Exercises
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WARNING: not every exercise is suited for every client and in every situation. Sometimes exercises are contraindicated. The list of exercises is only ment to induce ideas. Only use the exercises if you are sure what you are doing. The use of the exercises in practise is at your own risk. The PMT Info Site is in no way responsible.
Using an exercise means agreement with the aforementioned.
This site is for and by psychomotor therapists. Do you know another exercise? Let others share and submit the exercise by filling in the form at the bottom of this page.
The provided themes at this moment are: Trust, Space and Force/agression and Outdoor.
Theme: Trust |
| Walking around blind |
| Number of participants: 1, 2 |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: trust, space |
| - Client walks with eyes closed, without hints -> how does the person handle himself. |
| Walking blind and leading |
| Number of participants: 2 |
| Materials needed: geen |
| Theme: trust |
| - A tells B how he would like to be handled while being led, e.g. under the arm or by the hand. B takes care of A. A checks with himself which body experiences there are. |
| - B leads, but A determines the pace and tries to jog a little. |
| - B leads A with words (no physical contact). A checks with himself which body experiences there are. If necessary B takes a hold of A. |
| - A and B stand on opposite sides of the hall, along a short side. A walks towards B with eyes closed, without hints. B is ready to stop A if A walks to far. |
| - The same, starting with small tripping steps. |
| Leading the blind |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: trust |
| A has closed his eyes, B is leading him around. A can indicate non-verbally that he wants to be handled differently. Walk slowly, slowly increasing the pace to a run, backwards (running). |
| - the same, all B's can change parnter halfway, without A's watching. The A's exchange their experiences with both B's. |
| - the same, 5 different ways of handling a person are sought. Check which one is the most pleasant. |
| Lead (a blind person) by a ball at the back |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: bals |
| Theme: trust, follow/lead |
| - 2 persons are behind eachother. The one at the back leads the one up front around the hall by means of a ball at the back, between the shoulderblades. |
| - the same, the person up front has his eyes closed. |
| Minefield (blind) |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: various material |
| Theme: trust |
| - a part of the hall, e.g. half a badmintonfield, is covered with objects (balls, cones, hockeysticks, gloves, blocks, etc.). A leads the blind B through this to the other side. Change places. Possible variations: |
| - physical contact or walking along without physical contact |
| - leadint verbally or non-verbally |
| - A leads B through the storage room with gymnastic equipment with the lights out (Difficult). |
| - blind person jumping in a 'depth' (Difficult). |
| Blind person along a trail |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: benches, climbing frames |
| Theme: trust |
| - a trail of climbing frames, benches (optionally hanging on a climbing frame), etc. are being placed. After the person has covered the trail a few times with open eyes, it is done again with the eyes closed, while another person helps. (This exercise is suited for a trail with the theme courage/limits and the theme cooperation |
| Leading around with a stick, optionally blind |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: stick |
| Theme: cooperation, choices, trust, leading or not, sensitivity |
| - 2 persons are standing next to eachother and they both hold the stick with both hands. 1 person has the initiative and makes them walk through the hall, giving hints with the stick: go on, go backwards, turn. Change of role. |
| - the same, follower also takes initiative from time to time. (Does the person taking initiative follow, or does he want to keep the initiative?) |
| - the same, the follower sometimes opposes the leader. |
| - both take initiative and follow, without appointments made. This can be done verbal and non-verbal. |
| - like the last one, with consulting toghether |
| - the same as in the first paragraph, but now the follower has his eyes closed. |
| - optionally the same with another partner. |
| Balance exercises |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: none, ball or chair |
| Theme: trust, balance |
| - standing with their back against eachother, ball in between. Slowly walking forward with the feet until they stand in a /\ position, finding balance. |
| - the same without a ball |
| - faces towards eachother, feet together, grabbing the elbows. Hanging on eachothers arms. |
| - 1 person is sitting on a chair. Grab eachothers arms. The other stands on the persons thighs near the groin (first bend forward towards the sitting person before you really try to stand, or this won't work properly). |
| Throwing over, also blind |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: ball |
| Theme: trust |
| - Throwing over a ball: first practice. Then the catcher determines the distance, closes the eyes and stretches his arms forward. The thrower counts to three and on three the ball is in the arms of the catcher. |
| - the same, the thrower throws on the count of three. |
| - practice, then throwing with a bounce, the catcher has his eyes closed. No counting. |
| - like the last one, both with eyes closed. |
| - without a bounce, the catcher has his eyes closed, the thrower says 'yes', right before the ball lands in the hands of the catcher. |
| Falling backwards and being caught |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: trust, body experience, touching |
| - B is behind A. A lets himself fall backwards. |
| - B places the side of his foot against the back of the feet of A and stands with feet spread wide. A leans back against the side of B. B holds A by the shoulders. The next time B holds the lower back. |
| Position in relation to the other |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space, trust, body experience |
