No worries even in the rain! Fun recreational activities you can do in the gym
Introducing fun recreation activities you can enjoy in the gym! When you hear variety games or cooperative games, you might imagine playing outside, but there are plenty of activities and recreations you can enjoy in a gym.
Even when rain or snow keeps you indoors, you can still build your fitness in the gym.
Basketball, futsal, dodgeball—there are tons of games and activities everyone can enjoy together! Try making time to be active in the gym with friends or family while having fun.
Exercise energizes both your mind and body!
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Tag and chase play ideas (11–20)
Sinking Game
This is a gym game for young children called “Sinking Game.” The whole gym is the ocean, and several placed mats are treated as islands.
If playing with a teacher and students, the teacher is the shark and the children are the runners.
Once a runner steps onto a mat, the game starts.
When the shark says “It’s sinking!” everyone must move to a different mat, taking care not to get caught by the shark while moving.
If elementary school children are playing, divide the kids into teams of sharks and runners.
If you’re caught, you’re out; then switch roles and compete to see which team can escape from the sharks more within the time limit.
Alien Tag
Doesn’t the term “space conquest” sound retro-futuristic and cool? You can make it a reality with this game, “Alien Tag.” First, create about three types of aliens you like.
Then keep tagging free aliens, and in the end, the alien type with the most tags wins.
That’s right—total space conquest.
Whether you love sci-fi or not, you’re bound to enjoy it.
Spider Ogre
This is a game of tag played on all fours.
The “it” crawls on all fours to chase the children.
The children escape by moving on their backs in a crab-walk position.
When someone is tagged, you can switch who’s “it,” or it might be fun to have the number of “its” gradually increase.
Dodgeball tag
This is a variation of the classic chasing game, tag, that uses a ball: “Ball Tag.” The tagger (it) holds a ball and chases the other players, trying to hit them by throwing the ball.
Whoever gets hit becomes the next tagger and takes the ball, and the game continues like that.
Some kids who aren’t fast runners may struggle to catch others when they’re ‘it.’ But with Ball Tag, even kids who aren’t good at sprinting can have fun playing.
Reversi Tag
This is “Reversi Tag,” a game that combines Reversi and tag.
Place many double-sided mats with different colors on each side inside the court.
At the start signal, flip the mats to your team’s color.
If you get tagged by the opposing team, you must return once to the safety zone at the edge of the court.
Flip as many as you can, as quickly as you can, without getting tagged!
Evolution Rock-Paper-Scissors
“Evolution Rock-Paper-Scissors” is a game that helps children improve their motor skills.
First, lie face down.
Then, crawl along the floor, pair up with someone you meet, and play rock-paper-scissors.
If you win, you can evolve from lying face down to being on all fours.
Then look for another opponent and play again.
It’s called “Evolution Rock-Paper-Scissors” because you evolve each time you win.
The evolution order is: face down, on all fours, high crawl without knees touching the floor, and bipedal walking.
Give it a try with your whole class!
Tag/Chasing Game Ideas (21–30)
S-ken (traditional Japanese playground game)
“S-Ken” is a territory-capturing game you can play indoors.
It’s a thrilling activity that exercises not only your body but also your mind.
Here’s how to play: First, draw a large “S” on the ground.
The rounded parts of the “S” become each team’s territory.
Next, place each team’s “treasure” at the back of its territory.
Then, hop on one foot (kenken) into the opponent’s territory and try to steal their treasure.
Once you reach the territory, it’s okay to put both feet down.
You lose if the defending team pushes you out of their territory or if you put both feet down while moving.
It’s sure to turn into an intense battle!
In conclusion
Recreation games can be fun to play in the gym while building physical fitness. There are many activities you can do in a gym and plenty of games where everyone can cooperate and play together. When you can’t play outside, be sure to use this as a reference and make the most of the gym to have fun!