Asteroids

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Provide a high-energy physical warm-up that tests reaction time and spatial awareness.

Use it when: Use during active physical education sessions, youth workshops, or outdoor retreats to reset energy.

Skip it when: Skip in cramped indoor rooms, professional corporate settings requiring low physical exertion, or when participants have mobility limitations without suitable space adaptations.

Group arrangement: Individual free-for-all in a shared open space

Timing: UWT suggested timing based on a standard 5 to 15 minute energy-builder session.

Materials and tools

• 1 soft fleece ball or yarn ball per participant (minimum 1 per person, extras optional)
• Cones or floor tape to mark boundaries if playing indoors or on an open field

Before participants arrive

1. Mark a clear playing boundary roughly 10 meters by 10 meters for 10 to 15 people, adjusting for group size.
2. Remove any tripping hazards, bags, or loose chairs from the playing zone.
3. Place one soft ball in each participant's hands.

Say this to open

We are going to play Asteroids. Everyone starts with one soft ball. We will gather in the center with our balls touching. When I say 'Go', throw your ball straight up into the air, step back, and the game begins. Your goal is to retrieve any ball and toss it to hit another player below the waist. If you are hit below the waist by a ball thrown by someone else, take a seat or crouch where you were tagged. If you catch a ball, that does not eliminate anyone; only direct hits below the waist count. The last person standing wins the round.

How to run it

1. Explain rules and safety 3 minutes

   Gather the group on the boundary line. Review safety expectations: only underhand or soft tosses, direct hits only count below the waist, and head or upper-body hits do not count. Demonstrate a valid below-the-waist tag. Confirm opt-out options and boundaries.

2. Run round one 4 minutes

   Call all participants into a tight circle in the center. Everyone extends both arms forward until all balls touch in the middle. On the call 'Go', everyone tosses their ball straight up into the air and scatters. Players pick up any ball and toss at others. When tagged below the waist, a player sits or crouches where they were hit. Play continues until one person remains standing.

3. Run round two with reset 5 minutes

   Everyone stands back up, collects one ball, and reforms the tight circle in the center. Run a second round using identical rules. If time permits, run a quick third round.

4. Cool down and brief debrief 3 minutes

   Call the group together to collect all balls. Ask 1 or 2 reflection questions about situational awareness and movement strategy. Transition to the next scheduled agenda item.

Debrief questions

• What movement strategies helped you stay active longer in the playing space?
• How did having tagged players sitting in the space change how you navigated the room?

Finished output: Completion of two to three fast-paced elimination rounds, ending when one player remains standing.

Remote

This game relies on physical proximity and tossing physical objects. It cannot run in a standard remote format. As a seated virtual movement alternative, play 'Screen Dodge': participants turn cameras on, a leader calls out directional cues ('Duck', 'Lean Left', 'Jump'), and participants match movements until a reaction-time round finishes.

Hybrid

Hybrid delivery is not recommended. If attempted, in-person players play Asteroids on camera while remote participants act as boundary referees or spotters via video feed, calling out fair below-the-waist tags.

Access and participation choices

• Participants who prefer not to run or be tagged may act as boundary referees or ball collectors.
• Players with mobility constraints can participate from a seated chair inside the zone or toss while stationary, agreeing that touches to the chair legs or lower body count.

If the session gets stuck

Participants throw balls too hard or aim above the waist.

Pause the game immediately. Remind players that any hit above the waist does not eliminate the target, and enforce underhand tosses if throwing becomes aggressive.

Standing players trip over crouched eliminated players.

Instruct eliminated players to move immediately to the nearest perimeter line and sit along the boundary rather than staying in the center of the floor.

Terms used here

• Fleece ball: A soft fabric ball made of fleece or yarn, designed for safe indoor throwing games.