The cat leap to cat hang is a foundational movement in parkour.

It’s the go-to technique when you need to cross a gap and land on a vertical obstacle, like a wall, rather than on top of it.

It looks simple enough, but there is a specific sequence to the landing. If you get it wrong, you end up slamming your knees into concrete or ripping your hands up. Here is how to do it the right way.

You can initiate a cat leap from a standing position, a precision jump, or a running start. When you are first learning, keep it simple. Start from a stationary position fairly close to the wall you are jumping toward.

As you jump towards the obstacle, you need to change your body angle. Don't go straight at it. Lean back slightly while in the air, bringing your feet and hands out in front of you. You want to create an arc with your body.

This is the most critical part of the movement. Your feet must connect with the wall first. Your legs are the shock absorbers. If you try to grab the wall with your hands first, your lower body's momentum will swing forward, and your knees will smash into the wall. It hurts, and it will end your training session real quick.

Aim to place your feet on the wall so they can absorb the impact of the jump. Keep a little bit of space between your feet as you land. If you keep them slammed tightly together, it’s much harder to maintain balance, and you are more likely to slip backwards. Having that small gap gives you a wider base of control.

A split second after your feet make contact and compress to take the force, your hands should grab the top edge of the obstacle.

Once you have a solid grip on the top, straighten your arms. You should now be in a crouching position against the wall, hanging by your hands with your feet flat against the vertical surface. This is the "cat hang."

From this position, you have a lot of options. You can use it to safely lower yourself to the ground, or you can transition into a climb-up to get over the wall.

If the wall is low or you just want to drop down, don't just let go and fall straight down. Kick away from the obstacle slightly with your feet and turn your body away from the wall on your way down.

This prevents you from scraping against the wall. Always land on the balls of your feet, and be ready to transition into a safety tap or a parkour roll depending on the height of the drop.

Don't go looking for a massive gap for your first try. Practice on low walls with short distances. Get used to the timing of your feet hitting first, followed immediately by your hands.

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