Chair Yoga for Seniors

An article in Heart Healthy Living Magazine (Winter 2006) by Barb Palar and Sally Finder-Koziol talks about the benefits of gentle stretching, deep breathing, and healing imagery offered by cardiac yoga.  You don’t have to be a hard core athlete or be able to fold yourself into a pretzel to enjoy the benefits of yoga.  Anyone can practice yoga at any age.

Exercise is good for you.  Older seniors are looking for exercise programs that will help them maintain their health. Your whole focus is different when you get older.  You want to achieve maximum benefits without abusing your body.  Chair Yoga offers a workout that is both safe and easy.  Cardiac or chair yoga lets you do the poses while sitting in a chair.  As you gain confidence and strength you can do the poses using the chair as a support.

The purpose of a senior exercise programs is to help you exercise your body without risk of injury.  Chair Yoga will develop or maintain the body’s circulation, flexibility, mobility, bone density and strength.

With flexibility and balance comes a new found mobility and it not unusual for chair yoga folks to try walking or other exercise programs after rediscovering themselves.

Fall prevention (balance) is a big issue in the senior community.  Most seniors realize the consequences of falling and breaking bones that are not as strong as they used to be. Balance is a key factor in yoga classes and balancing exercises are covered thoroughly.  So, don’t be surprised if you see a motivated senior practicing the tree pose while standing in the living room doorway.

Breathing and relaxation techniques are a part of any yoga routine, chair or otherwise.  Studies show that people who do yoga at least three times a week can lower their blood pressure and resting heart rate significantly.

You can exercise at home with television programs, video routines, or you can join a group of friendly people at your local senior centers. 

Comments

[Joe Freudenthal]

Great post. I am going to reference it in a post on BoomTips.com tomorrow if that is ok with you. Thanks!