Robbing the Nest

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Test real-time tactical adjustments and coordination under time pressure without physical contact.

Use it when: Use during an active in-person session to break up long sedentary periods and examine team planning under fast-moving constraints.

Skip it when: Skip when open floor space is unavailable, when physical running poses safety risks, or when remote participation is required.

Group arrangement: Four teams assigned to separate corners of an open playing area.

Timing: Playmeo specifies rounds of 1 to 2 minutes; UWT structures a 15-minute run sheet with setup, two rounds, strategy pauses, and debrief.

Materials and tools

• 4 open buckets or storage tubs
• 20 to 40 soft tossable items such as fleece balls, beanbags, or foam shapes (5 to 10 per bucket)
• 1 stopwatch or countdown timer
• 1 flip chart and marker for scorekeeping

Before participants arrive

1. Clear an open rectangular room or hall free of tripping hazards.
2. Place one bucket in each of the four corners of the space.
3. Place an equal number of soft items (such as 6 per bucket) inside each container.
4. Set up a flip chart to record interim scores.

Say this to open

Welcome. We have four corners, each holding a nest with an equal supply of soft items. Your team's job is to gather as many items into your bucket as possible before time expires. You may retrieve items from any opposing bucket, but you must carry only one item at a time. No one may guard, block, or hover over any bucket. Everyone is free to choose their level of physical movement, including walking or tracking score. We will play two timed rounds of two minutes each with a strategy break between them.

How to run it

1. Assign teams and position nests 3 minutes

   Divide participants into 4 balanced teams. Send each team to a corner base. If participant numbers do not divide evenly by 4, allow extra participants to act as dedicated team strategists or base scorers who stay at the corner. Demonstrate picking up a single item and placing it directly into a bucket without throwing or blocking.

2. Run round one 3 minutes

   Start a 2-minute timer. Team members move to other corners to retrieve one item at a time and return it to their own bucket. Enforce the no-guarding rule: defenders cannot stand within arm's reach of their own bucket to shield items. Call time promptly when 2 minutes elapse. Teams stop moving immediately and count the items in their bucket. Record scores on the flip chart.

3. Review strategy and run round two 4 minutes

   Give teams 90 seconds to huddle and adapt their approach. Announce round two. Start a second 2-minute timer. Teams execute their revised tactics under the same rules. Call time at 2 minutes, verify final item counts at each base, and announce the final tally.

4. Debrief tactical decisions 5 minutes

   Gather the whole group in a central circle. Take 2 or 3 observations per question: What surprised your team about how quickly the items shifted? How did your team adjust between round one and round two? What trade-offs emerged between targeting one corner versus spreading out across all three?

Debrief questions

• What surprised your team about how quickly the items shifted?
• How did your team adjust its plan between round one and round two?
• What trade-offs emerged between focusing on one opposing base versus spreading out?

Finished output: A completed multi-round score tally showing items collected per team, followed by team reflection on tactical coordination.

Remote

This active physical chase game cannot run effectively online in its physical form. For remote teams, run a completely separate digital sorting exercise: create a shared spreadsheet with four sheets representing team vaults and 40 numbered item rows in a central pool, where participants take turns moving one designated item code to their sheet per 15-second interval.

Hybrid

Robbing the Nest requires physical presence in the same room. Remote participants cannot run the physical mechanics. If hybrid delivery is mandatory, remote participants must be paired with in-person teams via video call as tactical spotters and timers who watch the overall room floor and advise their in-person runners during huddles.

Access and participation choices

• Participants can walk rather than run, or serve as the designated base counter, strategist, or timekeeper without running.
• Any participant may step back to observe or pass on physical movement without disclosing personal or medical reasons.

If the session gets stuck

Participants try to grab two or three items at once.

Stop play briefly, enforce the one-item-at-a-time rule, and require the offending player to return the excess items immediately.

Players hover directly over their bucket to physically block opponents from taking items.

Remind the room of the no-guarding rule and enforce a mandatory 2-meter clear zone around every bucket for defending team members.

Terms used here

• Guarding: Standing close to your team's own bucket or using your body to block opponents from taking an item.