Chair yoga for seniors: 10 best poses to improve posture and flexibility

When individuals develop previous, they have a tendency to face stability points and fall typically. Bettering power and staying match can also be wanted to hold out every day actions with ease. Strolling, a low-impact train, could assist aged individuals. Doing chair yoga for seniors will also be useful. It may assist to extend joint mobility and adaptability, enhance posture, and extra. All they must do is sit on a chair or use it to help the physique. Stretching, twisting, and bending can all be performed with the assistance of the furnishings. The excellent news is any such yoga will also be performed by individuals with knee issues.

What’s chair yoga?

It’s a type of yoga that may be performed whereas sitting or standing. A chair is used as a supportive gadget whereas doing yoga, permitting individuals, particularly senior residents, with worry of fall and stability issues to follow safely. “Aged individuals with stability points, knee, hips, or again issues who can’t train standing, can do chair yoga for seniors,” says health coach Dr Mickey Mehta.

It may be performed anyplace, anytime, however simply be sure that the chair doesn’t have wheels, and is secure. You need to use a picket chair, or a steel folding one, ideally backless.

What are the advantages of chair yoga for seniors?

Chair yoga for seniors is useful particularly for individuals with decrease physique issues. Throughout an evaluation printed within the Worldwide Journal of Scientific Analysis in 2023, chair yoga was discovered to be more practical in aged individuals with decrease extremity issues. One other research printed within the Healthcare journal in 2023 confirmed that it helped in bettering the useful health and every day life exercise scores of aged girls with knee osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint illness.

Listed below are among the advantages of doing chair yoga for seniors:

• Elevated joint mobility and adaptability: “Chair yoga for seniors helps enhance flexibility, significantly within the backbone, shoulders, and hips,” says the skilled.
• Muscle strengthening: By utilizing postures and motions tailor-made to the chair, it really works the muscular tissues within the decrease, higher, and core areas. Throughout a 2019 research printed within the Matters in Geriatric Rehabilitation journal, researchers discovered that the contributors who did chair yoga noticed an enchancment in higher and decrease limb muscle power, agility and stability.
• Higher posture: By fostering spinal alignment and strengthening again muscular tissues, it aids in higher posture.
• Improved circulation: “The gentle motions enhance blood move and circulation, significantly for individuals who would possibly sit for prolonged durations of time,” says Dr Mehta.
• Fats discount: Doing yoga helps scale back physique fats by growing blood move to muscular tissues and fats cells. “This releases fats for vitality, and so, helps in weight reduction,” says the skilled.

Chair yoga for seniors: 10 poses you may strive

1. Chair Tadasana or Mountain Pose

• Sit straight on the chair to do the seated model of the Mountain Pose.
• Interlock your fingers, inhale and stretch your arms upwards along with your palms going through the ceiling.
• Exhale and regularly convey down your arms.

2. Chair Vakrasana or Spinal Twist Pose

• Sit straight in your chair.
• Inhale and twist your physique in the direction of your proper facet whereas holding the again of your chair with each the arms.
• Exhale then do it on the left facet.

3. Chair Garudasana or Eagle Pose

• To do chair yoga for seniors, sit on the furnishings, inhale, cross your proper arm over the left one on the elbow, and take a look at touching each your palms.
• Exhale, cross your proper thigh over the left one, and take a look at turning your proper foot on the calf of your left one.
• Then, do it on the opposite facet.

4. Chair Uttanasana or Ahead Bend

• Sit, inhale and bend ahead over your legs.
• Loosen your arms and contact the ground should you can.

5. Chair Utthita Parsvakonasana or Prolonged Facet Angle Pose

• Sit on the chair, inhale and bend ahead over your legs.
• Loosen your arms and contact the bottom.
• Take your proper hand subsequent to your left foot.

6. Chair Pawanmuktasana or Wind-Relieving Pose

• Sit, inhale, increase your proper leg upward in the direction of your chest and take a look at touching your brow to your knee.
• Exhale, do it along with your left leg.

7. Chair Bhujangasana or Cobra Pose

• Stand behind the chair, holding its again relaxation. Inhale and stretch upward to do the Cobra Pose.
• Exhale, stand straight and calm down your physique.

8. Chair Virabhadrasana or Warrior Pose

• Hold your proper leg folded at 90 levels on the facet of the chair. Your left leg ought to be straight and prolonged behind.
• Inhale and lift your hand on the shoulder degree.
• Increase each your arms upward, and press them collectively.

9. Upavistha Ardha Utkatasana or Seated Determine 4 Stretch

• Sit upright along with your toes flat on the ground.
• Place your proper ankle in your left knee, making a “determine 4” form along with your legs.
• Gently press down in your proper knee to deepen the stretch.
• Maintain for a number of breaths after which swap sides.

10. Chair Urdhva Hastasana or Raised Palms Pose

• To do chair yoga for seniors, sit, inhale, and take your arms up.
• Chill out your shoulders and keep good higher physique posture.

Chair yoga for seniors could be performed by aged individuals, and even inexperienced persons. But when your physique hurts whereas doing any of the poses, it’s best to take a break and seek the advice of a health care provider.