Parkour Classes Chicago - Introduction to Parkour

Introduction to Parkour

with Parkour Ways

TOP RATED

4.82 | 14 reviews

46 Have Dabbled

ABOUT THIS EVENT

Event Category

Fitness & Wellness

Event Overview

Parkour is a fast-growing discipline around the globe. What many do not know about parkour is that it is not just jumping around aimlessly, playing on rooftops, or throwing the coolest, flashiest tricks you can to impress others. It's a way of training and a way of thinking.

At it's very basic level, Parkour is is a holistic training discipline using movement. Believe it or not, it was developed out of military obstacle course training. Dabblers will learn to move quickly and efficiently through their environment using only their bodies and their surroundings to propel themselves, negotiating obstacles in between.

This class will introduce you to parkour and help you to better understand what it is (or rather, what it is supposed to be!). You can expect to leave this class having had a great workout and a strong concept of the discipline that is parkour.

What to Bring

Comfortable clothing and water.

Minimum age

All ages welcome

Prerequisites

All fitness levels are welcome. For adults and teens..

Cancellation Policy

Location

There are currently no upcoming dates scheduled for this Dabble. Log in to an account message the host or add to your bucket list to be automatically notified when new dates are posted.

MORE ABOUT YOUR HOST

Parkour Ways

TOP RATED

Kurt is the founder, owner and instructor of Parkour Ways. He is A.D.A.P.T. certified to instruct parkour and has been teaching it since late 2010.

In 2010 Kurt lost his mom to cancer. It lead him to realize quite a few things about his life and set him onto a path to find what really makes him happy. Having already started training parkour when this happened, he used parkour to help him through many rough times (and still does).

In 2011, Kurt left a 7-year streak of electronics retail work to follow his dreams and start Parkour Ways. In 2012, he was contacted by a producer about some stunt work for a TV show which gave him a foot in the door to the entertainment industry. Since then he's gotten into a few other productions and has joined the SAG-AFTRA union as a stunt performer.

Teaching parkour is Kurt's main line of work and continues to be his passion.

MESSAGE HOST VIEW PROFILE

EXPERIENCE REVIEWS

Sergio R.
Reviewed on 05/13/14

This class was great! Kurt was very helpful and it was interesting to not only do the workout and learn the different moves, but also to learn about the history of parkour. I will definitely be taking another one of Kurt's classes.

From Teacher:

Thanks Sergio! See you again soon!

This class was great! Kurt was very helpful and it was interesting to not only do the workout and learn the different moves, but also to learn about the history of parkour. I will definitely be taking another one of Kurt's classes.

From Teacher:

Thanks Sergio! See you again soon!
Dallas G.
Reviewed on 11/05/13

Great teacher and very good class. An exciting way to both workout the body and train the mind. This guy is the best around!

From Teacher:

Dallas - thanks so much for coming out and giving the class a try! Hope to see you again soon!

Great teacher and very good class. An exciting way to both workout the body and train the mind. This guy is the best around!

From Teacher:

Dallas - thanks so much for coming out and giving the class a try! Hope to see you again soon!
Lee P.
Reviewed on 10/31/13

Parkour turned out to be a very rewarding experience. Not only did it prove to be a fun and strong workout regiment, it was just interesting to learn more about the techniques used and test your proclivity toward more coordinated stunt work.

I hope to pursue parkour further in the near future. Mr. Gowan, the instructor, was also very patient and helpful in helping bring us beginners up to speed with the practice.

From Teacher:

Thanks Lee for your attendance and effort put forth in the class, as well as your feedback!

Parkour turned out to be a very rewarding experience. Not only did it prove to be a fun and strong workout regiment, it was just interesting to learn more about the techniques used and test your proclivity toward more coordinated stunt work.

I hope to pursue parkour further in the near future. Mr. Gowan, the instructor, was also very patient and helpful in helping bring us beginners up to speed with the practice.

From Teacher:

Thanks Lee for your attendance and effort put forth in the class, as well as your feedback!
Jessica L.
Reviewed on 10/30/13

This class was great!! Kurt challenged us individually and as a team, really fun and rewarding experience. I'll definitely be checking out more of his classes!

From Teacher:

Jessica, thanks for coming and for the feedback!

