Now it’s nearly summer it’s time for the grown ups to come out and play. For some, their exercise will be a standard sport but if you’re looking to have a bit of fun along the way, consider playing a game that’s geared to amusement rather than effort.

Yard Yahtzee, for instance, takes a regular indoor game but transfers it outdoors and you’ll get a bit of exercise throwing the super sized dice. Giant Jenga is huge fun, and compared to tabletop Jenga makes a really scary noise as it comes crashing down at the end.

Outdoors Twister is another game guaranteed to give you exercise. It’s better than a yoga classfor bending your body into weird shapes, and you can have a laugh which is something you might find in short supply at some yoga classes.

Or you could take some of the great European outdoor sports. Petanque is played in France where many villages still have a petanque pitch. The ‘cochonnet’ or ‘little pig’ is thrown on to the pitch first, then the players throw their larger balls to try to end up closest to the pig and the closest wins.

Bocce ball is better known in the US, but it has a different technique – the balls are bowled instead of tossed. The big advantage of petanque is that because the balls are tossed, you can play it on the lawn, on sand, or on gravel; it really doesn’t matter. With bocce ball, you need a smooth surface.

Croquet apparently was once the same game as golf before they went their different ways. It was the Scots who made it into golf, and the Irish who made it into modern croquet. Trying to drive the ball through all the hoops in turn and hit the post in the middle before the other team sounds easy, but don’t forget, the other team can hit your ball out of the way, so you’re always at risk of being sent right back to the beginning.

Kubb was allegedly invented by the Vikings and it’s noisy and brutal, the way it was played was that you throw wooden clubs at the skittles to try to fell them. You’ll probably want to play it on the lawn, but it can be played on any surface. Swedes play on snow and ice if they have to.

Come up to date with a game of laser tag, where you lie in wait to shoot your best friend or hold a shootout with your kids. Or if you really want a workout, get yourself a spikeball set. It’s like a cross between soccer keepy uppy and volleyball, you take it in turns to smash the ball into the net with your hands (or any other part of your body), and you win when the other team can’t return the volley. The playing area can be as big or as small as you like and unless you want to compete, you can change the rules to suit yourself.

Personally, I still think a good game of frisbee is the best exercise and the most fun you can get but you do need a lot of space to play it.

Whichever game you want to play this summer, you’ll find equipment on Amazon and you should definitely check out Vipon’s money off deals first. Spending less money on your game equipment means more money for half time refreshments!