James Wise - Training Down Under

Recent things

2008-05-11T18:18:00.003+10:00

WOO! Lots of things have gone pretty good this past week, namely I got a job, working fairly good hours. I am now a kitchen assistant at a local restaurant, working Friday and Saturday nights. This means I now can save up to go to Canberra in October for the National Gathering, and I can start saving up for a trip back to England!

Also, my knees feel way better, I did a bit of training today. I think next weekend, after resting a little this week, I should be fine. The other day I woke up and just had this feeling they were better.

My raise up handstands are nearly there, here is a little video of how they are going.

Doesn't look that good but I was pleased with the progression I'm making on them. I think in another week I'll have them; all I need to do is be able to press a little more.

One more thing: I want to wish my friend Gainey many thanks, for being a great friend and being one of the main people I keep in touch with regularly from England, he's helped me loads with my training and stuffs. You are a Gainstar mister Gainizzles! Hope you have/had a great time training at Teg's =]

-Wizey

Hanstands and Stuff

2008-05-04T17:53:00.007+10:00

Recently I have been having a problem with my knees. I have obviously stopped training and rested, which has been going pretty good. I am aiming to rest for around a month. I can walk and run fine, and do a little bit of technical training, provided a thorough warm up and cool down is done. Also, I don't do any training involving my quads for too long, as I think this is the problem - I reckon I have really early stages of Osgood-Schlatters. Luckily it hasnt progressed far, so I think some rest shall make it good.

Because of this, I have decided to start training handstands a lot more, and my aim is to get raise-up handstands. Since deciding to start this training on Wednesday night, after speaking to Liam, I have done handstands each day. Against a wall for strength, and then kicking away from it for balance, as well as just doing ones on logs or rocks. On Thursday I did about 50, on Friday I did 70, Saturday I did about 50 on different surfaces, and today I did 100. Next Thursday I will update with how they are going. At the moment I am still developing the strength for raise-ups, and working on the balancing techniques - so far it is going good.

This is a video I made last month with some training around my village:

and here is a picture of some handstands down at the creek:

Peace,

-Wizey =]

Climbup Progression and New Penrith Video

2008-04-07T21:00:00.002+10:00

Training is going great - I finally got climbups pretty good. So I filmed a few. Here ya go:

And Penrith scene is getting great, its a lot of fun. New video, last one was 6 months ago. Time flies. Robbie edited this one. Turned out really great:

-Peace from Down Under, x

Hawkesbury Gazette Article

2008-03-27T07:12:00.002+11:00

Here's an article I did with the Hawkesbury Gazette about parkour, focusing on my journey and training at my park.

-Wizzles

Easter Weekend

2008-03-23T13:05:00.007+11:00

Finally, a few days off school to catch up on training and assignments. Pah, as if I'd do those when I could be out training.

Anyways, I headed off to Penrith on Saturday, despite the downpour. I met Antek and Zewelli, who are both from Sydney area, and we decided to head to Sydney instead. No one else turned up in Penrith, so the decision was pretty easy. After an hour and a half train ride, we ended up at Wynyard station, and from there we walked to a spot Antek and Zewelli had trained at previously. It is a really great place, filled with railings, AND it's undercover, so rain didnt get there. Sydney was dry anyways when we arrived.
I wanted to get rail precisions better, and just be generally more confident on railings. The railings varied, thinner white ones, and thicker red ones. After gaining some confidence, I was doing sequences of precisions, but making sure to stick them. There are many other things to try, for example a really large arm jump, which I thought was out of my reach, so I didn't go for it. I strung together a few runs, that involved precisions and swinging around lamposts. Still, there is plenty of stuff there to occupy yourself for a few hours, and I can't wait to go back there again.
The next spot we headed to was around Circular Quay, and it is basically lots or stones, like fake ruins almost. It's a great spot for precisions, many different surfaces, angles etc really help mix things up and keep you on your toes. I got climbups on some of the taller stones really good.
We three felt pretty tired after these two spots, so we grabbed some late lunch, and got on a train back to Town Hall, for a cool down and tricking session at Darling Harbour. I tryed my new sideflip technique, and pulled off a few tricks. Antek did some nice piked fronts and weird 180 sort of sideflips. It was a great day, fairly tiring as well.
Oh, one more thing. There is a wall at Town Hall, where I practise climbups each time I go to Sydney, and monitor my progress. Started off with bad single armed ones, then bad double armed ones. I tried one on Saturday and got a really explosive pullup part, and ended up with nearly straight arms on top of the wall, I was well chuffed.

Feeling pretty tired, I decided not to go to Sydney again today, so I slept in till around 9, and then talked to Gainey for a bit. He convinced me to film some stuff outside, so I got dressed and showered, and went out. Due to there being heavy rain yesterday, the ground at the park was wet, so if I wore shoes it would transfer to the wood and make that wet too. Barefootz it was then.
I have to say it was a great training session, I was feeling strong and stuff, so I filmed some muscle ups on varying thickness of bars. I have the goal post, which is thick, yellow bar which is perfect size, and the 3 bars at the park which are thin. They are all rounded, but provide different challenges. My muscleups on the yellow bars were the smoothest, and I think I did around 20 in total throughout the session. Some of them were single armed or nearly double armed, but I was striving to get double arms smoother. I filmed two really good double armed ones consecutively, but the camera angle didnt capture it fully. Anyway it was really fast and smooth. I also worked on some runs through the park, which feel so much better barefooted. I put my shoes back on later on and did a small precision, and I didn't feel half as good as with barefoot.
Gainey also wanted me to film some flips, so I headed over to the sand pit, as the grass was a bit wet and slippy to do them on. My sideflips have improved a lot, as have my backflips. I kept overotating on my backflips, as I didn't expect to land them that good. I got those nicely, and thought I'd try flashkicks, which are pretty hard, and still need to figure out what technique to use. Relatives of a neighbour were there, and were asking me about what I do etc and took some nice pictures on their camera of some flips.
I really wanted to film some climbups, so I went to a wall that I thought might be good. However it isn't, as the bricks stick out on the top a bit, making it harder. I can pullup really fast but the bricks on top make the transition harder. Once I get a bit stronger I'll be able to do them on there really well. Here's the video I made today:

New Media Thingz All Around!

