WorkOut: the fitness of city streets

Workout is a street subculture that combines a unique approach to training and a desire for versatile personal development. According to Anton Kuchumov, the founder of the movement, exercising on street sports grounds is the most accessible, interesting and effective way to get fit. In order to find out where to find vorkout playgrounds and how to start training, “Championship” talked to the founder of the vorkout movement in Russia – Anton Kuchumov.

– Anton, you, as the creator of the movement, please explain to us, how does vorkout begin?

– It all starts with exercises on ordinary bars and tourniquets, which allow people to gain health, strength and beauty of the body. But vorkout is not limited only to physical development, on the contrary, unlike traditional sports it is not a goal, but only a tool. The idea is to transform the acquired strength into self-confidence and use it to achieve success in other spheres of life: in studies, in work, in relationships. Finally, the social component of vorkout can be expressed in the following words: instead of striving to become better than someone else, you should strive to help someone else to become better. Vorkauters share their knowledge and experience for free and openly, form communities around themselves and their sports grounds, and motivate newcomers.

– When and where did the vorkout movement originate?

– In 2009 I met two members of the One More Day community – Sergey Ivanov and Danila Cherkasov. At the same time, but independently of each other, we saw some small American videos with pumped-up guys doing unusual variants of pull-ups and push-ups on street sports grounds. Such a creative approach to the usual exercises fell into our hearts, and after the first joint training we realized that it could make tourniquets, bars and healthy lifestyle popular among young people. Combining his unusual approach to training and the philosophy of the One More Day community, we decided to name the new direction Ghetto Workout in honor of one of the first videos we saw. Later we decided to abandon the word Ghetto, and the direction was called Workout: urban street fitness.

– Where can I train in Moscow?

– On our website in the section “Playgrounds” you can find the world’s largest map of outdoor sports grounds. Thanks to it, you can easily find a suitable playground near your home, see what equipment is installed there and who else works out there, so you can find a company to work out with right away.

– Is it all free?

– Of course. One of the ideas of vorkout is that everything is free.

Vorkout is a whole subculture, and training is just a part of it….

– A lot of people confuse the terms like vorkout, jimbarre and backyard gymnastics. Explain the difference between them.

– Although they are often confused, the only thing these concepts have in common is the tourniquet. Yard gymnastics is the performance of elements from gymnastics (various turns, suns, overshmugi) on the usual yard tourniquets. Some of the guys show a very high level, although they have learned everything themselves and on the street. Jimbarr is a trend that originated in Colombia in the middle of the last century and came out of gymnastics, but associated with the performance of specific elements for flexibility on the bar. Unlike these two trends, vorkout is not just about performing exercises. As I have already said, vorkout is a whole subculture, and training is only a part of it. And in this part no one limits you only to tourniquets or bars, because you can exercise anywhere and anytime, in any conditions. The weight of your own body and imagination are enough.

– Is there a program for beginners that can be used for training?

– A few years ago we developed a free educational program for those who are just starting their training or returning to it after a long break. It’s called “100-Day Walkout.” Many people want to start exercising but don’t know where to start, so we decided to help beginners. For this purpose we have analyzed more than 1000 sources (from school textbooks to the latest scientific publications), found answers to all the main questions they may have, processed them, structured them and presented them in the form of a program designed for 100 days. In addition to theory, the program has a practical component, which are small sets of simple exercises performed on a daily basis. Over the past few years, more than 15,000 people have participated in the program, and the successes of some graduates have already been written about in magazines and told on television. The program is completely free, and all you need to participate is a desire to change yourself for the better.

– In the last spring launch of the 100-Day Walkout program, 3,669 participants, 388 cities and 29 countries took part. How did it happen?

– Two weeks before the launch we announced the registration for the new launch, and then word of mouth worked. People from different cities and countries found the program themselves and signed up to participate in it, as well as invited their friends and acquaintances. In addition, we are actively developing the institute of mentoring, and the graduates of the program not only continue to work out themselves, but also actively promote vorkout in their cities and organizations. They do it on their own initiative and free of charge. Simply because at one time they themselves went through the 100-day program and it changed their lives. And now they want to help other people to be better. We already have mentors in 19 cities (in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, and even Germany) and 4 organizations (MIPT, Kurchatov Research Center, Rossiya Airlines, and the lyceum of the National Research University Higher School of Economics), and we are gradually expanding the geography of our presence. Now we are negotiating the introduction of the program for students of a hundred leading universities of the country, as well as for employees of several national corporations. So the number of participants will only grow in the next launches. Also, especially for iOS users we have a special offer of 100-day vorkout, and work on a similar application for ANDROID is already in the final stage.

– So the training is conducted remotely?

