chair yoga

Chair Yoga: For Correcting Posture and Improving Mobility


Discover the transformative power of chair yoga for correcting posture and enhancing mobility. In this article, we highlight the benefits of incorporating chair-based sequences into your home yoga practice. Whether you’re a newer student or an experienced practitioner, these online yoga courses on yogaselection.com offer a wealth of chair yoga sequences designed to improve posture, release tension, and cultivate overall well-being.

janu sirsasana

The Connection Between Chair Yoga and Iyengar Yoga

Chair yoga is derived from the influential tradition of Iyengar Yoga, created by the esteemed yoga master B.K.S. Iyengar. With its focus on alignment, precision, and the use of props, Iyengar Yoga serves as the foundation for chair yoga. Through adaptations and modifications, chair yoga takes the principles of Iyengar Yoga and applies them to chair based yoga practice. By utilising a chair as a prop, practitioners can maintain stability, enhance support, and explore a wide range of poses with greater accessibility. Chair yoga integrates Iyengar Yoga’s emphasis on body awareness, attention to detail, and therapeutic benefits, allowing individuals of all abilities to experience the transformative power of yoga.

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yoga back release

Chair Yoga: A Gateway to Iyengar Yoga

Yoga Selection provides two extensive courses, each consisting of seven on-demand videos showcasing chair yoga sequences. The first course is designed for newer students and focuses on basic principles and introductory poses. It demonstrates how the chair can be used both actively and passively to provide structure and support. This approach can be particularly beneficial for those with a stiffer body. The second course, tailored for experienced students, delves into backbends, restorative sequences and more advanced asanas using a chair. These courses provide step-by-step guidance, incorporating Iyengar Yoga principles, and offer a variety of poses and variations that help improve posture, mobility, and overall well-being.

Take a look at the classes in the Introductory Course:

chair twists and forward bends

Class 1: Twists and Forward Bends With a Chair

In this course’s first class, you’ll explore the use of a chair to support standing forward bends and twists. The chair’s frame offers stability and facilitates corrective adjustments to the spine and upper body, particularly beneficial for individuals with limited flexibility.


yoga twists

Class 2: Chair Twists for Spinal Mobility and Back Health

Dedicated entirely to chair twists, this tutorial-style class focuses on enhancing spinal mobility and promoting back health. Beginning with standing twists, the sequence gradually progresses to seated postures, allowing for incremental control and opening the shoulders.


chair forward bends

Class 3: Forward Bends with a Chair

Discover how to incorporate your upper back and shoulders into forward bends with the assistance of a chair. By emphasising chest opening and integrating twisting variations, this class targets muscle stiffness and imbalances associated with the spine and rib cage.


yoga for office workers

Class 4: Yoga Poses for Office Workers

Combat the negative effects of prolonged sitting and poor posture with this class specifically designed for office workers. By using the chair to open the chest and realign the spine, you can alleviate back and neck pain, enhance concentration, and boost productivity.


yoga poses for shoulders

Class 5: Seated Shoulder Opening Poses

Improve shoulder mobility with this 35-minute class, which focuses on seated shoulder opening poses. With the chair as your only prop, you can enhance shoulder health, release tension from the neck and upper back, and cultivate a sense of overall well-being.


chair backbends

Class 6: Chair Backbends

Re-energise your backbend practice with this sequence that includes chest opening chair backbends. Whether you’re looking to restart your backbend journey or maintain momentum, the chair offers support and helps deepen your experience.


seated shoulder yoga poses

Class 7: Chair Yoga For Shoulders

This simple shoulder opening chair yoga sequence is well suited to home or even office practice sessions.


Here are the classes from the Advanced Chair Yoga Course;

forward bends and restorative yoga

Class One: Forward Bends and Restorative Yoga

Experience the soothing benefits of forward bends in a restorative yoga context. This class utilises the chair to open the chest, enhance breath awareness, and release tension. Poses like janu sirsasana and viparita dandasana promote energy preservation and combat stress and anxiety.


chair backbends

Class Two: Exploring Backbends with a Chair

Discover the versatility of a chair in practicing backbends such as vrschikasana and urdhva dhanurasana. Explore how the chair can provide support, facilitate exploration, and help create opening and space.


chair shoulders and forward bends

Class Three: Shoulder Opening Forward Bends

Unlock shoulder and spinal stiffness with this dynamic forward bend sequence. By utilising the chair’s leverage and emphasising spinal lift and chest opening, you can correct muscular imbalances and improve your posture while experiencing the benefits of forward bends.


advanced chair backbends

Class Four: Advanced Chair Backbends

This class takes you through the foundations of chair backbends and gradually progresses to advanced variations suitable for experienced students. By utilising the chair’s support, you can practice both active and passive backbends, building strength and flexibility while preserving energy.


restorative chair yoga

Class Five: Restorative Chest Opening with a Chair

Indulge in a deeply relaxing restorative yoga sequence that focuses on chest opening using a chair. Poses like supta baddha konasana and viparita dandasana are enhanced by the chair’s support, allowing for increased space in the intercostal muscles and a greater sense of breath awareness.


advanced chair backbends

Class Six: Dwi Pada Viparita Dandasana

In this class, you’ll delve into the fundamentals of chair backbends while exploring the use of a chair to improve dwi pada viparita dandasana. Progress through clearly defined stages, benefitting from the chair’s support as you practice both actively and passively.


chair backbends for advanced students

Class Seven: Chair Urdhva Dhanurasana

Experience a sequence of invigorating chair backbends, including poses like ustrasana and urdhva mukha svanasana. The chair serves as a valuable prop, aiding in energy preservation and preparing the shoulders for the dynamic action of lifting into urdhva dhanurasana.


Enhancing Posture and Mobility with Chair Yoga

By incorporating these chair yoga sequences into your practice, you can correct poor posture, enhance spinal mobility, and cultivate a deeper sense of well-being. Whether you’re new to yoga or an experienced practitioner, the support of a chair allows for incremental adjustments, making the poses accessible and beneficial for all levels.

Click to access the on-demand videos that will guide you through these chair yoga sequences:


Explore Specialised Yoga Courses at Yoga Selection

The Chair Yoga classes discussed in this article can be found on yogaselection.com. Yoga Selection is a comprehensive online platform offering a wide range of yoga classes, courses and resources, including specialised courses targeting specific regions of the body.

As a Yoga Selection member, you gain unlimited access to our extensive video library, featuring over 650 on-demand classes. Additionally, explore a diverse range of courses, with two new videos released every week.

Experience the flexibility of joining live classes in real time, allowing for personalised guidance and support. Immerse yourself in a vibrant community that nurtures your growth and provides valuable resources for your yoga practice.

Explore a World of Online Yoga. Unlimited Access to All Classes and Courses.

Try it Free for 14 days. Cancel Anytime.


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