2008-03-11T19:24:00.008+11:00

It's been a while since I updated this, I really should do it more often.

To start with I will show you the newspaper article myself and Robbie did with the Penrith Star. It went really well, and there were no inaccuracies or misinformation, so it was pretty successful.

The article has sparked some more interest in Penrith, and we have had a few more people join us in Penrith each Saturday. It also caught the eye of the Hawkesbury Gazette, who interviewed me at my park in Kurrajong. The article is due to be published tomorrow, so I will upload a scan of it.

I have made a two new videos since my last blog post: One is a training video at my park, and the other is of a day I had in Sydney with Robbie, Antek and Max. It was a great day, and we explored some new areas of the City. Probably one of the best training sessions I have had. Anyways, here are the videos:

Light As A Feather

Sydney Parkour - 24th Feb 08

I had my birthday on the 11th of February, and I got a new camera - it is a bit like my old one but with so many better features, namely the picture quality, better video quality and the ability to record in widescreen AND with sound this time. I have been taking some pictures each week in Penrith, and they have turned out pretty good so far. Here is a selection, the rest can be found on here: http://s56.photobucket.com/albums/g199/Wizey7/

Along with taking pictures in Penrith, Robbie and I are creating a new Penrith Sessions video, this time the aim being to show the growth of parkour in Penrith, as well as to show some new areas and movements. Filming is taking place throughout March, and Robbie is doing the final edit.

So, apart from media-whoring, what else have I been doing?

Well, mainly training at my park - conditioning and working on new movements on rails and bars. I can really feel a sense of freedom and ease of movement there now, and I also feel ownership over the park; I use it practically everyday and hate to see it messy and littered.
The other day whilst training I just felt so alive and confident, and could feel a real progression in my strength and abilities. Muscle ups and climbups are getting better - I have been practising technique for both, as that was the trouble I had with it. One week in Penrith I couldn't do muscle ups on the green bars, then after working on technique, the next week I could do loads.

I did a big conditioning session on Monday with a friend, partly for a PE assignment, mainly to try some new things. Highlights included around 120 metres of lunges and then a sprint back; handstand walking across a wall and quadrupedal. The session was mainly leg and ab based, and thats what aches at the moment. One day this week I'll do a more focused upper body session, most likely on Thursday.

OOOH! Just remembered, I also had a really great gym session in Homebush for my birthday, and Danny Ilabaca was there, as he was over for a K-Swiss promotion. He remembered me from the WWJ workshop in Lincoln, which was cool. That night I learnt back tucks, and have got them on grass as well now. So yer, basically an awesome month of training.

That's all from me for now, good luck in all your own forms of movement. Happy trainingz!

-Wizzles

Updates

2008-01-23T14:35:00.000+11:00

Well, I haven't updated this in a while, I have just been busy with training and things. It is nearly the end of the holidays, and I have managed to get quite a lot of training in. So, what's been happening since I last updated:

Training in Penrith each Saturday - I have accomplished a few new movements and me and Robbie have found some good new areas. We have also been experimenting with new movements and such in our current spots. "Epic Spot" still is epic, and we spend quite a bit of our day there.

Had a session in Sydney, where I got a big precision near Darling Harbour. I looked at it when I first went to Sydney, and thought I would never be able to do it. Leading up to the city session, I had noticed big improvements in my precision distance and control, so I knew it was right on the edge of my limit, but I went for for it. Did a few nice front flips at Tumbalong Park aswell.

A few days after that, I went to a gym session in Homebush, my first one which was really awesome. I got to practise some new tricks into the foam pit, and I got piked fronts aswell. I am going to try those at home in the sandpit when I get around to it. I also did 5 double armed muscle ups that night, which I was really pleased with. I got them pretty easily aswell, with hardly any swing.
I slept at Robbie's house that night, and had a full day training in the Mountains with him. It was a really tiring day, a lot of walking, and a lot of training, but it was well worth it. I was so tired the next day.

I haven't been able to train at my full potential for the past week and a bit, due to a back injury I sustained whilst learning to waterski, but that is nearly better now. I think it is the muscles between my shoulder blades that got pulled and stretched and used for the first time extensively.

And the highlight of the holidays so far has been an interview with a journalist named Gemma, along with photoshoot with a photographer in Penrith. She contacted me after seeing the Penrith training video and being really amazed (looking back at it, I dont think it is that good). That took place yesterday, and Robbie and I had a great time. Some photos will probably look a bit faggy and staged, but oh well. The interview went great, we chatted for nearly an hour, and Robbie and I talked extensively about parkour and a lot of its aspects. The interview was less based on the movements in parkour, more about why we do it, the philosophies behind it, and mine and Robbie's journey so far in parkour. The article and some photos will be in either this week's Penrith Star or next week's, depending on space, and all the photos will be available online as a slideshow. When its done I'll link the page and maybe scan the paper.

It is my birthday soon, and my goal was to get double armed muscle ups, and seeing as I got them, I made my goal to get them consistent and regular. I can do them on certain bars, but not all. So I am doing conditioning to work on the transition and pull up part a bit more. Once I have that goal, I will keep doing them until I can do more and more consecutively, whilst working on my other goal of getting raise up handstands.

Photos, videos and newpaper things to come soon,

-J

Training 17.12.07

2007-12-17T15:08:00.000+11:00

I am going to Nelson Bay tomorrow for a few days, so I had a good couple hours training today. I filmed a little video, which I am pretty proud of, however the camera makes a few things look smaller than they actually are. Anyways, enjoy:

-J

Holidays Have Arrived!