| - 1 person sits on a certain spot on the ground, the other stands or sits on different distances and in different directions from the sitting person (so in front/at the back, to the side, and with his face towards or away from the person, etc.). Optionally there is (no) physical contact. The sitting person directs his attention inward and observes the signals of the body. Wat do these signals mean to somebody (e.g. safe/neutral/dangerous). So the focus is on the person sitting on the ground. |
| Take the tail, with protector |
| Number of participants: 6 persons or more |
| Needed: ribbons |
| Theme: trust, protection, offensive versus defensive attitude, responsibility |
| - working in pairs, with a ribbon coming from back of the trouser of 1 person, and the other one being the helper. The helper has 2 tasks: on the one hand protecting his/her partner from theft of the ribbon, on the other hand trying to get the ribbons of the other pairs. The helper can take ribbons from others, but the one having a ribbon him/herself is not allowed to take other ribbons. If a ribbon has been stolen, the pair that has stolen the ribbon had one point extra, while the robbed pair has one point less. Everyone starts at 0 points. The ribbon is returned to the owner and the game is continued. At the end the score is compared. Everyone keeps his/her own score. |
| - Change of role of helper and ribbon bearer |
Theme: Space |
| Position in relation to the other |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space, trust, body experience |
| - 1 person sits on a certain spot on the ground, the other stands or sits at different distances and in different directions from the sitting person (so: in front/at the back, to the side, and with his face towards or away from the person, etc.). Optionally there is (no) physical contact. The sitting person directs his attention inward and observes the signals of the body. Wat do these signals mean to somebody (e.g. safe/neutral/dangerous). So the focus is on the person sitting on the ground. |
| Trying out different places in the hall |
| Number of participants: 1 person |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space, observation |
| - stand or lie down in different places in the hall. What are the differences? Which place is the most comfortable -> finally end there. (Observation: do people choose to have a wall behind them, do they face the door, positions in relation to the therapist and/or others, etc.). |
| Building your own place |
| Number of participants: 1 person |
| Materials needed: various materials |
| Theme: your own place, space, safety |
| - find a pleasant place in the area available and mark your place. Create a comfortable spot, take some things inside your space that have a meaning or that are nice looking. All things from the hall and the storage rooms can be used. |
| Controlled approach |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space, bodily experience, guidance |
| - 1 person (the one who is going to feel) is standing (sitting) and says at which distance the other has to stand (choose various distances). The one who is going to feel experiences the effects on him/her. |
| - 1 person (the one who is going to feel) stands, the other (the helper) stands opposite to him/her (all the helpers are on one side and far apart because of possible interference). The one who is going to feel tells the helper to start walking towards him/her and signals with gestures whether the other has to stop, walk backwards or forwards. Feel the comfortable distance and what happens when the helper comes too close. Finish with a comfortable distance. It is also possible to make the helper turn around with his/her back to the one who is feeling (N.B. the helper can not see any gestures now, so, after some time, he/she has to turn back again on his own). |
| - just like the first point, possible variations: distance, front/back, high/low, different body postures. |
| Keeping the ball from the circle |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: bals, something like chalk/rope/something else to mark |
| Theme: personal place, space, agression |
| - the worker creates a personal place, e.g. by drawing a small circle, near of far from a wall. The helper tries to hit the floor inside the circle with the ball (bouncing) and by succeeding scores a point. The personal place can be adapted from time to time, depending on the success of the helper. (Observations: how big is the place the person creates at first, is this adapted depending on the success of the helper, how does somebody defend its place.) |
| Pushing another person out of the circle |
| Number of participants: 2 to 4 persons |
| Materials needed: circle (with for instance chalk, hoop) |
| Theme: space |
| - A is standing in a circle, B is standing outside of the circle and tries to push A out with care and short movements. |
| - ditto, A has his/her eyes closed. |
| - ditto, A stands relaxed (like a jelly). |
| - ditto, A has his/her eyes closed, 4 persons outside the circle. |
| Changing places |
| Number of participants: from 2 persons to a group |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space |
| - a group of people is sitting together in an arrangement of their own free choice. A number of people change places. What changes. |
| - a number of people is sitting closer together. What changes. |
| - people were sitting next to eachother. Now face-to-face. What changes. |
| Choosing your own game + changing |
| Number of participants: group |
| Materials needed: various materials |
| Theme: space, time spending, possibly assertiveness |
| - choose one activity (or more) that you can do alone. Use the space that you need for this. First build up, then all start at the same time. It is possible that you come into conflict with the space others need for their activity. After a certain preselected time everybody stops. Then choose a place plus an activity of somebody else. It is possible that several people choose the same activity. In that case the agreement could be: the first to arrive can engage in the activity, or people have to negotiate. The new activity will be engaged in equally long. What is it like to play the game of somebody else. |
