Ever pretended you were a super spy, sneaking around corners
and leaping from shadow to shadow? Hone your ninja skills with a workout meant
to test—and build—your speed, strength and agility. Grab a group of friends,
take over a nearby playground and get moving!
Up, up and away
Playgrounds are packed with stairs. Make good use of ‘em and
run (carefully!) up and down. Pull those knees up!
Swing thing
Who doesn’t love riding on a swing? Engage your core to get
ya moving for a solid ab workout, and use your legs to go way high. Weee!
Monkey business
Take to the monkey bars and perfect your technique. It’s an
ace way to build up those arm muscles without hitting the pull-up bar. Bonus points for making it across without
stopping.
Climbin’ to the clouds
Got a net or climbing wall at your disposal? Take to it,
girlie! Use your legs to power your climb instead of your arms—you’ll
strengthen your thighs and calves super quickly…and score a nice booty, too.
Can’t snag playground time? Try these activities,
instead…
Relay Race
Break your buds into teams of three or more. Plot out an
obstacle course through your backyard, neighborhood, school yard, etc. Give
each team an object they have to hand off to the next team member once they
finish their leg, like a short stick, marker or tennis ball. You can weave
through saplings, crawl under or over barriers and crab walk through a sand
box.
Pool points
Have you ever played shark with your sweeties? This game
works the same one. One person is “it” and the others are ninjas. The “It”
person is at one end of the pool, facing the wall, while the ninjas start at
the other end. The object of the game is to be the first to swim across the pool
and tag the person who is “it” without being noticed. If the “it” person turns
around while you’re swimming and calls ya on it, you’ve gotta go back to the
other end of the pool. And if “it” tags you? You’re out!
Tag team
Old school ninjas prided themselves on being able to create
a diversion when necessary. Buddy up with one of your babes and practice your
ability to distract someone so well that your friend can carry out a task
without them noticing, like dropping a candy bar on their desk or snagging a fry
during lunch.
Standing stones
If you don’t move, they can’t see ya, right? OK, maybe not
so much, but ninjas were masters at becoming one with their surroundings. Grab
your sistahs and strike a yoga pose. First to fall over is o-u-t, out…and last
one standing wins!
Note: Truth time – Ninjas were both spies and assassins
or mercenaries hundreds of years ago in Japan. We’re certainly not encouraging
you to go out and start a fight. We do, however, admire how dedicated ninjas
were in their training. And hey, wearing all black and sneaking around? Fun way
to spend an afternoon, if ya ask us. Want a real ninja challenge? CLICK
HERE!
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