2007-12-07T11:51:00.000+11:00

Finally, my summer holidays have arrived. I left England before my summer holiday, and then came here to face another 2 terms of school. It has all been worth it though, as now my long awaited holiday is here. I aim to progress a lot this holiday and reach a few of my goals, mainly double armed muscle ups and better climbups. There should be a lot of training and exploring in Penrith with Robbie, and hopefully some Sydney guys will come down. I also plan on going to Sydney quite a bit aswell, there are a lot of things I want to get there.

WOO HOOO 8 weeks of holiday!

-J

Penrith and Sydney

2007-11-20T07:04:00.000+11:00

Instead of having a conditioning session on Friday, I did more of a technical one, and felt so good about it. I managed to get a few new things at the park,my climbups felt a lot better and I came so close to getting a big cat-precision from a rail. This great session put me in a good mood for Penrith the next day. When I met Robbie, we went straight to out "epic" spot, and I got the cat-precision I had wanted last week. We also started filming a video of our training in Penrith. We found a great new spot and trained there for a while after going to our usual places, however we didnt get enough footage to make a decent length video, and hadn't trained at all the spots we had wanted. So, Robbie suggested we come back early tomorrow morning and finish it, then head off to Sydney at midday.
We met up again the next day and trained a the spots we hadn't visited the day before, and we managed to get this underbar at a park, and did a few runs that incorporated it. We both felt pretty pleased with ourselves, there were a few things that usually I wouldn't have gone for, but I trusted myself and knew that I could do them, so I was in a good mood. We got a train to Sydney at around 12:30 and we met Max on there. We had a great chat on the way to Sydney, and then we set off for the Basics class.
I managed to get almost all the way along the rock wall, it is roughly 100 metres long, and we traversed across it. I then got a large wall run, for which there was some applause, and we trained in a tree for a while. Myself and Wiseno both laughed a lot at an Asian lady who fell over when rollerskating, it was so funny.
It was a great weekend of training, which I haven't had in a while, and the video at the end of it was great. Enjoy:

Penrith Training 27/10/07

2007-10-27T22:14:00.000+10:00

I had a great session in Penrith today with Robbie. It is the first time I have been there purely to train, and what a time. We both explored around different areas and spots we had seen before, and the only place we didnt get time to go to (I had to get a bus, I think Robbie explored though) was the council and performing arts place near the Plaza. All the spots we found were really great, with a lot of varying things to do, and so close to each other aswell. Both of us accomplished a lot of things, and we are going to make it a regular thing. Next week I am taking my camera to film a training video of both of us, so you will see the things we did and so I don't have to list all the amazing things.

I cant wait till next week!

-J

Conditioning and Plans

2007-10-22T19:23:00.000+10:00

I started my new conditioning routine today. Last week I had a rest from any training, as the weekend really took it out of my elbows. So for the week I rested and started to draw up a new conditioning program, which includes lots of stretching, mobility and of course strength work. I did the first part today, which was upper body, and it went really well, as well as I had expected. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the week now. On Thursday it is another upper body day, but after school I am playing soccer, and when I get back it is dark. So, I am going to do my exercises in the morning, at around 5:30 when it gets light, before school. Sounds crazy, but it should be pretty fun.

On Saturday I am meeting up with Robbie Mann, who lives up in Lawson, about 45 minute train ride away from Penrith, the place I am meeting him. We are going to have an explore around some potential spots that we have seen, and train a bit. Then, the next week we can train properly and make some sort of regular thing out of it.

Feiyues are on their way, they should arrive sometime next week, Monday or Tuesday apparently. I got some nice green closed bottom joggers, good quality Saucony ones, reduced to $10, so I thought these would come in useful for with Feiyues so the bottom doesn't trail on the ground.

Yesterday we went on the boat, with Nathan and his family, which was great fun. We drove under the Sydney harbour bridge and saw all the sights, including the Opera House and the Prime Minister's pad. As we pulled into a jetty and beach, I spotted the sand, and there was a drop of about 3 foot onto it from the path where people would walk. I immediately thought about flipping off it, as there was ample run up and landing space to roll aswell. So I lined myself up, and front flipped failry okay, but it could have been better... after a few more attempts, I had a really nice swan dive, and the landing and roll were great. My mum filmed one, so I may put it up here. After a bit of a drive we anchored a little way out from another small beach, and then Nathan, my sister and I swam ashore. We explored the rocks for a way, and then Phoebe turned back, but we carried on. We went about 1k on the rocks, crawling, running, jumping and climbing - there were some hair-raising parts. We reached the end of the rocks, and headed back again, and then jumped into the sea and swam back to the boat.

So, there are my plans and things that have happened. I may write something later in the week, I have an article I wrote for LincsParkour website that I may put up, and I have been having thoughts about another.

