Daily Inspiration: Meet Aiden Scott

Today we’d like to introduce you to Aiden Scott.

Hi Aiden, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m a Tricking athlete and coach based in Boulder, CO. I grew up in Longmont, CO, and was always a very active kid. Started skateboarding at 5 years old, breakdancing at 10, parkour at 12, and eventually Tricking when I was 13! I found out about Tricking at a local gym called Apex Movement. There’s still a location in Denver, but sadly the Boulder location is gone now. Regardless, it was a hub for parkour, freerunning, tricking, breakdancing, pole dancing, and many other forms of acrobatics. I attended a “level 1 Parkour class” and found out about Tricking!

Tricking is the combination of martial arts kicks, gymnastics tumbling/flips, and the flow and rhythm of breakdance. I was so fascinated the first time I saw Tricking because it combined so many movement styles and I could barely make out what I was watching. Wanting to learn more, I watched hundreds of videos on YouTube about this new sport, Tricking. I quickly found out there was a local community in Highlands Ranch, CO that was teaching and organizing “Tricking sessions”.

The name of this organization was Elevation Tricking, ran by a group of people whom I didn’t know would have such an impact on my life. I was posting videos of myself trying these “tricks” on Facebook at the time, and one of the members of the local community reached out to me. A few weeks later I attended my first “Tricking session” and the rest is history!

Fast forward to 2024, and though it’s not called Elevation Tricking anymore, the local Tricking community here in Colorado is thriving and looking to open its own “Tricking gym” within the next couple of years. Currently, I am a Trekking coach at a local gym, Cats Gymnastics, in Boulder. The owners have been huge supporters of Tricking, allowing us to bring 100’s trickers from all over the world to train at the facility’s “open gyms”, and have provided my personal home gym since I was 13. This gym access has allowed me to train up to some of the hardest skills achievable in the world of Tricking. Notably, I am the second person, in the world, to do 30 consecutive flips off of one leg, on the ground.

Tricking has taken me all over the United States, and internationally for these competitions and events we call Tricking gatherings. My main mission at the moment, is to heal from a recent surgery I had on my right ankle, and get back to competing against the best trickers in the world! At 24 years old, I believe this is my last opportunity to push myself as the highest-level athlete that I’m capable of becoming. You can find my personal achievements, day-to-day training, and exercise/nutrition content on my Instagram @aidenscoot. I will continue to spread the incredible light that Tricking has brought into my life, with everyone who will benefit.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
My experience in Tricking has been one of the most difficult, yet rewarding parts of my life. I have been through two major surgeries, mostly due to my poor training habits, and I’m still recovering from the second surgery. Sadly, I continued to do tricks on an injured big toe, which led to my first surgery, in January 2022. An injury to your big toe may seem minuscule, but I had two ligaments repaired, in the ball of my left foot, and had bone spur removal, as well as a cartilage repair.

Fast forward to a year and a half later, I was finally fully recovered from my surgery and competing at an event called Loopkicks Tricking Gathering in San Jose, California. The weekend went well and I placed within the top 16 trickers at the event. On the last day, after competing alongside some of the best of the best, I was exhausted. Regardless, I continued to do tricks at the event, and a few hours into the last Tricking session of Loopkicks, I partially tore two ligaments in my right ankle.

Obviously, I was devastated, but riding the high from the great weekend, got me back home to CO. An x-ray showed no broken bones, so I decided to take the holistic approach and recover with physical therapy and rigorous strength training. Sadly, the pain continued to linger over the next 8 months which led to my second major surgery, ankle ligament reconstruction and bone spur removal!

These injuries have left me broken down, questioning my motivation and reality, and ultimately changing my path forever. With that said, without my injuries, I wouldn’t be the same proud and confident person that I am today. I have learned so much about nutrition, exercise, recovery, and mental health during the two recoveries I’ve gone through and am still fighting to this day. I wouldn’t want to change my story in any way, and I look forward to showing the world of Tricking what perseverance and dedication can get you. My story is not over yet!

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am like many other artists/athletes and do not have the luxury of being a full-time athlete. I currently work for Trader Joe’s in Boulder, CO, and coach Tricking at a local gymnastics gym, CATS Gymnastics. I am seriously grateful to work for Trader Joe’s and they have been my favorite employer I’ve EVER worked for! The environment speaks for itself: friendly staff, new and colorful products, inexpensive groceries, and the list goes on.

My favorite part about working there is the flexibility they have provided me, as an athlete. No other job has allowed me to change my schedule to fit my training regimen and to take time off to travel/compete at Tricking events all over the world. I definitely attribute much of my success as a Tricking coach, to this flexibility as well.

Coaching part-time at Cats Gymnastics has taught me more about myself and teaching others, than anything else in my life! People often ask if it’s difficult to teach someone how to do tricks, but I like to look at every new student as a new challenge. Not one person learns the same way, and THAT is what makes coaching Tricking so special.

Every person I have the honor to work with will learn some kind of trick, but many of my students also gain the confidence to take on new areas of interest in their lives. That kind of power cannot always be learned, and I’m grateful to have an impact on these students’ lives!

Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
Luck has played the majority of the role in the success of my own Tricking and the opportunity to teach this art form to others as well. I strongly believe everything happens for a reason, but no matter how prepared you are, you may not be lucky enough to find the opportunity.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aidenscoot?igsh=MTBxeTJ6OWUyZjc2MQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@ASMovement?si=hRuZzN205rOp6kqD