Works with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or your own local model: paste this prompt and your AI will co-facilitate this exercise with you.

Help me prepare and run the exercise below. First ask for my participant count, time, setting, access needs and intended result. Check these against the stated limits. Use the supplied rules and materials. Explain any proposed changes before using them, and label them as adaptations. Do not invent source claims or require personal disclosure. Give me one step at a time when I say start. I manage the people, physical activity and clock; do not claim to observe the room. Ask me what happened before choosing a next step.

Reference revision: 351b35e50d7caa29d9af580c3d52eafe4be69db4a0e25d15de77e1e7897c6c40

# Walk and Lean

Partners move through an open space where one walks and occasionally pauses to lean back into the hands of a dedicated spotter. They swap roles to experience both giving and receiving physical balance support.

**Time:** 10 minutes. UWT suggested standard 10-minute running time based on Playmeo 30-second rotating partner rounds.
**People:** 4 to 24. Pairs; if an odd participant is present, form one group of three with two spotters or assign a timekeeper/observer.

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Practice giving attentive physical spotting and communicating comfort boundaries in paired movement.
**Use it when:** Use during in-person team building or physical warmups when participants want an active, low-complexity exercise on mutual attention.
**Skip it when:** Skip when the group has physical mobility limitations, floor hazards, an aversion to physical touch, or in remote settings where physical spotting is impossible.

## Materials and tools

- One stopwatch or countdown timer for the facilitator
- Open floor space clear of chairs, bags, and tripping hazards

## Before participants arrive

1. Clear all furniture and obstacles from the center of the room to create an unobstructed walking area.

## Say this to open

Find a partner and stand together. In this activity, one of you will be the walker and one will be the spotter. Spotters stay directly behind their partner, hands ready near the partner's shoulder blades without pushing. Walkers can stop walking at any point, pause, and lean back gently. Spotters catch the lean, stabilize their partner, and help them return upright. If at any point you want to opt out or stop leaning, simply tell your partner 'pause' or take a side step.

## How to run it

### 1. Set pairs and safety briefing (2 minutes)

Assemble the group into pairs. If there is an odd number, place the extra person in a trio with two spotters, or offer them the role of room safety monitor. Demonstrate proper spotting posture: staggered stance, knees slightly bent, hands raised at chest level with open palms. Instruct walkers to stop completely before leaning back, rather than falling while moving. Emphasize that leans should start small, just a few inches, to test support.

### 2. Round one exploration (3 minutes)

Start the timer. Person A walks slowly through the open space. Person B tracks directly behind them, maintaining close distance. Every few steps, Person A comes to a full stop and leans back into Person B's hands. Person B braces and supports Person A, then eases them back to vertical. After 90 seconds, call 'swap roles'. Person B walks and leans while Person A spots for 90 seconds.

### 3. Round two with partner switch (3 minutes)

Call time and ask participants to pair with a different person. Repeat the cycle: new Person A walks and leans for 90 seconds while new Person B spots. Call the switch, then run the final 90 seconds with roles reversed. Remind spotters to keep their eyes on their partner's upper back at all times.

### 4. Whole-room debrief (2 minutes)

Gather the group in a circle standing. Ask two participants to share what specific behaviors helped them feel secure while leaning, and two participants to share what was required to remain completely attentive as a spotter.


## Debrief questions

- What specific physical cues helped you know your spotter was ready before you leaned back?
- How did your focus change between being the person leaning and being the person responsible for catching?
- What adjustments did you make when switching to a partner of a different height or build?

**Finished output:** Completion of timed partner spotting rounds with participants returning to an upright stance without falls.

## Remote

This physical exercise cannot be run remotely because it requires physical contact and immediate spotting for balance. A related non-physical alternative is 'Blind Drawing Direction', where one partner guides another through verbal instructions only.

## Hybrid

Hybrid delivery is not recommended. If attempted, in-person participants run the physical exercise in pairs while remote participants run a separate verbal coordination pair exercise in breakout rooms. Do not attempt cross-interface physical spotting.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants may choose the degree of lean, from an imperceptible shift of weight onto the heels to a full lean.
- Anyone may opt out of physical touch or leaning by acting as a space spotter, navigating around pairs and monitoring clear room lanes.

## If the session gets stuck

**Walkers lean backward while still in motion, creating momentum that risks pulling the spotter off balance.**

Pause the room immediately. Reiterate the mandatory rule: complete stop, pause for one second, check that the spotter is planted, then lean.

**A significant height or weight difference makes catching uncomfortable.**

Instruct the walker to make minimal weight shifts, or re-pair participants by relative height and comfort level.


## Terms used here

- Spotter: A partner positioned closely behind another person, standing in a stable stance with hands ready to catch and balance them.
- Staggered stance: Standing with one foot slightly forward and one foot back to provide a wide, stable base of support.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in Playmeo library records, where the activity is attributed to Mark Collard.

Retained core mechanics from Playmeo (walking, stopping before leaning backward, active spotting behind, rotating roles). Playmeo listed 30-second swaps; UWT extended active intervals to 90 seconds to allow participants to settle into movement, added explicit staggered-stance safety instructions, defined a partner-switch second round, and structured a 10-minute facilitator schedule with a debrief.

[Playmeo](https://www.playmeo.com/activities/trust-building-games/walk-lean)

[Playmeo](https://www.playmeo.com/activities/trust-building-games/walk-lean/)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/active-trust-building-game-for-movement-support-walk-lean/