-J

Sydney 14-10-07 Training

2007-10-15T13:29:00.000+10:00

I went training in Sydney yesterday, after not going for a few weeks. Met most people (including Robbie who I have been wanting to meet, he lives in the Mountains sort of near me) at Town Hall at 11, where we warmed up for a bit, then headed down to Darling Harbour. After training at the ramp, where I training armjumps across gaps at various heights and a few movements, we headed over to the play area.
I front flipped into a large sand pit a few feet below, and landed them really well. I did a few swan dives and all the parents and kids were watching. Antek did a few great sideflips, then we moved on. The flips really pumped me up, and I felt a lot better training afterwards.
At the place with steps and walls, Antek and I drilled some catpass precisions, I am working on getting the third step. Both of us then went to the cubes, where we met everyone else again, and played around with different movements over the cubes and rings. I did a cool pop up and switch-handed 90 degrees straight over the otherside, it looked pretty cool. There is a great atmosphere developing now I am getting to know people. My confidence is growing a lot more now aswell.
This time it was about 1:30, so we started heading up to Pyrmont. When we arrived, Whale Park was all boarded off, as the construction people are moving it about 50 metres down the road, because of the redevelopment of the area. Hopefully there will be some good places to train when it is finished.
The APA Basics Class started at 2 and ran until 5. and after a warm up we split off into 3 different groups, and trained around Pyrmont, being led through different movements around the area. Our group started at one of the trees, where we swung through and linked different movements on the walls. After, we headed up to the courtyard part, where we drilled wallruns. This particular one was double my height, arms stretched out. I managed to get it after a few tries, and then hopped over the rail at the top. Then I ran along the grass, jumped off the rock and rolled, and then did movements down some step-type things, a bit like the ones at the College in Lincoln. My movements seem to be a lot more powerful and purposeful now aswell.
After this, we headed to this big sloping wall, with small handholds at a few points, and we did circuits going up, down and across it. My shoes offered no grip on this, so even when trying to run and spring up it, they would give way. Also, this made part of the grip nearly peel off, but that is now stuck down again. Definetly ordering some Feiyues, I love those shoes.
The class involved quite a bit of conditioning which I enjoyed, even though both my elbows started to ache and hurt a little. Luckily not above or below it, just right on it, so not tendonitis I'm pretty sure. They need a rest I think though, then I'm going to strengthen the muscles around them in my conditioning.
After the warm down, involving quadrupedal (woohoo!) Antek and I headed back to Town Hall for the train. Made it with 2 minutes to spare, wahey!

So yer, the day went well. Next time I go, I'm thinking of taking my camera and filming a jam video. Got school tomorrow, (Tuesday) as I have the day off today for some reason, then my two weeks holiday is over =[

Next blog post will be with my Feiyues in hopefully when I order them. If the people from kungfudirect eamil me back with postage prices and they are reasonable and quick, I'm gonna get some pure white ones, and then customize them somehow.

Till next time,

J

Creek Training Video

2007-10-04T00:07:00.000+10:00

Me and my friend Lochlan, who I havent seen in years spent pretty much the whole day at the creek, just exploring and things. I got some training in, and decided to film a few things that I had done before, and a few newer things I had found. Anyways, after WMM screwing up a lot, here is the finished product:

Enjoy, folks back home!

J

So close....

2007-10-02T10:52:00.000+10:00

Went out just now to practise double armed muscleups, I am getting so close. The other day I couldnt do the first part of the transition, now I can nearly get my chest over. I didn't have the last little bit of strength for the transition, but I reckon some conditioning today should get me a whole lot closer.

End of the week I will have them I tells ya!

Also, handstands have improved, even just over the course of a day or so. I love this progression feeling.

Conditioning etc

2007-10-01T17:11:00.000+10:00

I have been conditioning quite a lot recently, and I am getting so close to double arm muscle ups now. In a week or so I will get them I reckon. Handstand, pressups, pullups and raise ups I'm gonna work on, upper body hell wooo!

Started filming a little training video for the people back home, and just to have a look myself. My climbups look way better, as do my rail precisions.

I have also noticed a big difference in my ambidexterity. I can now do most vaults over both sides, and take off and land on right foot and left foot comfortably. I have noticed myself just adapting a whole lot more, rather than doing set vaults I will just approach something from whatever angle and jump however feels natural, whether that means twisting in the air or tapping my foot on the obstacle as I go over, everything is just starting to feel a lot more natural.

Anyways, off now, gonna do more conditioning!

J

The Creek

2007-09-15T20:46:00.000+10:00

Today I was out training at the park all day, with my friend and next-door neighbour Nathan. We also watched a bit of cricket my school friends were playing.

However, the best moment of the day came when Nathan said he would show me the creek that is at the bottom of our road through some bush.

We went around a few paths and the first thing I noticed was there were a few rocks. And then as we got right near the creek, there are some great rocks for training on. I looked at a few runs and jumps, and then we headed on, and decided we would come back and train there later. We crossed the creek using some thin logs, and then followed the path on the other side.

We passed underneath some huge rock overhangs, which were spectacular. On one you could see lots of layers of rock, they started off horizontal but as we carried on walking they twisted to about a 45 degree angle, it was really cool. I need to take pictures of it.

After walking along the path for a fair way, we came to the dam wall, which we balanced across, back to the original side. The paths here were very bushy, so I suggested we crawl up this large fallen tree, which was laid across and above the bush. After coming off the other end the bush thinned out, and we crossed a cow paddock back to the park, after some more walking.

Then we headed back down to the rocks for a while. I spotted a fairly large arm jump across a water gap onto this rock, which I subsequently did, and then did a few runs and tic tacs. I suggested we explored to the right of the rocks, and we ended up doing this big long run through the trees, over branches and rocks. It was so fun, we felt like proper animals.

After all our fun, we headed up back onto our estate, fully tired and sweaty and dirty. Only later did we find out that it was getting warmer, so there could have been lots of snakes. We knew about the spiders and leeches and lizards, but it was lucky we didn't see any snakes. Will look out next time, Kurrajong is Funnel Web Spider and Common Brown Snake central, the deadliest spider and one of the deadliest snakes in the world.

Rail Precisions + Conditioning

2007-09-13T19:04:00.000+10:00

I have been out training in the park quite a bit this week. On Monday and Tuesday I did quite a bit of conditioning, my left thigh is nearly equal in size to my right thigh now, all those pistols have nearly paid off, and all the upper body stuff I have been doing has helped, I can do 7 pullups in a row now rather than 3. Pretty poor still I know. Im working on getting simultaneous muscleups, so pullups, pushups and various dips is what I have been doing.

