low equipment needs, most people who begin strength and conditioning programs are often gymless. This is no obstacle to improving strength and conditioning though.

Goals for the Gibbon

6+Pull-ups.
10+ Inverted Rows.
4+ Pistol Squats each leg.
30 push ups in a minute.

Workout A

A. Push ups or Bench press (weight you can life for 15-20 reps) 3-4 sets of as many reps as possible stopping 1 rep before failure resting 1-2 minutes between sets.
B. Pull-ups 3 sets of as many reps as possible stopping 1 rep before failure resting 2-3 minutes between sets.
C. Pistol squats 2-3 sets of as many reps as possible stopping 1 rep before failure on each leg resting 2-3 minutes between sets.
D. Bodyweight Tricep extensions 3 sets of 8-12 reps.

Workout B

A.1 The Gibbon.
The exercise from which the workout gains its name, essentially your lifting your self pull ups style with two arms and lowering your self with one as slowly as possible. It is one of the main challenges of the program 4-6 sets of 1 gibbons on each arm.

or

A.2 Isometric Pull ups Pulling yourself up or jumping up into the top position of the pull up and hold that position for as long as possible. 6-10 sets of holds.
B. Inverted Row 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps.
C. Romanian Deadlifts or Glute Ham Raises 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps.
D. Bicep Curl variation, Zottoman curls, 2-3 sets of 6-10 reps.
E. Sit-up Variation 2-3 sets of 8-12 reps.

Workout C

Overhead Squats
Using a broom handle/barbell/sandbag/rucksack filled with stuff, be sure to keep your heels down and your back straight. 4 sets of 6-10 reps.
Kneeling Squat jumps 8 sets of 3 reps.
Overhead press variation 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps.
Bicep or Triceps Variation 2-3 sets of 6-10 reps.

The Chimp - Intermediate

If you achieve the goals of the gibbon or your more experienced and want to start with something a little more challenging you can move onto the ‘Chimp’.  At this point I expect the trainee to have some basic equipment or a gym membership. Here the loads get heavier and the workload gets larger. Were as the Gibbon was about introducing hypertrophy and strength endurance, the focus here is improving our Maximal strength with optional speed conditioning workouts.

Goals for the Chimp

10+Pull-ups.
15+ Inverted Rows.
8+ Pistol Squats each leg.
40 push ups in a minute 75%-100% BW (bodyweight) bench press 150% BW Deadlift.

Workout A

A. Bench Press or weighted/suspended Push ups, focus on explosively 2-3 warm-up then sets 3 sets of 3 reps using a weight you can lift for 4-6 reps.
B. Dumbbell Bench Press or Weighted Push up Variation 3-4 sets of 6-10 reps.
C. Pull ups/chin ups 3-4 sets 8-12 reps.
D. Plate or Barbell Front Squats/Over head or Front Squat Lunges 2-3 sets 8-12 reps.

Workout B

A. Deadlift or Trap Bar Deadlift 2-3 warm up sets followed by 3-5 sets of 3 reps using weight you can lift for 5-6 reps.
B. Inverted Row 3-4 sets of as many reps as possible stopping 1-2 before failure.
C. Overhead Press or bodyweight tricep extensions 2-3 sets of 8-12 reps.
D. Goodmornings or Glute Ham Raises 2-3 sets of 6-10 reps.
E. Bent over flyes 2-3 sets of 12-15 reps.

Workout C

A. Push ups for reps 3 sets as many reps as possible.
B. Front or Overhead Squats 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps.
C. Seated Row or Chest Supported Row 3-4 sets of 6-10 reps.
D. Bicep Curl Variation 2-3 sets of 8-12 reps.
E. Leg Raises or Dragon Flags 3 sets for as many reps as possible stopping 1 or 2 before failure.

Additional Conditioning workouts

Here you can introduce an extra conditioning workout if you want. Simply finding some open space is all you need and possibly some markers. I like using the Illinois drill as a speed and conditioning tool. Its pretty straight forwards looking to take about 30 seconds rest between each drill after 3 runs take a 3 minute rest then perform another 3 sets so you should be doing 4 sets of 3 runs this should take about 25 minutes and up to 35-45 minutes with warm-up and cool down.

The Gorilla - Advanced

The objective of the Gorilla is further development of maximum strength to what would be considered high levels. A 1.5 x BW bench press and double bodyweight deadlift is no mean feet and reaching this level is no mean feat. For those who easily achieve the goals of the wolf the gorilla (strength and size focus) is the next step. There should be a real focus here on performing reps as fast as possible.

Goals Of The Gorilla

12+Pull-ups.
20+ Inverted Rows.
10+ Pistol Squats each leg.
45+ push ups in a minute 150% BW bench press 200% BW Deadlift.

Workout A

A. Squat or Deadlift 5-8 sets of 3-5 reps.
B. Bench Press Variation or Push ups on rings or chains 3-4 sets of 8-12.
C. Bent Over Row or Inverted Row 3-4 sets of 8-12.
D. Bicep curls or Triceps variation.

Workout B

A. Bench Press Variation 5-8 sets of 3-5 reps.
B. Pull ups 3-4sets of 6-10 reps.
C. Squat Variation 3-4 sets of 6-10 reps.
D. Romanian Deadlifts or Good Mornings 3-4 sets of 6-10 reps.

Workout C

A. Vertical jumps 8 sets of 3 reps 1-1.5 minutes between sets.
B. Pull ups or Inverted Rows for Max reps or pull up holds for time 3 sets of max reps or time, 1 minute between sets.
C. Suspended or med ball push-ups 3-4 sets of 6-10 reps.
D. Weighted Pistol Squats 2-3 sets of 6-10 reps.
E. Sit-up Variation 2-3 sets 10-15 reps.

Once you achieve this stage in development the main focus of training would look to turn to improve rate of force development or power performance as its also known.

Feel free to leave comments at the end of this article and comment on how many of the strength goals for each animal you can achieve……

More About The Author - Will Wayland

Will’s academic background, coupled with his ‘under the bar” experience , has proven to be a recipe for success. Will has worked with athletes of all levels, from youth sports to the professional. Will specialises in developing the body for the goal of enhancing performance. Heavily inspired by russian conjugate squence system his training methods are used by athletes, bodybuilders, and fitness enthusiasts of all ages and from all walks of life. He has a Bsc honours degree and HND in Applied Sports Science from the University of Teesside, and he specializes in the muscular and neurophysiology of human movement and performance. He currently trains, consults, and lectures around the country. You can find him on the net at http://williamwayland.blogspot.com

Our intention is for the information here to be used as an open resource, so anyone wishing to use our material on their own websites may do so. All we request is that a courtesy email is sent to us first at parkour@urbanfreeflow.com and that a link back to Urban Freeflow is provided and a credit given to the author of any articles used.

Disclaimer

All of the information contained within these articles on the Urbanfreeflow.com website are provided for informational and educational purposes. This includes any videos, fitness programs, fitness workouts and general articles. In no event shall Urban Freeflow or any individual or company involved with the development of these articles be liable for special, indirect, incidental or consequential damages of any nature, including but not limited to personal injury, loss of anticipated profits or claims from third parties. If you are unsure about your fitness levels, please consult with a doctor before you carry out any exercises demonstrated here.

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