Lazy vault in parkour: diagonal approach, hand switch on the obstacle, legs swinging over sideways. With prerequisites, progression, mistakes and safety.
The lazy vault is an obstacle vault from a diagonal approach: you support yourself with one hand on the obstacle, switch hands on the surface and swing your legs over sideways. It looks relaxed – hence the name – but it is a clean contact with the obstacle.
The honest answer: there is no dedicated study of the lazy vault. What we have are scoring criteria from a tested parkour course with 20 young men, in which other vaults were assessed – such as the step vault and the monkey vault. Among other things it counted: palms placed firmly and flat on the obstacle, legs passing without contact, landing on the balls of the feet with at least 90° in the knee [1]. The course separated beginners (27 to 33 out of 45 points) clearly from advanced traceurs (41 to 44) [1]. In other words: clean hand placement and landing are what skill is measured by.
Where do traceurs get hurt at obstacles? In a survey of 161 traceurs from Madrid (207 reported injuries), vaults made up only small shares: 3.4 % for the fence vault ("pasavallas") and 1.9 % for the thief vault, but 18.8 % for the precision jump [2]. These are recalled answers, but they say: the vault itself is rarely the problem, the landing after it often is.
That fits a small master's thesis with five experienced traceurs on a course: ground reaction forces were highest where the drop was bigger or where momentum from the previous obstacle carried over [3]. The more speed you bring, the more the landing matters.
How long until the lazy vault flows? In practice often a few weeks with two sessions a week. Practical experience, not a study figure.
The prerequisites are checkable:
Run diagonally towards a line on the floor from three or four steps and take off with the outer leg. You practise direction, not yet the obstacle.
Milestone: ten approaches without an obstacle, always with the same take-off leg.
On a low bench you now place one hand flat, the hip turns out sideways and the legs do not swing over yet. The obstacle is only a support here.
Milestone: seven out of ten attempts without touching it with shin or knee.
On the obstacle the second hand lands while the first lifts off. The hand switch is the core of the lazy vault. The hands stay on the surface, not on the edge.
Milestone: five hand switches without putting the legs down and without tapping with the feet.
The legs go sideways over the obstacle without brushing the surface. You land on the balls of the feet, knees and hips deep, eyes forward – like in the precision landing [1].
Milestone: five passes with a soft landing.
Lengthen the run-up to five or six steps. The obstacle stays at hip height. More speed brings more momentum into the landing [3].
Milestone: five passes with an even rhythm and a stable landing.
The lazy vault is not among the most dangerous moves, but obstacles are a real risk. In US emergency-department data, landing and striking objects were the most common causes of parkour injuries [4].
Practise the hand switch at a wall. Stand sideways to a wall and place one hand, then the other, alternately at shoulder height without moving your feet. Your brain learns the "step" of the hands separately from the jump. That is practical experience without a study figure – but it switches the hand switch on before you jump at an obstacle at all.
The lazy vault is a vault from a diagonal approach: you support yourself with one hand on the obstacle, switch hands and swing your legs over sideways. It is a beginner vault once you master the safety vault and precision landing securely.
Through the diagonal approach, flat hand placement, the hand switch on the surface and the soft landing. Take a low bench, stay at hip height and add speed only once landing and hand switch are solid. Two sessions a week are realistic.
That depends on your starting point. Most people begin with the safety vault, followed by the lazy vault, speed vault and kong vault. There are no scientific comparisons, the order is training experience. A clean landing after each vault is decisive [1].
In a survey of 161 traceurs, 3.4 % of reported injuries were attributed to the fence vault and 1.9 % to the thief vault, but 18.8 % to the precision jump [2]. These are recalled answers, not measurements. Landing and striking objects are the most common causes [4].
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