Jenny’s Coordination Challenge

These fun coordination drills challenge your body and mind.

We don’t always think about coordination, but it’s crucial for many daily activities like walking, climbing stairs, or even getting dressed. Improving coordination means gaining better control over your body and your movements.

First Drill

Mirror Jenny’s series of movements as she demonstrates the first drill. First, extend your arms out in front of you. Cross your right arm over your left, then cross your left arm over your right. Next move: gently slap the front of your thighs, then bring your hands up to clap. You’ll hear Jenny say, “Cross, cross, slap, clap” to help you stay on track. Feel free to say the words aloud with her (it’s fun and it helps)!

After you’ve got the moves down, we’ll speed up the pace. Remember, for these drills the focus is on speed and accuracy. Try to keep the sequence accurate as the speed increases, but don’t worry if you miss a move, just keep going.

Next, try doing the sequence in reverse! First, you’ll clap your hands together, then gently slap your thighs. Finally cross your left arm over right, then right over left.

If you’re feeling confident, put both sequences together. You should begin and end with the arm cross.

Second Drill

Stand tall with your arms resting at your sides. Roll your right shoulder back and down. Then, roll your left shoulder back and down. Next, reach your right arm up and across your body to the left side of the room. Then, reach your left arm up and across your body to the right side. Next move, twist from your torso and hips as you push your right arm across the middle section of your body to the left side. Then push your left arm across your body to the right side. Finally, bring your hands up to chest level with palms facing forward and press toward the front of the room, then bring your arms back in and press your palms down toward to the floor.

Once you have the moves from this drill down, put them all together to create an eight-part sequence. You’ll hear Jenny say, “Roll, roll, reach, reach, cross, cross, front and down,” to help you remember the moves.

As you feel more confident, pick up the speed and remember to aim for accuracy.

Who said exercise can’t be fun? These drills will have you smiling while you challenge and improve your coordination. When you’re ready, try this 25-minute core and coordination workout.

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