Towel Slider Strength Circuit

A six-station circuit where a small towel lets students slide their hands or feet across the smooth gym floor. They build core and leg strength with almost no equipment and learn a workout that is easy to repeat at home.

How to play

1. Each student gets a small towel. Six stations are marked with cones and a card: mountain climbers, bridge hamstring curls, sliding reverse lunges, plank knee tucks, lateral adductor slides, and plank pull-throughs (2 min).
2. A student demos each exercise while the rest try it in place (4 min).
3. Circuit in groups of 4: 40 seconds of work and 20 seconds to rotate. First lap at an easy pace (6 min).
4. 1-minute break for water and a form check.
5. Second lap: each student chooses a level on the card, basic or advanced (6 min).
6. Collect the towels and rate effort from 1 to 10 (1 min).

Rules

• The floor must be clean and dry; do not do this outdoors or on rough floors.
• The towel goes under the ball of the foot or the palm, never under the heel while standing.
• If plank form breaks down, stop and rest.
• Rotate stations clockwise, walking.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: seated versions, sliding the hands across a desk or the floor to work arms and trunk.
• Autism or shyness: photo cards for each station and a 10-second heads-up before each rotation.
• Lower fitness: always choose the basic level and rest at the bridge station if needed.

Learning goals

• Learn six strength exercises using equipment found at home.
• Adjust the workload by choosing a level.
• Rate your effort using a simple scale.

Equipment for a class of 25

• towels: 25
• cones: 6

Teacher tip

Test the floor first: if towels do not slide, paper plates work too. Hamstring curls are tough at first, so let students do only the return phase.

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