Test de vocabulaire sur les espaces publics

What does “parcours de santé” mean in French?

Word by word, this looks like a “health path” or maybe a medical thing. It is not. Un parcours de santé is an outdoor trail, often through a park or forest, with simple exercise stops along the way: pull-up bars, log steps, sit-up benches. You jog from one to the next and do the exercise shown on the sign. It is a real place you go to work out for free, outside.

In the clip the host runs through public-space words and lands on the picture: « C’est un... C’est un parcours de santé. » (“It’s a... it’s a fitness trail.”) Be careful: parcours means “route” or “course you follow,” and santé means “health.” Together they do not mean “a health check” or “a class.” A parcours de santé is the physical trail itself, with painted signs at each station telling you what to do. The idea started in Switzerland in the 1960s. In Switzerland these trails are often called un parcours Vita (Vita is a brand name). In France you may also hear un parcours sportif. You find them in parks, forests, and near beaches, and anyone can use them for free. Useful nearby words from the same video: une piste cyclable (a bike lane) and une aire de jeu (a playground). Example: « Le dimanche, on fait le parcours de santé près de la forêt. » — “On Sundays we do the fitness trail near the forest.”