Gym memberships aren’t the only way to keep your New Year’s Resolution and be active!
We think laser tag is more fun than a treadmill. If you made it a goal to get off the couch in 2017, we have 4 ways that laser tag can help.
KEEP THE FAMILY ACTIVE
Whether you have a family of 2 or 20 consider adding laser tag and keeping the family active. Add it to your family get-togethers or special occasions. Better yet, add laser tag to those every days that fill up the weeks and weekends. You’ll need 3 things: some space to run and hide, equipment, and people.
Whether you live in the city or country, beach or mountains – any space that you can run and hide in is usable space to play laser tag. A basement play room, a park, a church fellowship hall, your back yard or your apartment rooftop are all options to play. If you have outdoor space with natural obstacles (trees, cars, bushes, etc) you’re all set! Same for indoors – if you have sofas and chairs then you have obstacles to hide behind.
If you don’t have these, you still have options! Get creative – ask your local appliance store for their old refrigerator boxes. Paint them and let the kids be part of the process. Be sure to “anchor” them by putting a stack of books in the four corners inside your box before playing. Whether you’re outdoors or in, if you don’t have natural cover we have bunkers that you can rent. Stake them down or use sand bags to anchor them to the ground. These instantly create a spectacle so be prepared for people to stop and ask to be part of your fun!
Laser Tag Gun Recommendation: my favorite, the Phoenix LTX! This laser tag gun is so easy to use that people of all ages, various levels of ability and mobility can use it. There’s no vest so you aren’t aiming at a person – rather at the laser tag gun in their hand. The 360 dome accepts hits from all angles and will light up and make noise to let you know you’ve been tagged. For $12 a piece you can entertain the kiddos for hours rather than just a few minutes at a facility.
Next – you need people! Boys, girls, moms, dads, students, teachers, youth pastors and youth groups, corporate HR directors and employees – anyone can play! For those who are introverted (as I am) be prepared for them to stand in the corner and say “Nope – I’m good”. Pro tip: we’ve found that putting a laser tag gun that’s counting down to a game into a person’s hand is an introversion buster. And even if they still stand in the corner, they will have more fun standing in that corner!
FIND A REASON TO CELEBRATE
There are 365 days in this calendar year (it’s not a Leap Year, I checked!) so that means there are 365 days to celebrate. Incorporate some activity into your celebrations.
Does your family have made up holidays or events like our family does? Celebrate them! We have our own Bob’s Burgers night where we cook and have friends over to watch one of the best shows ever created. One of my favorite episode (season 3 episode 10) plot lines involves Linda and Louise who need mother-daughter time. In a twist they end up playing laser tag.
To be clear, it’s not my favorite episode because it blends my work and a show about family but because it’s truly funny. In one of our best hosting moments we planned ahead and had an epic night of food, friends, heart-warming television and surprised everyone by playing laser tag in the house. Sidebar: Bob’s Burgers is not endorsing Laser Tag Source, rather I am shamelessly using my day job to pay homage to a show and evening of community that I love.
If you’re not into made up events and holidays, take a look at the calendar. There are plenty of holidays throughout the year that you can rent laser tag and incorporate activity into your plans. Want to spice up your Valentine’s Day? Plan ahead and do a double date, playing against some of your favorite friends. Make it truly memorable and give yourselves couple names with matching shirts.
Looking for a birthday party idea for your 12 year old daughter? Plan a laser tag party for her and her closest friends. In this day and age of superhero movies, there’s no shortage of inspiration. Got a milestone graduation coming up this year? We have enough laser tag gear in stock for an entire graduating class to play, or have your Seniors play against your Juniors, Varsity play against Junior Varsity, or Teachers play against the Students.
Summer vacation coming up? Want to get the kiddos away from screens? Consider a family staycation in your own back yard or city. If summer vacation is coming to an end send them back to school with a party. Summer and early Fall tend to be wedding months and laser tag can take your Bachelor and Bachelorette parties to the next level. Or add a surprise twist to your reception or even offer a fun element for the “kids corner” at your reception.
