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Freerunning as a sport for your children, what does that mean?

If your child would like to play sports, but he or she is not yet sure what kind of sport, it is smart to delve a little further into all the children's sports that are available. Because that's a lot! Some sports suit your child well, other sports may not suit him or her less. Freerunning seems to suit one of our children and I would like to tell you more about the ins and outs of freerunning. Who knows, it might be something for your child?

Table of Contents

What is freerunning ?

Because one of the children is always climbing, clambering and jumping, we decided on freerunning. Originally, this sport comes from France. There, young people thought together how they could go over obstacles instead of around them. The goal of freerunning is that you move as quickly and gracefully as possible over the obstacles you encounter. At first, the setup in the gym may remind you a bit of monkey cages from the past; several cupboards, thick mats and other obstacles have been set up.

A well-known film in which freerunning is performed by Sebastian Foucan is Casino Royal (a James Bond film). Thanks to this film, the freerunning sport quickly gained popularity and it is still growing, also in the Netherlands.

Benefits freerunning for children

Practicing this sport will give you more confidence. You learn to push your limits both physically and mentally. What is related to this is that you gain more control over your body and build strength. Freerunning also means pushing off with one hand on a cupboard or wall and then jumping over it. That will give you muscles! It is an individual sport so you can train at your own level.

Building up this sport

We hear from the instructor that you will first practice on the trampoline. If a somersault is successful, you can practice in the large gym. A next step can be to freerun on sand, then on grass and finally on the asphalt / stone. Terms such as 'speed vault' and 'monkey' are flying around your ears. A speed vault turns out to be the exercise that you run to a wall and push off with one hand and then swing your legs over the wall. When it comes to a monkey, it means that you push off with both your hands and meanwhile swing your feet between them.

What are the benefits?

Exercise is of course healthy for children. Freerunning as a children's sport has the following advantages:

  • You learn to discover and push your own limits
  • Free running develops motor skills such as strength and coordination
  • You move safely in a harsh environment if you do this via a freerun club
  • By moving you stimulate brain development
  • You train at your own level, so a bit of customization is included in this sport
  • Children of different levels help each other and give tips:in this way they learn from each other and build friendships
  • The trainers who give it and I have seen it, are themselves very experienced in the sport and often also young, this can help to create the click between trainer and child more easily

Freerunning also has disadvantages

Adolescents in particular do not attend classes, but watch other freerunners on YouTube and try this out. This can increase the risk of injury. Think, for example, of jumping over a shopping cart and then snagging, or jumping over a large object without knowing the best way to put your hands down or land.

It is an individual sport, if your child benefits from a team sport in order to build more contacts and friendships, this can be a disadvantage.

What does your child need to do freerunning?

Sportswear

Our child is wearing a football shirt and football shorts, it is recommended to wear comfortable and flexible clothes to make the smooth movements necessary for freerunning as easy as possible. On this site you can find brands of sportswear, which are known and used among freerunners.

You can also go here for fine sportswear.

Shoes

Your child will wear sneakers in the gym and many gyms have a rule that the gym shoe does not have a black sole. This is to prevent streaks on the floor.

Tips:

  • As a beginner, landings are not yet smooth, so good cushioning in the sole is important (in connection with landing after a jump). A shoe with a flexible sole helps for the cushioning, do not try to buy a sole that is too thick; this can disturb the feeling
  • Shoes are well used, any flaps / frills / hard pieces of plastic will quickly wear off and get lost
  • Choose a sole with a rubber underlayer. Foam soles provide a lot less grip than a rubber sole.

Hint: the New Balance 373 is a shoe that is widely used and is judged very positively for freerunning

What is the approximate cost to do-freerunning?

Depending on how often your child trains per week, 1 lesson per week is on average € 17.50 per month. The registration fee is €10 at most clubs

How often do you train in freerunning?

Our son could train three times a week, it depends a bit on the gym/club that offers freerunning but often more than once a week is possible. For example, it is not mandatory to train twice a week. That is of course nice if your child quickly runs out of energy and still has a lot of homework and other activities. Then it might be smart to limit to once a week.

Are structural competitions organised?

No, not for children. It is possible to book workshops or a clinic for a children's party. In freerunning, therefore, there is no mandatory pick-up and return schedule to competitions throughout the country.

Tips for parents about freerunning

  • Try to join the trial lesson and see for yourself how your child is doing
  • Is your child completely enthusiastic about freerunning? It can help to watch some videos on youtube to get a good idea of ​​this sport.
  • Make sure you have good gym shoes and gym clothes that are comfortable and do not get in the way of movement.
  • Show interest. Ask which exercise was discussed in class, is that the monkey for example?
  • Who knows, it might be something for yourself to try out together in a park when your child is advanced.