Freerunning, is best described as a form of "urban acrobatics" in which participants (free runners) use the city and rural landscape to perform
acrobatic movements in order to get from point A to point B. It borrows efficient movements from
parkour, adds other acrobatics such as tricking and street stunts, creating an athletic and aesthetically pleasing/ (
showoff) way of moving. It is commonly practiced at gymnasiums and in urban areas that are cluttered with buildings and obstacles.
The term
free running was invented during the filming of Jump London, as a way to present parkour to the English-speaking world. However, free running and parkour are separate, distinct concepts — a distinction which is often missed due to the similarities.
Parkour as a discipline emphasizes efficiency, whilst free running is about complete freedom of movement, and includes many acrobatic maneuvers. Although often the two are physically similar, the principles of each are vastly different.The founder of parkour,
Sébastien Foucan, defines
freerunning as a discipline to self development, following your own way.