| Emotional gestures in a circle |
| Number of participants: group |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space, body language |
| the group is standing in a circle. The worker stands in the middle and determines the size of the circle. The group then makes 4 gestures: |
| - 1. holding hands, neutral mimics. |
| - 2. palms of the hands outward, neutral mimics. |
| - 3. big step forward, lokking angry/gruff, hands towards the worker. |
| - 4. arms spread open (come-into-my-arms gesture), smile. |
| The person in the middle determines the distance |
| Number of participants: group |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space |
| - 1 person (the worker) is standing in a circle and with closed eyes concentrates on his/her feelings/sensations. The worker uses three gestures to signal to the group: come to me, go further away, and stop. He/she does this until a pleasant distance is found. The group signals the person in the circle (e.g. the hand expressions, breathing or rocking). |
| Going your own way |
| Number of participants: group |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space, stading up for yourself or giving way to the other |
| - find a pleasant place in a small marked space (about one quarter of a gym). Why do you choose this place. What happens to the other participants if somebody decides to change place. |
| - next everybody decides to which place in the marked space he/she wants to walk. At a signal every body does this. Ditto with 3 places that are determined in advance. What do you do if you encounter somebody else. |
| - ditto, but with the arms wide or on the contrary very small. Then choose the opposite of what you are used to do. |
| Running criss-cross all over the place |
| Number of participants: group |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: space |
| - the participants are walking this way and that in one half of the gym. Observation: e.g. taking space. Afterwards ask everybodies preference. |
| - next reduce the size of the walking space and/or walk with the arms wide. |
Theme: Force/agression |
| Take the tail, with protector |
| Number of participants: 6 persons or more |
| Needed: ribbons |
| Theme: trust, protection, offensive versus defensive attitude, responsibility |
| - working in pairs, with a ribbon coming from back of the trouser of 1 person, and the other one being the helper. The helper has 2 tasks: on the one hand protecting his/her partner from theft of the ribbon, on the other hand trying to get the ribbons of the other pairs. The helper can take ribbons from others, but the one having a ribbon him/herself is not allowed to take other ribbons. If a ribbon has been stolen, the pair that has stolen the ribbon had one point extra, while the robbed pair has one point less. Everyone starts at 0 points. The ribbon is returned to the owner and the game is continued. At the end the score is compared. Everyone keeps his/her own score. |
| - Change of role of helper and ribbon bearer |
| Danish thumbwrestling |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: agression/force |
| - the fingers of one hand point downward. The hands of both persons are hooked together (reversed praying grip). Then the thumbs on top. Game: try to get eachothers thumbs. It is allowed to move. |
| Pushing eachother over by clapping eachothers hands |
| Number of participants: 2 persons |
| Materials needed: none |
| Theme: agression/force |
| - stand at arms length of eachother, hands at shoulder height with the palms of the hands towards eachother, feet at shoulder width. Try to get eachother out of balance by short pushing movements (claps). Moving a foot = 1 point for the other. |
| - ditto, 2 players and 2 coaches. |
Theme: Outdoor |
| Jeu de boules |
| Number of participants: group |
| Needed: jeu de boules balls |
| Theme: cooperation |
| - official rules: 2 teams, each team member has 3 balls. The winning team throws the little white ball and after that the first normal ball. The team with the greatest distance from the little ball throws as many balls as it takes to get closer to the little ball than the other team (so this means that after the first ball they may go on with the next balls). After this it's the next teams turn, etc. If one of the teams has no balls left, the other team trows their remaining balls. Only the team that is closest to the little white ball can score points. They score 1 point for every ball that is closer to the little white ball than the closest ball of the other team. The game continues until a predefined score. The sequence of whrowing of the different team members is each time determined by the team itself. Tactical considerations can play a role in this. |
| Klootschieten |
| Number of participants: group |
| Needed: heavy balls (about the size of billiard balls, heavier than jeu de boules balls), something to write |
| Theme: none (working together outdoors) |
| - 2 teams, each team has one havy ball (size: billiard ball). Throwing the ball, the teams have to cover a certain course, e.g. roads or paths (surface should not be too soft). The ball has to be thrown underhand and will roll on the ground. The teams have to try to cover the course in as little throws as possible. For safety reasons, all participants have to stay behind the ball that has covered the least distance so far. Therefore the game is constantly played with the ball this ball. Therefore it may happen that one team throws 2 times in a row, since the ball of the other team is further away. The game leader keeps score of how often each team has thrown. If the ball ends up beside the road, a line, perpendicular to the road, is drawn towards the middle of the road. Every time the ball has to be thrown from the middle of the road. In a curve of at a cross-road there are 2 possibilities: if the ball has been thrown on or beyond the cross-road, a straight line can be drawn to the cross-road. If the ball does not reach the cross-road, than the straight line will be drawn to the road from which the ball was thrown. |
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