Today I didn't feel like doing conditioning so I did movements instead. I've got a training partner now, my next door neighbor, who is a few years younger than me, but is pretty eager to learn things, so I have been teaching him a few things. Today I noticed quite a bit of progression. I have been getting gradually more confident with rail precisions, on these wooden beams. Today I did barefooted ones, which were nice, and felt really good. All my training recently has been barefooted, except for a few rail precisions I need to get more confident with. There are some precisions I have been looking at for a while now, onto these thin metal railings from a wooden plank. The plank is at an angle, so the further you move to the top, the further away it is from the railing, and the more level it becomes with the railing. The precision at the bottom is a small distance but upwards, so I got that first,and did it a few more times. Then I moved up the plank, further away and more level with the railing. I did the precision from the middle a few times, until I was happy with it. Then I did it from the top of the plank. I knew this part of the railing was slightly slippier than the rest for some reason, but after a few tests with my foot I knew I would be able to stick it well. The first time, I landed it and stuck it nicely, so I was really pleased. The second time however, after I had landed, my left foot slipped behind off the railing. Luckily I managed to control my fall pretty well, by moving my left foot over the railing, so I wouldn't scrape my shin, and then rolled out of it to stop myself cracking my face, and I then landed on the dirt on the other side on my back. All I got was a tiny cut on the base of my thumb from the wire fencing underneath the railing, and the little scab on my elbow came off and bled a bit. I got up, being pretty pleased with myself, as I had acted instinctively to stop the fall from hurting me. The fact that it felt like I knew what I was doing as well, I could have so easily panicked and hurt myself.

So thats my training from the past few days, can't wait to go train there again tomorrow. I'm so lucky it is only a fence-hop away.

Leaving Party Photo

2007-09-08T14:31:00.000+10:00

Just thought I'd share my leaving party group photo:

Seeing this just reminds me of these very special people I miss.

Love you all.

Sydney//Richmond.training

2007-09-07T17:00:00.000+10:00

Well, been making this for about a month, finally got the chance to film a few things in Richmond today, so I edited it together. My thumb/hand has healed enough to put weight on it, but I can't put it at weird angles and push off it.

The catpass-squirell is harder than it looks, I only landed it once properly because my right foot kept slipping off the tree, as I had worn the rough bark off it. It took about 20 minutes to get it, as there is a thin gap to fly through, a fair distance (I couldnt get an angle to show it much) quite a high box to vault over and clear, and then you have to get your feet exactly right to stick the landing. I was so chuffed at finally getting it!

Front Flips

2007-09-06T18:06:00.000+10:00

Back in England, my front flips were pretty bad - ie landing crouched. I would try into the tricking bush at Magistrates, and I managed to land standing up sort of.

When I moved into my new house, I discovered a long jump put in the park next to us, and I figured I would try a few front flips. My first one, I landed leaning way far forward, and stood up, so I fell over. So on my next one, I untucked earlier, and landed pretty much perfect! In my excitement I ran to grab my camera, and then filmed a few. Since then, I have learnt to do one footed takeoffs, and got more height aswell. These are only my early ones, I have practised quite a bit more since filming them, but here ya go:

Sydney 18-08-07 + New Shoes

2007-08-19T16:58:00.000+10:00

Went to Sydney yesterday, took a while on the train. And my mp3 battery is on the blink, lasted about an hour =[

Met most people at Town Hall, where we warmed up, and just did some general movements, arm jumps, underbars etc.

Then headed over to Darling Harbour, where we met a few more people, and drilled precisions, catpass precisions, dive rolls and the like. I got a dive roll through this small gap between a wall and rail, and did some nice runs over and through these concrete cubes. I filmed a few of these things, to show the folks back home. I got about 30 seconds worth of footage, so when I next go, and train in the local town I'll film some more, for a proper video.

My Feiyues finally got a small hole in the bottom of them, had them since February, and I have been careful not too kill them. I have a small hole underneath the left big toe. Its pretty small though. My Asics had died in the City2Surf, so dad had promised me some new shoes. I leave you with some pictures of my Saucony Grid Omni 5's:

Happenings

2007-08-15T21:14:00.000+10:00

Well, a lot has happened since my last post. I am now in Australia, the land down under.

Before I left, I had a farewell jam and party, which was immensely fun. We had a hog roast and bouncy castle at my house, which provided an awesome tricking session. By the end of the night though, it was a quite upsetting. Some people came and visited later in the week, which was nice, but then I had to say farewell again. Needless to say, I miss everyone very, very much. It's weird making new friends, but still keeping in touch with old ones. Training with different people in different locations takes a bit of getting used to, but it's all about adaption.

I have been to Sydney for training twice since arriving. It is about 1.5 hours on the train, so not too bad. There is a local town near me which is pretty good too. I am going to Sydney on Saturday, then the local town on Sunday. Will be my first full training weekend for a while. I injured my knee, I think doing an arm jump involving me turning in the air. It's better now though, took a few weeks to heal.

I ran 14 kilometres last weekend, in the City2Surf race. It was great fun, hot, tiring and exhilirating. I ran with my dad and our friend Tony. We finished it in 1hour30mins, so a good time, but with lots of room to improve next year. Asics are pretty much dead now.

Its late over here now, still need to change the times around on this thing. When I move into my new house I'll take some pictures of it, and the training area nearby. It is pretty good, and so near to my house. Cant wait.

Anyways, off to bed, still aching from Sunday's run.

J

Half Term Training

2007-06-01T02:46:00.000+10:00

I have tried to make the most of this week, so I have been in Lincoln training on Tuesday afternoon, Wednesday morning and all of today.

I recently started doing barefoot training, and I must say it is really fun. It makes you think about every little movement, every landing, and every step. I did most of the Library challenge barefooted today, and doing different circuits around the church in Lincoln, balancing, running, small precisions. Also, underneath City Hall I have been doing some arm jumps and vaults barefooted.

