3 Easy Chair Yoga Poses For Beginners

3 Easy Chair Yoga Poses For Beginners

(AscendHealthy.com) – Yoga is not the new age exercise it once was. The practice has come into the mainstream as a wonderful way to stretch and exercise the body, keep you limber and reduce stress and anxiety. Yoga can be a way to enhance your mood and body, simultaneously. If you’re a beginner and want to try out a few yoga poses at home or in the office without having to drag out a mat, we’ve got three simple moves for you to try.

Yoga Pose #1: Assisted Neck Stretches

You’ll learn that breathing properly is an important part of yoga stretching. You breathe in on the stretch and out on the release, breathing deeply and slowly in between for this stretch.

To do this pose:

  1. Sit in a chair with your back straight and your feet flat on the floor, about shoulder-width apart in front of you. Don’t slouch.
  2. Lean your left ear toward your left shoulder. You can feel the stretch through the right side of your neck.
  3. To deepen this stretch (if it is not painful), extend your right arm toward the floor, If this is painful, stop and move your right arm back toward your body.
  4. If you wish to deepen the stretch even more, you can raise your left arm and, using your left hand over your right ear, gently assist in the stretch. Again, if this is painful, use less pressure or stop and return your left arm to your side.
  5. Hold this stretch through five breaths. Then use your left hand to help return your head back to center, and breathe for five breaths.
  6. Lean your right ear toward your right shoulder. You can feel the stretch through the left side of your neck.
  7. As with the left ear stretch, to deepen this stretch (if it is not painful), extend your left arm toward the floor, If this is painful, stop and move your left arm back toward your body.
  8. If you wish to deepen the stretch even more, you can raise your right arm and, using your right hand over your left ear, gently assist in the stretch. Again, if this is painful, use less pressure or stop and return your right arm to your side.
  9. Hold this stretch through five breaths. Then use your right hand to help return your head back to center. And breath for five breaths.

Remember to breathe in during your stretches and out during your releases.

This pose, done gently, is good at relieving tension and pain in your neck, helping with flexibility in your neck and shoulders, and relieving tension, overall.

Yoga Pose #2: Chair-Modified Cat/Cow Stretches

Again, breathing is an important part of yoga. With this stretch, be careful not to hold your breath. It’s a natural instinct when you lean forward and put pressure on the diaphragm. Instead, exhale fully as you lean forward, breathe out as you curve your spine up, and then breathe deeply as you pull your shoulders back toward your spine.

To do this pose:

  1. Sit in a chair with your back straight and your feet flat on the floor, about shoulder-width apart in front of you. Don’t slouch. Make sure your back is not touching the backrest of the chair (if there is one). Take a deep breath in.
  2. As you breathe out, push your lower back out and round your shoulders forward, bringing your arms in front of you, and tucking your chin to your chest.
  3. Inhale and bring your shoulders and arms back. Move your shoulder blades toward your spine, stretch to try to touch the back of your head to your back, push your chest out and open up as you rock back on your tailbone,
  4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 twice more, paying attention to your breathing. Return to an upright sitting position.

The video shows you how to properly perform this yoga stretch:

This pose is good for the mobility of the entire spine, even though it’s an extremely gentle pose. It can help with lower back pain, hip pain, mid-back stiffness and general stress and tension.

Yoga Pose #3: Seated Chair Twists

You’ll inhale as you twist to the side, and you’ll exhale as you face forward again. This gentle exercise can help you warm up or can stretch your tense muscles.

  1. Sit in a chair with your back straight and your feet flat on the floor, about shoulder-width apart in front of you. Don’t slouch.
  2. Place your left arm on the back of the chair seat.
  3. Cross your right arm over to your left knee. Using your right arm, pull your body into a stretch facing to the left while you inhale.
  4. As you release the stretch to face forward, exhale.
  5. Place your right arm on the back of the chair seat.
  6. Cross your left arm over to your right knee. Using your left arm, pull your body into a stretch facing to the right while you inhale.
  7. As you release the stretch to face forward, exhale.
  8. Repeat steps 2-7 twice more, taking your time and monitoring your breathing.

Here’s a video example of this pose:

Even though it’s gentle, this stretch benefits your arms, shoulders, neck, back and hips. It’s pretty versatile, even though it’s simple.

Performing these three poses and adding deep breathing at the beginning and end will take only about 10 minutes out of your day. You can do these exercises all at once or one at a time. Whether you perform them at your desk at work or when you’re at home on the computer for long periods of time, it might give your body a much-needed position break and help relax tense muscles. Remember to control your breathing, and if something hurts, don’t do it. The beauty of yoga is that it can be modified to work for just about everybody.

~Here’s to Your Healthy Ascension!

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