A parcours is a fitness exercise trail. Adaptations of the original idea have been established by park and recreation departments, industries, and universities throughout Europe and North America. The trails offer a recreational way to promote physical fitness in natural surroundings. The parcours system incorporates a series of exercise stations along a loop trail that averages about one mile in length. At each of 15-20 stations, a sign is posted designating an exercise and a recommended number of repetitions.
Some trails have additional connecting loops for further jogging and trail running.
Most fitness trails are located in park or forest settings. Natural turf, bare soil, or wood chips are used for the trail surface. This type of trail offers a place to run with freedom from road hazards and associated exhaust and noise pollution. It provides some privacy for the participant, encouraging calisthenics, without offering a spectacle for neighbors and relatives. The aesthetic experience derived from using a parcours trail may surpass that of simply jogging.