There wern't many people training today, just me, Jak, Gainey and Adam and Leanne. Leanne helped film a little chase scene/run, involving me and Jak running away from the other 2 lads, afetr nicking their mobile phone. It is pretty fun, the footage so far is nice, and the movements seem really efficient and natural.

We are filming more on Saturday, which should be good. I'll post something else then.

Training 26th May

2007-05-28T20:22:00.000+10:00

I got up early on Saturday to get the early train into Lincoln. With only a few weeks remaining in the country, I am making all the time I can to train.

I arrived at 8:20, and we trained for a few hours, then met up with people getting off the train at about 10.

After doing the Library challenge, we met the Cleethorpes lot, who are good trickers, which put most people in a tricking mood. Myself, Jack and Shaun decided that after training with them for a bit at City Hall, we would split off after getting lunch at Boots.

Jack, Shaun and I headed up to the top end of town, on some scaffolding and things. We were in a great mood, and we decided we wouldnt take any conventional routes. We picked directions to go in, and then headed there, over and under in a straight line.

After this, and visiting Stu at work, we headed home, me and Shaun on the train, and Jack on his bus. We had a pretty full day of training, and we all felt really good by the end of it.

I cant wait till Wednesday, where I can get about half a days training in Lincoln.

Training 16-05-07

2007-05-17T04:15:00.000+10:00

Today in Ruskington was good. I feel much better for it, after my recent confidence lack. I would feel very "tight" in my body, so going for things was not as easy. After today, realising what I need to do to make myself do something, I have been feeling more "loose". So come Saturday, I should be back to my old self.

Anyways, heres the video I filmed today.

New Video

2007-05-16T07:13:00.001+10:00

Heres my new video...bit cobbled together. Im filming a training video tomorrow hopefully.

Update

2007-05-16T06:52:00.000+10:00

Well, today is the anniversary of LincsParkour, so I felt a good time to update. I'll list a few main points about my training development.

-Moving to Australia next month.

-Still cant do wallflips. Nearly got fronts good on flat. Need to jump UP more.

-Did competition for TSD, got 3rd place sparring for my group.

-Climb ups are lots better. Also, got muscle ups on a tree branch on Saturday.

I will update tomorrow with my training session, and how it went.

Wallflips

2007-02-27T08:48:00.000+11:00

I am starting to venture slightly in to tricking, and so far, the only move I am interested in learning is the wallflip.

My target is to get them down confidently on grass by March 20th, then on concrete by the end of the month.

Also, little update on my parkour progression:

I can feel myself adapting without hesitation, like when practising runs and such, my foot positioning stays normal, so I can go into a "speed-pass" with either right foot first or left foot first (still vaulting over left side though). My climbups are improving lots, I can nearly get them with both hands at the same time, but at the moment it is very fast and fluid one arm slightly after the other. Finally, I am really enjoying "movement training", after watching Brad Moss' video it has inspired me to think of new ways of moving. This has helped a lot with my underbars and overall control.

Laters =)

Feiyues + Training

2007-02-08T07:33:00.000+11:00

My feiyues came today, so I did some training in them this evening. They take a bit of getting used to, but after a few balancing techniques they feel great. I think I will wear them for the Saturday jam, but I have a choice now.

I did some balance work, and a few vaults, my main one was a catpass to roll that I really liked. I did some strength work on some pillars, my climbups are getting much better. I did quite a few precisions, and the grip is definetly evident, they feel very secure.

Update on Saturday!

Lincoln 03/02/07 + TKD

2007-02-07T06:33:00.000+11:00

Training went pretty well on Saturday, my catpass technique has improved a bit. I nearly got the catpass2precision near the estate, I think I'll get it next week. My arm strength has improved lots since keeping up my conditioning routine, and doing regular pressup challenges, as I noticed when doing reverse muscle ups, I got them a lot more consistent, so hopefully by next week I should have them sorted.
TKD on Monday was good, though on the way there I discovered anticlimb paint on a wall that I like to use for arm jumps and climb ups.
I ordered my Feiyue's a few days ago, and they tried to deliver today, but my mom wasnt in, so my dad is picking them up tomorrow from the Post Office. So I'll be out training in them tomorrow!

Lincoln 27/01/07

2007-01-28T06:54:00.000+11:00

Lincoln was great today!

We found some scaffolding that I had seen on my way to work exp. each morning, so we spent a while on there in the morning, doing lachés, underbars and reverse muscle ups, amongst other bar work.
Then, the Echo, where I did some dive rolls through the gap, and then working into into something flowful (hopefully it looks good on camera)
We hit City Hall for some parkour tag, and then the Green Rails, where we preceded to train topless (in the middle of January!), then we headed to M&S (still topless)and trained until we got kicked. Then, through town to the college, and the new black rails there, where I did some bare back rolls on concrete after jumping down a few steps (it was good practise for landings and rolls).
Afterwards, we headed up to Magistrates Court, and did some general movement and precision training. I tried the upwards precision a few times, nearly stuck it, and the last time I went all out, got my feet on the top and slipped, and landed on my elbow and back after a few foot drop. My elbow got a bit cut and my back got a bit scraped, but just normal wear and tear. We headed back up to the scaffolding after stopping off to watch Stu and Jack do some huge precisions near the river. I filmed Jonny doing a run through the scaffolding whilst being carryed by Stu and Jack, which was a laugh! When the day was through, I headed back home with Jonny and Stu Pembery, whilst Luke stayed tll 5:30. All in all, it was a good day, except for some annoying tag alongs, who did a bit of training, but were complete knobs, even after we tried to educate them. I wont include any of their stupid comments, about how they train and what parkour is, but lets just say it was misguided to say the least.

