Python helps you with your running sessions

Time back I was trying parkour, but I got some old injures that didn’t let me practice it properly. Also there was too much sedentary life… I needed to start from the beginning. I needed to create a good baseline for my training.

I also started of doing some rock climbing again. Sport that I really love πŸ™‚

I was gaining some strength and I could doing again some pull ups and some boulders. But I found, as I did before with the parkour that I needed some stamina.

I also realized that parkour is a way to run, so I should be able to run. And I wasn’t…

So I’ve decided to start to run. I used to do it time ago when I got into the university. And I liked to be a bit methodical, so I could see the progress and train better. So I decided to buy a good pair of running shoes, a pulsometer and chrono. Then I realized that things have changed since I was at the university and there are a lot of stuff and software to help you with your training.

But the most of the applications I found weren’t open source and neither for Linux. Very fancy stuff like Ipod+Nike , but nothing for Linux. Nothing until I found Pytrainer !!! πŸ™‚

Pytrainers years stats
Pytrainer's years stats

This is a Python + Gtk+ application oriented to track your sessions and show you your progress. It’s for running, bike and mountain bike, but I think you can add other sports alike those ones.

It has also plugins for that fancy Ipod+Nike system and others. It seems to me a really cool stuff. I have to test it more, but I hope someone with more running training skills than me, test it and give me (and to the developers πŸ˜‰ ) some feedback.

Well, let’s run! πŸ˜›

bad weather, but still parkour

As I told you on a previous post, I’m starting to practice parkour, thanks to one friend who really pratices this from time ago.

But now the weather is quiet bad. Ar east for me, at least for practicing parkour. It’s kind of dangerous to jump and run over wet floors, steps, walls, and so.

We were about to go out to run on weekend, but was rainning, so we didn’t. I was with some friends in a funky concert, which was also fun, so wasn’t bad weekend after all πŸ˜‰

Funk gruop called La Mula
Funk group called La Mula

Anyways, I was reading info about parkour. Techniques, trainings, moves and so. And also watching lots of videos and movies to learn the flow.

I watch movies like District 13, a not very remarkable action movie, but for the moves and runs of David Belle, known for being one of the father of parkour. The guy is really amazing…

And I found stuff to read on Parkourpedia, from where I got some pdfs with good stuff about techniques and how to start. Nice πŸ™‚

The good thing of parkour is that you can practice anywhere and when you start to feel the philosophy behind the discipline, you see all the places and things as part of your playground. So you beginning to see the obstacles, not as so, but as things you can overcome and ways to pass through πŸ™‚

Ok, I just start, but it’s not very different of the free and urban climb I used to do time ago. I still remember that time where I wasn’t seeing walls, but ways to climb up, neither buildings, but things and place where climb around… I use to feel free on those moments… Really zen moments πŸ™‚

The next week I go to Gran Canaria (my real place πŸ™‚ ) and I guess there will be a better weather and I will practice more.

Anyways, even today, when I was frozen waiting fro the train to come home from work, I was playing some moves to work out my balance and precision (and, actually, to keep me a bit more warm…).

Well, I’ll tell you my progress and things I learn. I hope you enjoy as much I do πŸ™‚

Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 EspaΓ±a
This work by Juanje Ojeda is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 EspaΓ±a.