Hot Day Water Workout

For those who run their bootcamp near a beach/lake/river, here is a great workout involving water (so perfect for a hot day). We ran this recently for our Australia Day workout.

Scorcher

Equipment needed:

• 2 large, plastic tubs (think shopping baskets without the holes, they need to hold water)
• 2 plastic cups for each member of your group
• (Optional) 4 plastic shot glasses
• 100 – 200 water bombs – filled up. For fast, self-tying water bombs, just google ‘bunch o balloons’, these things are an amazing time saver!!

Part 1 – Water Hustle

Split the group up into 2 teams of roughly equal fitness levels. Each team gets a tub, which is placed flat on the ground roughly 40 metres away from the ocean/lake/river. Each team is to nominate a team captain – or you as the trainer can pick this yourself. Try and pick one of the fitter, more confident members, and someone who doesn’t mind getting wet!

Each person gets two plastic cups, and lines up next to their tub for the game to start. On GO, everyone runs to fill up their cups with water, then runs them back and pours the water into their team’s tub. The game continues until one team has entirely filled up their tub, so it overflows. When this happens, the winning team gets to pour the tub of water over the head of the opposing captain, who is kneeling on the ground (the fun part!).

You can play this game once or a second time with new team captains!

Variations

• The game can be made to go faster/slower by moving the tub closer or further away from the water source
• As a joke, team captains can be picked on by giving them 2 shot glasses to use instead of cups. This makes them work really hard for not much benefit!
• Quite often if the game gets close towards the end, I will say it is too close to call and the game is a draw, meaning both captains get dunked! Another option is the captain who gets dunked gets to pick someone (on either team) to get dunked with them by the other tub.
• If you don’t have a body of water available, you can still run this game by using taps. Just try not to have the taps running at full, and for too long, so as not to waste too much water of course! Or have another, larger tub which you fill and acts as a mini lake.

Part 2 – Team Water Fight

Keep your group split up into the same two teams. Each team fills up their tub with filled and tied up water bombs. Depending on the number of people you have, aim for 50 – 100 water bombs per team.

Set up each team’s home base about 60 metres apart, with their tub to stay there. Make a line with 2 cones about 10 metres apart at each team’s home base.

The game from here is simple. Each team aims to get someone over the opposing team’s line, while stopping the other team from doing the same. Everyone carries 2 water bombs with them and throws them at people from the other team. If you get hit by a water bomb, you have to go back to your home base and go again. Every time a team gets someone over the opponent’s line, they get a point for their team. Continue the game until all water bombs have been used.

This game makes for a lot of laughs (and lots of running!).

Safety tips – make sure everyone aims to throw waist or below (no risk of headshots!), If you have some guys or girls with a particularly strong throwing arm, have a quiet word to them to not throw too hard and injure anyone.

Variations

• To add more running, make a rule that you are only allowed to carry one water bomb at a time.
• Make a rule that the water bomb has to explode on impact for the shot to count (bounce offs don’t count)
• Everyone once hit must do 5 burpees, then run back to home base.
• Place the tubs 10 metres behind each team’s home base line, making them have to run back to get new balloons.

These are two fun workout ideas for a holiday (particularly a hot one), that will still get your members running quite a bit!