This class was great!! Kurt challenged us individually and as a team, really fun and rewarding experience. I'll definitely be checking out more of his classes!

From Teacher:

Jessica, thanks for coming and for the feedback!
Tieren D.
Reviewed on 10/29/13

This class was exceptionally fun and don't let it fool you - it is a workout! I wouldn't recommend doing any extensive activity before hand (I did a Crossfit class and then went straight to this which was a terrible idea!). It is a lot of arm work and balance but you will feel extremely proud of what you accomplish throughout the two hours you work with him! I would recommend going to class more than once so you can get the basics down and then start focusing on everything else~ You will definitely see me there again!

From Teacher:

Thank you very much Tieren! See you soon! =)

This class was exceptionally fun and don't let it fool you - it is a workout! I wouldn't recommend doing any extensive activity before hand (I did a Crossfit class and then went straight to this which was a terrible idea!). It is a lot of arm work and balance but you will feel extremely proud of what you accomplish throughout the two hours you work with him! I would recommend going to class more than once so you can get the basics down and then start focusing on everything else~ You will definitely see me there again!

From Teacher:

Thank you very much Tieren! See you soon! =)
Megan F.
Reviewed on 10/17/13

It was completely different than I expected-in a good way! Kurt was awesome, and it actually ended up beign a great mind-body workout!

I'd recommend this to anyone.

From Teacher:

Thanks so much Megan!

It was completely different than I expected-in a good way! Kurt was awesome, and it actually ended up beign a great mind-body workout!

I'd recommend this to anyone.

From Teacher:

Thanks so much Megan!
Robert M.
Reviewed on 08/15/13

The warmup itself (first 30 minutes) is a great workout. After that, we went through the park and did vaults, jumps, walking on rails, crawling... Finally we did various movements to scale a wall that was about 6 feet high. All in all a lot of fun and a great workout. I consider myself pretty fil but I was definitely using my body in ways I wasn't used to.

From Teacher:

Thank you for the feedback and the recap, Robert! I look forward to having you attend another class!

The warmup itself (first 30 minutes) is a great workout. After that, we went through the park and did vaults, jumps, walking on rails, crawling... Finally we did various movements to scale a wall that was about 6 feet high. All in all a lot of fun and a great workout. I consider myself pretty fil but I was definitely using my body in ways I wasn't used to.

From Teacher:

Thank you for the feedback and the recap, Robert! I look forward to having you attend another class!
Taryn R.
Reviewed on 08/15/13

Introduction to Parkour was such a great class, I enrolled in it twice. Kurt is a patient, knowledgeable, and creative instructor with high expectations of his students, regardless of your level of fitness or discomfort. In these classes you play in the park (it makes you feel like a kid again!), while also pushing yourself to do things you've never done before. Everyone should try it!!

From Teacher:

Thanks again Taryn! It was great to see you again!

Introduction to Parkour was such a great class, I enrolled in it twice. Kurt is a patient, knowledgeable, and creative instructor with high expectations of his students, regardless of your level of fitness or discomfort. In these classes you play in the park (it makes you feel like a kid again!), while also pushing yourself to do things you've never done before. Everyone should try it!!

From Teacher:

Thanks again Taryn! It was great to see you again!
Rance R.
Reviewed on 08/15/13

This was the perfect experience to get a first taste of Parkour. It was challenging without being frustratingly difficult. Curt was calm, patient, and well-informed. He even went so far as to adjust his plan to accommodate return people who went to his other dabble class. Worth every penny.

From Teacher:

Thanks for the feedback, Rance! I do hope you'll keep an eye out for more of my classes!

This was the perfect experience to get a first taste of Parkour. It was challenging without being frustratingly difficult. Curt was calm, patient, and well-informed. He even went so far as to adjust his plan to accommodate return people who went to his other dabble class. Worth every penny.

From Teacher:

Thanks for the feedback, Rance! I do hope you'll keep an eye out for more of my classes!
Mark T.
Reviewed on 08/08/13

This class was AWESOME! I am not particularly strong, I don't have great balance nor am I very coordinated. I was nervous about the class! Kurt very quickly helped everyone feel safe and excited about Parkour. The warm-ups and exercises he chose could be scaled for every fitness level. I was challenged but not stressed and I had alot of fun. Kurt also did a nice job of very quickly creating a sense of "team" among the class, there was a camaraderie and we were all invested in each others success. I have recommended this class to others and hope to be able to take this class again. Thank you Kurt! Thank you Dabble

From Teacher:

Thanks Mark! It was a pleasure to have you!

