Sébastien Charron doesn’t look like your average parkour enthusiast. Instead of a lean muscular physique, he sports a prominent belly and obviously high body fat percentage, features not usually associated with a sport that requires impeccable physical conditioning. But as soon as you see him in action, you are reminded of the old saying “you should never judge a book by its covers.”

Dubbed a “real-life Kung Fu Panda”, Charron is actually an inspiration for average guys everywhere that nothing is impossible. He started practicing parkour a decade ago, and became really good at it, but after five years he was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and the side effects of his prescribed medication forced him to take a break from what he loved doing most. The treatment and lack of physical activity also caused him to gain massive weight in a relatively short period of time, but he never gave up on his passion. He recently started training again, and although he admits that the thick layer of fat makes working on his jumps and vaults tougher than before, he somehow manages to make it work.

Photo: Sebastien Charron/Instagram

“I truly love this sport because it pushes me to go further, to not give up and continue to move forward. The more I get into it, the more I feel the need to progress and better my style and flow,” Sebastien told Sidewalk Project. “Since I’m under medication, I had to pause and it’s been hard for me to get back in the game. Add to that my weight gain, jumping and training got harder. But I don’t give up. And step by step, progress is felt, I got better day by day and now I continue to move forward with #noexcuses!”

Charron’s incredible skills gained international attention after a YouTube video posted by Muscle Madness late last year went viral online. Needless to say, he blew everyone’s mind with his skills. “This is so impressive… his knowledge of the technique must be beyond that of most other people, or he wouldn’t be able to move this amount of mass,” one person commented. “I feel inspired and also ashamed I can’t do half that stuff,” another added.

For more of Sébastien Charron’s ridiculously impressive parkour stunts make sure to check out his Instagram page.