WFPF NOTE: We like to take guest articles from time to time. George approached us with his idea for an article which discusses how parkour affects his life, but also the fact that his life is not just parkour. We think this is important for all practitioners to consider, because while Parkour is a fantastic, transformative and fun experience, its not the be all and end all of life.

Seeing things differently.

Parkour gives. I know this because I experienced it all myself. Read on to see why I think this amazing sport gives so much!

Parkour has been a part of my life for over 9 years now. And although I’ve cooled off it now after realising I’m not as passionate about it as I used to be I still do love it, it gave me a lot over the years and this article is about those things it gave me and what it will give you.

I think Parkour although similar in a lot of ways to other “extreme” sports or disciplines is actually rather special.

Some may not think so but for me it really is, this sport is actually moulding young or older men and women into better people, into action takers, into courageous beings. It is opening doors to what you really can achieve if you keep trying. The power you can gain from Parkour spreads like wild fire to other parts of your life if you allow it.

This sport for a lot of practitioners is actually opening doors to new areas of development, you start to realise health is important, you start to realise you can be calm and happy in the present moment as you fly between walls, rails and roofs and time seems to stop. You realise the only moment that matters is the one right here and now. In Parkour there is no past and future just moment by moment enjoyment.

Through this sport you realise what fear really is, you learn to be instinctive and trust your own intuition.

You also start moulding your individuality yet learn to connect with everyone around you, you start to express yourself through movement and learn that it doesn’t matter what anyone thinks as long as you are doing what you love to do.

Here are five things Parkour has given to me over the years –

1. Parkour made me aware of the ‘power’ that I hold
   Putting it simply it gave me confidence in myself, and it built my self-belief. Not just because of the successes but because when you build your abilities from the ground up and try, try and try again and fully apply yourself to something you realise that you really do have untold potential. And you’re the only one holding that back. It’s up to you to unleash it. If the thought that you are the creator isn’t giving you confidence in yourself than I don’t know what will. You hold the power to be your best self, just be present and allow it to be. Allow yourself to be fully you, express the power you already hold.
2. Parkour gave me rare experiences that many people don’t have
   Experiences like “night mission” adventures (I’m sure you all know about these), meeting new like-minded people that you instantly become friends with and doing/going places not many would normally go or do. How many people explore their cities/towns to the extent that Parkour practitioners do? How many people witness the views from the rooftops they never even looked up at like you do? How many people realise the power of connection with other people? The bond you can create when expressing yourself through the thing you love to do. How many people actually allow their inner child to come out and instead of seeing the world through “conditioned” eyes have stepped out of the box and are seeing it all as special and one big learning experience. One big adventure, not serious at all, just a life to be enjoyed.
3. Parkour gave me increased self awareness
   As I developed in Parkour I naturally became very self aware, I realised what my fears were, I realised what held me back, I became aware of my thought processes and I became aware of how present I was or wasn’t at any given time. I became aware of my ego, my selfishness and my selflessness. I became aware of what my body is capable of and I became aware of how I felt at any given time. It layed down the foundation to other areas of spiritual development that I now am interested in such as meditation, mindfulness and being giving/ spreading love. Self awareness is important and I talk more about this in an article I wrote recently so give it a look.
4. Parkour gave me lessons to learn from
   Parkour can often be very humbling and over the years it taught me harsh lessons, it taught me to stay more present, it taught me to be less egotistical (Often by me getting injured and no word of a lie I’ve had some rather horrid parkour “fails” that have left me incredibly humbled and a little sorry for myself afterward 😉 ). It taught me to be strong, it taught me to be resilient and it taught me to not give up on my goals. Whether it’s Parkour or another sport, or just plain old life there are always lessons to be learnt. You’ve just got to spot them, and make that change if needed!
5. Parkour gave me great friendships
   I’ve touched on this already but Parkour really gave me some great friendships, ones that I can still say are there no matter how long it is between seeing them. When you have a friendship that has been created by being like-minded, and expressing yourself through the passion you all love to do, it creates a very real bond. One that is almost instant. If I could suggest one thing for anyone out there trying to make new friends it would be to start that sport or passion you love and the people that suit you best will come into your life. They are the ones you want to keep around. The ones that see the same sh*t the way you do in this world. They are on the same wavelength it feels cool hanging around that.

For me this article is just a little what I would like to think of as inspiration for all you practitioners or soon to be practitioners. This is why we love what we do, no matter what it is. The experiences we gain, the bonds we make, and the challenge we can create for ourselves. We all want growth for ourselves, we all want to grow as individuals and Parkour is a great gateway for that.

Of course be happy and content as you are in this moment, but if you are into developing yourself and living your life fully and courageously than carry on pushing yourself. Whether it be by doing Parkour, or anything you love to do. It really doesn’t matter. Just get out there and experience life to it’s fullest.

But as I’ve found out if the passion for something dies out then just allow yourself to let it go and move on. If it has stopped serving you, don’t feel the need to keep it going. Move on and find new challenges. There are plenty of new experiences out there.

For more articles from me, and other such goodies head over to my website –  where you will find nearly 100 articles on a variety of topics to help with your self development.

My facebook page –  where you can keep up to date with what I get up to and what I’m working on.

Or my Twitter – @georgeinspire for some tweeting goodness!