Fitness trail

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A fitness trail (more recently known as outdoor exercise equipment and also known as a parcourse) consists of a path or course equipped with obstacles or stations distributed along its length for exercising the human body to promote good health. The course is designed to promote physical fitness training in the style attributed to Georges Hébert. In general, fitness trails can be natural or man made, located in areas such as forest, transportation rights-of-way, parks, or urban settings. Equipment exists to provide specific forms of physiological exercise, and can consist of natural features including climbable rocks, trees, and river embankments, or manufactured products (stepping posts, chin-up and climbing bars) designed to provide similar physical challenges. The degree of difficulty of a course is determined by terrain slope, trail surface (dirt, grass, gravel, etc.), obstacle height (walls) or length (crawls) and other features. Urban parcourses tend to be flat, to permit participation by the elderly, and to accommodate cyclists, runners, skaters and walking. The new concept of an outdoor gym, containing traditional gym equipment specifically designed for outdoor use, is also considered to be a development of the parcourse. These outdoor exercise gyms include moving parts and often made from galvanised metal.

Fitness trail station, North Bay Park, Ypsilanti Twp., MI

Contents

[edit] History

The original parcourse was invented in 1968 by Swiss architect Erwin Weckemann with support from Swiss life insurance firm Vita. The first course was built in Zurich, Switzerland.[1] Hundreds of courses were built in Europe by 1972.[2]

Courses built in ensuing years included:

[edit] Examples

[edit] United Kingdom

Over 250 installations are found across the UK, all installed by fresh-air fitness. A Google map shows their locations Click here

[edit] Canada

[edit] Luxembourg

[edit] New Zealand

[edit] United States of America

[edit] California

[edit] San Francisco Bay Area

East Bay

North Bay

Peninsula

  • The first parcourse trail built in the USA still exists in the Mountain Lake Park of San Francisco's Presidio.
  • The Perrier parcourse is at the site of the former Polo Fields in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. This course is open for public use.
  • There is a parcourse that borders the Marina Green in San Francisco.
  • There are several exercise stations (some new and some from an original Parcourse), on the south side of Millbrae Ave. between S Magnolia Ave. and Palm Ave. in Millbrae.
  • An asphalt paved parcourse trail begins at the 5.9 mi. mark of the Bay Trail, around the perimeter of the Oracle Corporation office complex in Redwood Shores. Although the parcourse is on Oracle property, it is open to public use. There is another parcourse on the opposite (south) side of Marina Parkway, but it has fallen into disrepair.
  • A parcourse is located along Marina Parkway beginning near the intersection of Bridge Parkway and Cork Harbor Circle and ending near the intersection of Bridge Parkway and Portwalk Place in Redwood Shores.
[edit] Los Angeles Area
  • A paved parcourse trail is available at Rynerson Park in Lakewood on Studabaker Road parallel to the San Gabriel River Bike Trail. This parcourse has 6 stations along a 1 mile loop.
  • Johnny Carson Park located in Burbank features a parcourse circuit with a dozen stations along a dirt path loop. It also includes a warm-up area with equipment designed to facilitate stretching.

[edit] Georgia

[edit] Waycross

[edit] Ohio

  • In Hamilton County, OH, Embshoff Woods, Miami Whitewater Forest, Sharon Woods, Triple Creek, Winton Woods, and Woodland Mound county parks have Parcourse Trails. [2]

[edit] Pennsylvania

  • In Frick Park, Pittsburgh, there's a paved parcourse trail starting at the intersection of Beechwood Boulevard and Nicholson Street with 18 stations. The signs along the trail date from 1975.

[edit] Maryland

[edit] Michigan

  • Delta County, Gladstone, MI VanCleve City Park

[edit] Texas

  • In Austin, the Shoal Creek Trail features a three-station parcourse near its intersection with 30th St, Texas, US.
  • In Sugar Land, A parcourse is located adjacent to Highlands Elementary School at the intersection of Williams Trace Boulevard and Edgewater Drive, Texas, USA.
  • In Missouri City, A more compact course is located behind the LA Fitness at 5402 Texas 6, on Cross Lakes Boulevard.

[edit] Virginia

  • In Richmond, Byrd Park has a 1-mile fitness trail.

[edit] Washington

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ "VitaParcours information" (in German, French, Italian). Vitaparcours Foundation. http://www.vitaparcours.ch/. Retrieved February 7, 2010.  English tr.
  2. ^ "The Jog Strip". Time Magazine. June 26, 1972. http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,905863,00.html. Retrieved February 2, 2007. 

[edit] External links

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