“I once counted the “5 Most Important Decisions” I had
made in my life. One of those was getting involved and staying involved with
yoga.” ~ Herb Benkel
Yoga
can be incredibly beneficial for people with mobility issues, including people
with injuries, and people of all shapes, ages and sizes. What’s more,
yoga can be practiced from the comfort of a chair.
Jan
Jeremias, Chair Yoga Instructor at Shree Yoga explains: A chair: you can sit on
it, you can stand and use it to help you balance, or put your foot on it to
help open up the hips. Chairs are a beautiful and freeing prop
that are beneficial for people of any age from those who are new to yoga to those
who are seasoned practitioners. The idea is to find steadiness and ease
in every pose, which is the very thing that the ancient sage Patanjali wrote in
Yoga Sutra 2.46: sthira sukham asanam.
Jeramias continues: Yoga has been shown to improve overall health, prevent and (even in some cases) reverse disease when practiced regularly as a lifestyle. With this in mind, it’s no surprise that it can therefore lend its benefits to everyone.
You
can improve your strength. This
means that older people will be better able to continue with hobbies and daily
activities independently for many more years to come. If you suffer a fall or
injury, a strong body will be able to withstand this better and sustain fewer
injuries.
Yoga can help to improve flexibility. Chair yoga can help those with mobility issues to undertake activities that they have perhaps been unable to, such as reaching down to tie shoe laces or pick things up.
Yoga helps the skill of knowing where your body is in space, and coordinating your movements accurately. This can improve balance and can help prevent falls. For people with disabilities or conditions such as mild MS, it may mean having greater control over your body and its movements.
Chair yoga can lessen the impact of chronic illnesses and pain. Being calmer and more relaxed inevitably leads to a greater feeling of happiness and well-being. Joining chair yoga classes will also give you a venue to socialize and make friends.
Chair yoga includes breath work, which can help with stress management and pain management. Through meditation and paying attention to your breath, you can help your body and mind to cope with the pain of an illness or chronic condition concludes Jeremias.
Herb Benkel shares his 70 year old perspective of an
adapted yoga practice due to a severe disability in his leg: “Today, I can’t bend the titanium knee past 40 degrees
(so it’s very straight in its metal brace) and there is no functioning quad or
hamstring at all. Both muscles are totally atrophied. Yoga still accommodated
my needs both physically and mentally. I attend classes 2 or 3 times a week.
They are now “Chair Yoga” classes. All moves are with the support of a chair,
with no time spent on the floor. In the class are others with different
physical or age related problems. There is still a strong and supportive social
and emotional framework. We are, not even necessarily older. The need for
modified types of yoga is based, not on age but on ability. Ability or need
brings people to chair yoga. The ultimate result of doing yoga is the same from
any level practice. Yoga creates self confidence, physical and mental strength
and well being, personal awareness, better balance and the ability to handle
life’s curves after injuries, or age, catch up to you.” Read Herb's story here.
Shree Yoga Chair
Yoga Class Description and Schedule
In
this class we will do modified gentle yoga poses while seated and supported in
a chair. These modifications make yoga accessible to people who cannot
stand or lack the mobility to move easily from standing to seated to supine
positions on the floor. While seated on chairs, students can do versions of
twists, hip stretches, forward bends, and mild backbends.
In
addition to a good stretch, chair yoga participants can also enjoy
other health benefits of yoga, including improved muscle tone, better
breathing habits, reduction of stress, improved proprioception,
better sleep, and a sense of well-being.
Mondays
12:30 – 1:30 pm
Wednesdays
11:00 – 12:00 pm
Drop-ins
welcome: $22, $20 seniors 65+, Newcomer Special 20 days for $30.
See our full class schedule here.