Acheivements:

Nearly sticking the upwards precision at Magistrates.
Dive rolls at the Echo.
Rolling technique is a lot smoother, didnt hurt at all bareback on concrete.
Nearly acheiving reverse muscle ups, I did one though.
Lachés are a bit better, as is arm strength.

PS: Me and Jack did a pressup challenge yesterday via MSN, we did 10 sets of 15 reps, with 3 minute breaks in between each one. A grand total of 150 was completed by each of us, and I did 100 the day before, so I am very pleased.

Check out the training video of today, featuring various people.

Dive Rolls at TKD

2007-01-23T18:27:00.000+11:00

Well, what a night!

In the adults session me and Jammie practised dive rolling over high things, and then long things. Jammie did neck height high and 10 1/2 of his feet on length. I wasw pleased with the ones I did, but I did better at diving through gaps. Twas a great session, and we had a bit of an audience, and then got chatting about parkour to them.

Laters

Update!

2007-01-21T10:11:00.000+11:00

Hey, I've been away for a while, holidaying in Oz. Did a bit of training too. The day after I got back I went to Lincoln to train! Last week was Lincoln, and this week was Sleaford.
I wont bore you with details, so I'll write a list of the things I have acheived recently, that I am proud of.

-Catpass to Precision in Sleaford: Huge and on video!
-Catpass to Precision in Lincoln: Aiming to clear the wall and roll, still pretty pleased.
-Improved precision distance: A lot of people noticed when I got back.
-Can now do pistol squats!
-Better handstands
-Improved confidence

Thats it for this week!

Training In Ruskington - 02/12/06

2006-12-03T21:19:00.000+11:00

I couldnt go to Lincoln, so I had a good training session in Ruskington with Tumo and Snap for the day. I did a few new precisions which I was proud of, one out of a tree. I focused mainly on these precisions, and we had a bit of an explore aswell. Our main training spot was the Churchyard, as there was a lot to do there. The Co-Op also has a new set of rails, where you can practise catpass to armjumps and 180 armjumps from rail to wall with rail. This will become one of my heavily sessioned places soon.

Acheivements:

Noticable improvement in confidence
Greater agility
More powerful movements
2 new precisions
New catpass to armjump and 180 armjump

Training 26-11-06

2006-11-27T05:42:00.000+11:00

I had a good training session today, did some treework, arm jumps and precisions mainly. Luke trained with me, and we filmed a few things that we both had found before. I was particularly proud of an arm jump I hadnt been able to do before, yet Luke has already done it. I got a cool running precision on film, and it looks very nice. Youtube screwed up the ending:

25-11-06 Lincoln

2006-11-26T20:38:00.000+11:00

It was wet training in Lincoln today, as we had expected. When I arrived at Ruskington station, I preceded with my usualy warm-up and precision practise, and then tried a running precision to a kerb, diagonally from a slightly raised platform.
It was pouring it down in Lincoln, so we decided to sprint all the way to Lucy Towers carpark for a warm-up and training. All 14 of us arrived soaking wet but in high spirits, and put the second to top level of the carpark to good use, jogging, quadrupedal walking, basic vaults etc. Despite our best efforts to avoid CCTV, some people went in full view on the tope open level, so we got kicked after about 20 minutes. Luckily by then it had stopped raining and we were dry.
We stocked up on lunch at the Spar, then headed to the only other undercover training spot, which is underneath City Hall.
I did some arm jumps from rocks to a slippy wall, with no overgrip, which I was very pleased with:

I also did some very far (for my height)arm jumps from ledge to wall and rail, which was at ground level. We all practised vaults and had silent landing competitions in our socks. Throughout this, the weather eased off, and by 1:00 it was dry enough to go out. We headed over to Usher Gallery, training on the steps and doing the Usher Challenge (where we got kicked not even half way round).
After this, we split off, and my group consisted of me, Jammie, Jack, Stu and Tumo, and we headed up to the Castle. A policewoman always appeared wherever we went, obviously interested. When we explained what we were doing, she left us alone. We made our way back down, and ended up near City Hall. We trained on the slanted walls, drilling tic-tacs and vaults. Then the brown rails, where we couldnt do a lot, and then we headed back underneath City Hall, for a warm down and more training, less people meant we could do more things, and we mainly focused on flow work.
Then, we headed back into town, and went to watch Casino Royale, which was amazing. I met up with my parents there, and afterwards we went to Nando's for a pig out.

All in all, it was a very good day, despite the rain, we all stayed positive and had a great focused training session. I managed to film some video clips and get some photo's, which I will make into a training video.

Acheivements:

3 large arm jumps
Increased confidence
Improved quadrupedal walking
Improved flow and vaults

Bag Test

2006-11-26T20:00:00.001+11:00

Well, yesterday's jam provided plenty of opportunity to test out my new bag. I didnt use the water pack with it, but everything else impressed me. The mp3 pocket is genius, and I was listening to music fom my house to Lincoln, jogging and sitting on the train. It stays on my back very well when running, and there is no restriction of arm movemement. The only thing you cant do is roll on it, but it isnt designed for that. Here are some pictures of me testing it out:

New Bag+TSD

2006-11-25T09:00:00.000+11:00

My dad bought me a new bag that I am going to use when training. My other bag was an over the shoulder on ya back type one, which was annoying. This one is a brandnew 2006 Camelback M.U.L.E, and I love it. I will be testing it out training tomorrow in Lincoln, but Im debating whether to have the water pack in it...

Tang Soo Do this evening was good, my fitness has definetly improved, I remember struggling with pressups and this week I have them really good and easy. We did some basic drills, and then kicking and stick practise. One of my favourite parts was having to constantly pop vault over a big set of mats to get to equipment, then turn over the other side and land.

Cant wait for Lincoln tomorrow, Im seeing Casino Royale after too!

