Handcuffed exercise – solution and ideas

“What is the solution to handcuff (or handcuffed) exercise?”  This seems to be the most searched team building question lately, so here’s the answer.

Setup

Handcuffed is very old exercise. Usually two persons are handcuffed together. See the drawing. Task is not to take off handcuffs, but disconnect two persons. Seems like impossible task to do and good fun if you do not know how it works.

Solution

The trick is to put sling through the rope that is tied around ones hand, move it over the hand and then out again. Voila you are disconnected. Check the drawings. It helps if you keep your fingers together. Not like in the drawings.

Use

It is s simple exercise where you basically only need shoestrings. If you do not want to worry about the rope yourself as an instructor you can just hope that participants have shoes with strings on them. Now you might think that because the solution is so easy then everybody who has ever done it will instantly solve it. Surprisingly this is not the case. I have had people in my trainings who claim they have done it, but just can’t remember how it was done.

Tips

There are many ways to further develop this exercise.
1. Before running it asks who has done it before. For those who have done it tie their hands behind their back. Makes it a little tougher.
2. You can run the exercise with just one person if you tie the rope around a pole. For the exercise to work you need to tie Munter Hitch. That is important. Do not just put the rope around a pole and expect people to escape from that. Check out the drawing.

3. Don’t have a pole? No problem. Just tie a regular overhand know onto the rope and ask a person to untie the knot without removing the handcuffs. It is easier if participants work in pairs. One is handcuffed and other is not. Or even better ask them to tie a knot onto the handcuffs after pair has solved the basic “free each other” exercise. Check out the drawing.

Clue for every solution lies in taking the rope through the loop that is tied around the hand and then back.

Enjoy!