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Beginner Chair Yoga Poses For Seniors

As we age, it is only natural that bending, twisting, and other positions required for yoga workouts become difficult because our bodies become frail. Moreso, one becomes scared of falling and getting injured, which is why it is hard to convince seniors to work out. While these concerns are genuine and quite understandable, working out is vital for a healthy life; It is the key to healthy aging.

Thankfully, some exercises are gentle enough for seniors, and the best part is that they don’t require you to be mobile. One such exercise is chair yoga.

Chair yoga is an excellent way for seniors to enjoy the full benefits of yoga: particularly seniors who are frail or those who lack mobility. Chair yoga is not too intense for their aging bodies and is very doable.

There are plenty of yoga poses that they can do while seated, like twists, forward bends, hip stretches, and so forth. We share some of the best chair yoga videos and routines to help you get started in this post. We also let you in on the health benefits of chair yoga.

Health Benefits Of Chair Yoga

 

Chair yoga has just as many benefits as regular yoga. Most importantly, it helps seniors stay active and engaged and improve sleep and general well-being. This helps to wade off age-related conditions and illnesses.

Other benefits include:

• Reduces anxiety and tension
•  Stretch and loosen muscles
• Lowers blood pressure
• Helps to build balance
• Strengthen core muscles
• Manage pain
• Increase muscle strength and flexibility
• Increase body balance
• Improved blood circulation

Also, consistent chair yoga can help in weight loss.

Related Article: 5 Best Ways To Stop A Senior From Driving

How To Get Started With Chair Yoga

 

Even though Chair yoga is gentle and safe, and pretty much any senior can get started with it, it’s important that beginners start by consulting their doctors. Your doctor has to consent to your new exercise routine.

Also, it’s crucial to find the right props that will ensure your comfort and enhance your safety. This can be a belt, strap, or stable armless chair. We’d suggest using a walker with a seat for seniors with a lack of immobility. Hopefully, you know how to choose the best walker for seniors if you don’t have one already.

Lastly, find a good yoga class focused on seniors, particularly beginners. We’d recommend looking up Brett Larkin Yoga on YouTube. She does really easy chair yoga poses for seniors that you can start with. Check out her 10-minute chair yoga for seniors. We recommend a few more in the next chapter.

Two to three sessions a week is a great start. However, chair yoga can be done as many times as one is able to. Chair yoga and yoga, in general, is like a habit; it is built up over time. The more you practice the routines, the more you fall in love and want to do more.

However, take care not to overburden your body or injure yourself. Listen to your body. It will always tell you when you are over-exerting.

As a beginner, it is best to build up a program and follow it through. This will ease the pressure of deciding what pose to do or how often to do it. You can get some guidance on the best poses from the routines we share in the chapter below. You can also simply consult a Yoga instructor.

Best Chair Yoga Videos and Routines for Seniors

 

Actively Aging with Energizing Chair Yoga– Yoga Vista (aka YogaJP)

Get active with instructor Sherry Zak Morris of the Yoga Vista Studio. A certified Yoga Therapist helping seniors stay healthy with chair yoga.

This 30-minute video incorporates poses for warm-up, balancing, and stretching. The routines are easy to follow for beginners. 

Yoga for Seniors– DementiAbility

If you are hunched forward, have a stiff body, or generally have low oxygen, join Emily for some stretching and breathing exercises to help you open up your upper body.  

Chair Yoga – Yoga For Seniors – Yoga With Adriene

In this 17 minute video, Adriene shows you simple, soft, and gentle chair yoga poses that target the spine line using only a chair and a few other props like pillows. With her charming voice and easy-to-follow instructions, she helps seniors achieve a better posture and to invite great energy flow into their bodies.

Paula’s Props for Better Balance for Seniors– Yoga Vista Academy

Paula shares some exciting ways to diversify chair yoga. She introduces new, simple but more powerful props to make chair yoga a little more exciting and engaging.

Chair Yoga Practice for Seniors– YMCANorth 

Join Jennifer every day for 20 minutes for some Chair Yoga routines. Easy yoga practice to strengthen and lengthen the line of your spine for better posture.

Easy Seated Yoga Exercises for Older Adults –Yogalates with Rashmi

This is a simple video for seniors above 75 years who can still sit on a chair. Together with her two beautiful aged grandmothers, Rashmi demonstrates the easy chair yoga exercises at the comfort of their home. The video is 13 minutes long. 

Senior & Beginner Workout Gentle Chair Yoga– SeniorShape Fitness

SeniorShape Fitness has quite a good number of yoga exercises for seniors, but these 15-minute chair yoga exercises are much gentle, calming, and relaxing for seniors. The exercises target the chest, glutes, shoulders, thigh, back, and triceps.

This is a good routine for seniors with shoulder and upper back problems. You will be pleased with the ambiance in the video, the clear instructions, the calming voice, and the relaxing music.

Traditional yoga requires more intense stretches, twists, and bends, which may not suit seniors’ aging bodies. Chair yoga is the best alternative since it is low impact and can be modified to suit each person’s ability and needs. The reality is pain management is a serious concern in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. If you have an elderly loved one who wants to reduce pain and improve flexibility, it might be time to research a yoga class for seniors near you. Improving physical condition and doing something fun is also a great reason alone why exploring yoga for adults is a good family decision. 

With the help of mobility aids, even seniors with a lack of mobility can enjoy the full benefits of yoga by incorporating chair yoga into their daily routines. Check out the videos and practices we’ve listed above to get started learning all the basic yoga positions such as the seated pigeon and seated mountain pose!