30 – 45 minutes

No equipment is required!

This is one on those rare times where you might regret drawing a high card. 

Santé
A hand of cards laid out on a table with a deck of cards in the background.

If you’re looking for a physical challenge or simply don’t want to plan out your own workout routine, all you need is a deck of cards! By using a deck of cards to randomize your workout, you can create an exercise routine that can be challenging without any equipment!

Materials

  • Deck of playing cards
  • Floor space
  • Timer (optional)

Instructions

  1. Select the exercise that each of the four suits (e.g., hearts, spades) will represent
  2. Shuffle a deck of playing cards and place it facedown. Draw one card at a time from the top of the deck.
  3. The number on the card you draw will represent the number of repetitions you must perform of that exercise. For example, if you decide that spades are push-ups, drawing a 5 of spades means you must perform 5 push-ups in a row
  4. Drawing a Joker could mean you get an extended break, or you could play without the Jokers in the deck
  5. Continue to draw cards at your own pace or set a timer and challenge yourself to complete the deck as quickly as possible!

Note: the four exercises can be whatever you choose; make this workout as challenging or as easy as you like but be sure to exercise safely and stop if you feel an injury developing. This idea also works if you have equipment and want to work on different exercises.