Channel Your Inner Jason Bourne at This Parkour Gym – Cincinnati Magazine
Photograph By Jeremy Kramer
Turns out daredevil stunts aren’t just for James Bond. Sure, leaping between buildings may be a little extreme, but any adrenaline junkie can practice parkour, a discipline in which you move quickly, typically in an urban environment, negotiating obstacles by running, climbing, and jumping.
Photograph By Jeremy Kramer
Hidden in an industrial building in Spring Grove Village, Swift Movement is a parkour training facility with equipment that mimics outdoor environments, such as ledges, bars, and boxes. Co-owner Matthew Peveley, who was skateboarding in the ’90s, saw a parkour video almost 20 years ago. From then on, he was hooked. He opened Swift Movement in 2015. “Training parkour is the act of learning different techniques—learning to fall, vault, jump, swing, climb—creating challenging combinations of all of the movements, trying to achieve mastery of your body and knowing your limits,” Peveley says.
Developed in France in the late 1980s, parkour is gaining popularity with those looking for less conventional forms of fitness. Swift Movement also offers free running (which is more acrobatic-focused), tumbling, aerial arts, and open gym sessions. “Seeing the gym used by beginners and elite athletes simultaneously is extremely rewarding,” Peveley says. “Everyone is having fun and able to find challenges within their experience level.”