This class was AWESOME! I am not particularly strong, I don't have great balance nor am I very coordinated. I was nervous about the class! Kurt very quickly helped everyone feel safe and excited about Parkour. The warm-ups and exercises he chose could be scaled for every fitness level. I was challenged but not stressed and I had alot of fun. Kurt also did a nice job of very quickly creating a sense of "team" among the class, there was a camaraderie and we were all invested in each others success. I have recommended this class to others and hope to be able to take this class again. Thank you Kurt! Thank you Dabble

From Teacher:

Thanks Mark! It was a pleasure to have you!
Idea L.
Reviewed on 08/05/13

A good class for beginners. It was nice to get background on not only the physical but mental components of Parkour.

From Teacher:

Thanks for the comments Rajiv!

A good class for beginners. It was nice to get background on not only the physical but mental components of Parkour.

From Teacher:

Thanks for the comments Rajiv!
Inoh C.
Reviewed on 08/03/13

The instructor was patient with those who strolled in late and made sure everyone had got the full two hours - he broke it down by do as I do and helped us do some pretty cool park our moves; I actually do wish he broke down the class into two levels and teach us concepts based on our skill level; very nice and friendly

From Teacher:

Thanks for the feedback Inoh! Since this class is more focused on an introduction to parkour, a lot of the movements were kept simple. Keep an eye out for more classes for higher skill levels. Thanks! :)

The instructor was patient with those who strolled in late and made sure everyone had got the full two hours - he broke it down by do as I do and helped us do some pretty cool park our moves; I actually do wish he broke down the class into two levels and teach us concepts based on our skill level; very nice and friendly

From Teacher:

Thanks for the feedback Inoh! Since this class is more focused on an introduction to parkour, a lot of the movements were kept simple. Keep an eye out for more classes for higher skill levels. Thanks! :)
Barmey U.
Reviewed on 08/02/13

The class was fun. Kurt is a great teacher, and I can see this being great for kids especially. What kid wouldn't want to run around, and be like a ninja!

From Teacher:

Thanks for coming Barmey! It was a pleasure!

The class was fun. Kurt is a great teacher, and I can see this being great for kids especially. What kid wouldn't want to run around, and be like a ninja!

From Teacher:

Thanks for coming Barmey! It was a pleasure!
Heather S.
Reviewed on 05/16/14

We waited for someone who was 20 minutes late, which was a bit annoying, but the teacher gave us a heads up this would be the case and none of us had anywhere to be afterwards. The warm up and initial Parkour moves were great. Very thorough warm up and we learned about moving quietly and in new ways. I wish the teacher would have shown us more cool moves. We did get down on our hands and knees in the dirt, so be prepared for that. And the warm-up was vigorous--didn't seem like it was for all fitness levels to me! Then we did some crazy hard moves at the end and during a long stretching segment, the teacher overshared a lot of heavy emotional stuff, which I found inappropriate. We weren't dismissed til 9:20pm and while I didn't have anything planned afterwards, the class was scheduled 7-8pm, so that felt out of line to me too & I was exhausted by then. Overall, there was some great content, but I was frustrated by the teacher.

We waited for someone who was 20 minutes late, which was a bit annoying, but the teacher gave us a heads up this would be the case and none of us had anywhere to be afterwards. The warm up and initial Parkour moves were great. Very thorough warm up and we learned about moving quietly and in new ways. I wish the teacher would have shown us more cool moves. We did get down on our hands and knees in the dirt, so be prepared for that. And the warm-up was vigorous--didn't seem like it was for all fitness levels to me! Then we did some crazy hard moves at the end and during a long stretching segment, the teacher overshared a lot of heavy emotional stuff, which I found inappropriate. We weren't dismissed til 9:20pm and while I didn't have anything planned afterwards, the class was scheduled 7-8pm, so that felt out of line to me too & I was exhausted by then. Overall, there was some great content, but I was frustrated by the teacher.

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