Quadrupedal+TKD

2006-11-21T18:34:00.000+11:00

At school yesterday I was in my PE kit, and whilst I was waiting for my friend I did a bit of quadrupedal walking, up and down a concrete slope. I thought I would get called a freak, but I attracted a bit of an audience, a lot of people were impressed, more so than if I did a vault.
So, I am loving my quadrupedal walking, and I am going to practise it lots.

Also, I had TKD yesterday, I managed to break the easiest board, but couldnt quite break the brown board. Jammie did though...could be because he weighs twice as much as me. Oh well, it was still pretty good, we dida fun knee-slapping exercise to get us in the mood for sparring. I beat Jammie at that, but he beat me at the head slapping one.

Hopefully I can fit in a training session before the weekend, after school, but it's not likely, seeing as I get back at 5:30 and Im not allowed out.

30 Mins Training Today

2006-11-20T03:34:00.000+11:00

Well, my knee is virtually fine from yesterday now, so I went out from 4:00 till 4:30, because the rest of the day has been filled up with coursework and chores. In some ways I'm glad it was quite short, because it made me appreciate my session and I managed to cram some good stuff in.

I headed off next door to the trees, to warm my knee up and try and not do too much impact on it while it was a bit stiff. I did a few lachés (across and down ones) and did some swinging and endurance stuff, seeing how long I could hold my self up for in various positions. After my knee was warmed up I did a few rolls, I have improved them a lot since the workshop.
Then I headed off down to the church, originally to do some more treework. I did a few more different lachés (one handed and downwards), and then I spotted a new challenge.
There was a gravestone lying down, slightly angled, and another thing shaped like this: /\ but less slanted, and I thought I could running precision from the first gravestone onto the slanted bit facing me. I had a few attempts but couldn't do it. Then I tryed precisioning from the /\ thing to the lower part of the gravestone. The gap was about 8 foot, and after a few attempts I managed to stick it. Did it 3 times then moved to the other church bit to do some quadrupedal walking on the floor, balancing, silent walking (where you swing your hips and sink onto your legs, then back up again) and snake pressups. As I headed back through the church, I tryed the big running precision again, and after a few attempts I stuck it. It was a good feeling to get it, gave me a much needed boost after yesterday. I did it a few more times, with impressed looks from old people and chavs alike. The funny thing was because I was landing under a tree and it was already dark, so I had to use instinct and good night vision to get it.
I moved to the alleyway, it was nearly time to go in so I didnt have time to go and do the level arm jump, but I did a few 180 arm jumps at the alleyway instead. Then I jogged back home, and Im about to shower.

Achievements:

8 foot precision (slightly downward)
8 foot running precision (upward and diagonal)
Noticeable endurance improvement (running and strength)
Various new lachés (more controlled)
Better quadrupedal walking

Sleaford Today

2006-11-19T23:06:00.000+11:00

Hoepfully I can go train with Jammie and Shaun in Sleaford today, seeing as my knee is better. I guess I was quite lucky, because it showed me how much I value my movement.

EDIT: Seems I cant, but I think I'll go out in my village.

Training in Lincoln - 18/11/06

2006-11-19T04:41:00.000+11:00

I got injured half way through, but I did something I was proud of. The big gap/precision at the little church near the train station, I worked myself up for it, and did it.
Also, at City Hall I did some turn overs on walls, which I have finally got confident with.A few other vaults, and crawling up the cobble bits at City Hall.
A nice 360 underbar and then jump down stairs to roll at the Echo was good, Im finally getting my rolls alot better on concrete. I have been having to learn them again with both palms on the floor, instead of one up one down, because I was told I could break my wrist, so I have finally learnt them again.
That lady who pushed me off the rail...I had a proper go at her...stupid cow. I wish I had been able to do some jumping around in that courtyard area near the garages, I was so annoyed...Ill be better though. I also wanna see the cat to precision Jammie found, I would have loved to be able to do that.

Lincoln Tomorrow - TSD Today

2006-11-18T07:26:00.000+11:00

Lincoln Training and jam tomorrow!

ALso, I Had Tang Soo Do this evening, went well. I learnt to spin my stick forwards and backwards, and then walked up and down the hall doing it whilst doing leg conditioning, where you take a step and sink onto your foot, almost like you are sitting but not directly forward, then back up, spin and down. Was a pretty good exercise, Im gonna use it tomorrow.

Sampler Video

2006-11-16T07:33:00.000+11:00

Enjoy..

Progression

2006-11-16T07:03:00.000+11:00

I haven’t progressed lots in one go, but each week I have been improving little techniques and developing new ones each week, which overall has made a big difference.

I have noticed a big change in everyone from Lincs Parkour and their attitude to training aswell.

My confidence has boosted, so am doing a lot more things I knew I was capable of, but had mental blocks on. So the more things I do and try, the more my confidence rises. Overall my strength and techniques have come along a lot, and more things are open for me to do. I feel I understand parkour alot more, and it has now become a lifestyle for me.

Recent Acheivements:

I got a level arm jump in Ruskington
I have learnt 180 arm jumps
My precision distance is greater and more controlled
My rolls are better and smoother
I am getting speed vaults on rails
I can do wallspins

Ill add a new acheivement list each week with new things I have learnt and improved on. Also, after each training session I will say what Ive been doing and how it went. All to keep track of my progression.

Workshop...

2006-11-16T06:45:00.000+11:00

On the 29th of October the first WWJ Parkour Workshop was held at NK Sports Centre in Lincoln, which went down very well. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and has helped better my training. After it I felt like a much better traceur and person.

Intro

2006-11-16T06:42:00.000+11:00

Hi, my name is James, but my friends know me by Wizey.

This blog is to keep a record of my training in the art of parkour, and also in the martial art I study, Tang Soo Do.

I have been doing parkour for about 8-9 months, and Tang Soo Do for the same amount of time. I am currently an orange belt in Tang Soo Do, which is 8th gup, however I have missed a grading.

Enjoy...