I, like most beginners, am having trouble getting the roll quite right.
Now, I did Judo for years, where we learned to break falls and roll, but the Parkour roll has to be much more perfect so that you're not hurt whether on mats on concrete.
I usually practice on grass, in my backyard. It seems to work better from a small and jump off a small box (a foot or two in height) rather than just running and trying to roll.
Understanding the roll without a teacher is hard, so I'm having some issues. I've heard a few times that the first thing that's supposed to hit (aside from your hands) is the back of your shoulder; however, when I've flipped that much before landing, I can't get a smooth roll, and usually end up winded.
From watching videos, I've come to think that rolls are more sideways than I originally thought, but when I do that I tend to hit the side of my shoulder too hard (it's bruised now), and end up coming up too far on my side. If I try to get less of a horizontal angle, then I end up both hitting the top of my shoulder (the part where bone protrudes) and rolling across my spine in a painful way. I can't seem to find any angle in between.
Has anybody else had these problems? Any advice?
Thanks