Halloween is one of our busiest weekends so if you’re planning a Harvest Party and want laser tag to celebrate, be sure to plan ahead! Better yet, consider adding it to your family activities over Thanksgiving. Skip the shopping and go play with the family instead!
Laser Tag Gun Recommendation: the Hornet is perfect for any of these activities. Just like the Phoenix LTX the laser tag gun has a 360 degree sensor that you aim at. No vests so people of all ages, shapes and sizes can play. At $12 each they are an economical option for a few people or a lot. In addition these laser tag guns work with the Phoenix LTX so you can build a super huge event if you so choose.
START A MONTHLY GAME
Looking to lose weight? Healthy eating and an active lifestyle are two key factors. Having fun is my proposed third.
Are you doing a weight loss challenge with friends or work colleagues? Consider hosting a laser tag tournament or free-for-all game once a month to keep everyone motivated.
We have participated in several events and found that the average adult can’t play laser tag for longer than 4 minutes without getting exhausted. Pro Tip: if you are running an event and want your attendees to have a great experience, do a 3-4 minute game. The key is to leave them wanting more with the option to get it rather than killing them in one game that leaves them too tired to come back.
In your quest to be physically fit consider adding laser tag. In tournament play you can up that competition ante even more and do 1 on 1 tourneys or team tourneys. We have brackets if you’d like to keep track of who the winner is. If you don’t want to do a tournament, you can still do a monthly rental with your weight loss challengers and encourage them in the challenge by playing together.
Laser Tag Gun Recommendation: Hands down – the Titan. This laser tag gun works great indoors and can accommodate a large number of players. The best part is this: it has 4 teams you can alternate through so you have a few more options than you have with the laser tag guns that can only do 2 teams or free-for-all options. Again this laser tag gun is $12 to rent so if you cover the cost you can encourage your friends, motivate them, or reward them in a truly epic way. Or you want them to all pay for their own – you can do that at a small investment. The result is getting more active and having fun while doing it.
A REWARD
There are so many big and small moments in life that deserve to be rewarded and celebrated.
HR Departments and Bosses > Employees: Corporations, small businesses, and nonprofits – want to reward your employees for meeting a quarterly goal, boosting profits, or surviving all of 2016? Consider an afternoon of laser tag AT YOUR PLACE OF BUSINESS! No loading up to go to a facility. No expense for only 15 minutes of game play. Consider renting the iCombat and use the equipment for an entire day, giving every department in your office the opportunity to play. Then play again. And again.
Teachers > Students: An afternoon of laser tag is a great reward for students in middle and high school! Check out Sacajawea Middle School in Bozeman, Montana and what awesome teacher Matt did to reward half the 8th grade! You can find my interview with him right here.
Youth Pastor > Youth groups: Did your kids raise money for missions? Did they memorize scripture or help out at VBS? Did they all bring friends and give you the highest attendance to date for a youth night? Whatever amazingness they’ve achieved under your leadership, consider rewarding them with a night of laser tag. You can rent it from us and not have to worry about cleaning out the church van to go to a facility. Bonus if your event date is a Friday you don’t have to ship the equipment back until Monday – so feel free to share with your Children’s Ministry and every other department in your church between your event date and the next business day!
Spouses: Did that honey-do list finally get shorter? Did your kids behave like model citizens at the dinner table? Did you pay off a big bill or survive the onslaught of holiday-family-time? This one isn’t for the kiddos – get a sitter, call your friends and have a grown up play date. Reward yourselves for the little and big things you’ve accomplished together as a team. If you want some inspiration, check out another friend of ours, Matt – who hosted a NYE Matrix-Themed party. This is definitely a grown up party but you can get tons of inspiration from what he and his friends did to play the night away!
Laser Tag Gun Recommendation: the iCombat is the BEST gun we have and one of the top laser tag guns on the market currently. At $39 a piece they are a bit pricier but you get scads of game play options, and a screen on your gun so you can see your statistics. Bonus you can add on a scoring system where you can set up teams, show the statistics in real time as game play happens and project them onto any screen you have access to!
This is just a short list of ways to add a lot of fun to your get fit New Year’s Resolutions – I hope it serves to inspire you to find reasons to actively celebrate in 2017!
-Kristina
LTS Marketing Gal