– Yes. Every day the participant receives a certain block of information about one or another issue and a training task via the website or app. At the beginning, the basic topics are considered (exercise technique, rationing, breathing during training, etc.), then gradually the material becomes more complex (biomechanics of exercises, the work of various body systems, muscle growth factors, etc.). By the end of the program the participant has formed a certain theoretical basis, which will allow him to move independently in the future. The same happens with the training part of the program, we start with simple exercises and gradually increase the volume, intensity and complexity of training. At the same time, the program includes a mechanism of adaptation for any level of training, so anyone, regardless of gender or age, will be able to choose the load for themselves. In addition, mentors in Moscow and other cities organize weekly gatherings of participants, where they get acquainted, communicate and train in person. And gradually the number of mentors is increasing, so more and more participants are moving from online to real life.

– Which cities are the most active?

– On the website you can see the current rating of the cities participating in the program (http://workout.su/100/rating). If you don’t count Russia, the leading cities are Minsk – 76 participants at the start, Kiev – 63 participants and Munich – 66 participants. That is mostly the former CIS anyway, as the program is developed in Russian. The only exception is Munich, where our former compatriot organizes the program for Germans. He translates the program for them, and on weekends they all meet at the site and study together.

Initially there were four of us. On weekends we just traveled to different cities and in a few years we visited about 100 cities in Russia.

– Tell us about your team The Patriots.

– Originally there were four of us. On weekends we just traveled to different cities and for a few years we visited about 100 cities in Russia. There we took part in festivals, organized trainings, general city gatherings. It spontaneously formed with those who traveled regularly. Now there are two of us left, but we still continue to travel around the cities and hold open training sessions in Moscow.

– Is there a particular venue where you train in Moscow?

– Every Saturday or Sunday (depending on when we are in Moscow) we can be found in Neskuchny Garden. On weekdays the guys gather in the evenings in Victory Park or at some of the venues in the city center. Again on the website under “Events” you can find up-to-date information about our nearest gatherings.

– Are you often invited to festivals and forums?

– We can say that yes. Once a month happens for sure. Usually I am asked to share my experience with those who are just starting to realize their projects, give advice or just tell my story. In a way, the Warcout has achieved some kind of success, some kind of public recognition, so people are interested to know more about it.

– How did you come up with the idea to create such a movement?

– We didn’t have the idea to create a movement, we just started doing it ourselves and realized that it could be interesting for our peers. Then we came up with a certain community model that other kids could replicate in their own cities. And they started to follow us. All over Russia, from Kaliningrad to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, cities began to have their own vorkout communities, and then they started to appear in the CIS countries as well. When we started, it was 2009, there was no fashion at that time, and healthy lifestyle was unpopular. There was even such a thing that we were chased away from school yards at first. It was strange for everyone that 20 pumped-up guys could come and work out, and not litter and drink alcohol. And now we are invited to workshops at schools and universities.

– Are vorkout courts expensive? Do you think we need more playgrounds?

– The price of the playground directly depends on the quality, but this is not an issue where you can save money, because we are talking about people’s health. Both adults and children use playgrounds, so they must be safe. And they should also be modern, then they will be used by ordinary residents of the city in addition to vorkauters. The example of Moscow shows how the appearance of such playgrounds has led to an increase in the number of people who train on the street. Besides, quality playgrounds will last longer. It is difficult to talk about the price of a playground, but on the scale of the city budget it can be pennies. I think it would be great if all schools and parks were equipped with playgrounds with tourniquets, bars and various interesting constructions. It’s a vicious circle – if there are playgrounds, there will be people who work out, and the more people there are, the more they will need places to work out. But at the same time, if there are no playgrounds, it will be difficult for people to start practicing. We develop projects of playgrounds and put them on our website, it is a kind of samples for state customers, which show them how “playgrounds for vorkout” should look like. The largest playground in Karelia on 300 square meters, installed in Petrozavodsk, was designed by me personally.

– Were you involved in any sports before vorkout?

– At the moment when we invented vorkout, I had practically no physical training. You could say that I was starting from scratch. That’s why I understand the importance of the 100-Day Vorkout program, which answers all the questions of a beginner. If I had it back then, I would have progressed much faster. But back then there was no information, not even on the internet. So we did everything on our own, we progressed very slowly by trial and error. But we were interested in it, and we realized that if we liked it, other people might also be interested in it. On the one hand, you can do it wherever and whenever you want. On the other hand, you can get great results. And most importantly – it’s interesting. You can turn any training into a game and still get results. Nothing like this existed then and now it is difficult to find a worthy analog.

Workout is the most accessible, interesting and effective way to get fit!

– Why do you think people should pay attention to vorkout?

– Training with your own body weight is probably the most affordable, interesting and effective way to get fit, which requires minimal time and no monetary investment. If you want to change your life, wherever you are now, finish this article and do some push-ups. Then go through the 100 Day Walkout program and you’ll be different!