Chair yoga is an excellent way to get seniors to reap the marvelous health benefits of yoga. Staying seated allows even the frailest seniors or those who have disabilities to perform certain yoga poses safely. As you might already know, yoga can help the aged stretch and loosen sore muscles, minimize stress, and enhance circulation.
Right below, I have compiled five of the best chair yoga DVD for seniors. All of them have a friendly program to get you started with yoga and safely do the exercises. Let’s review them below.
Quick Answer:
1. Yoga Vitality: Chair Yoga For Healthy Aging
Yoga Vitality is absolutely designed for seniors who want to strengthen the body for injury prevention. The programs also aim to remove pains that inhibit seniors from doing what they want to do. In this DVD, it features four levels for a total workout.
2. Stronger Seniors Yoga Chair Exercises
Besides flexibility, the Stronger Seniors DVD tries to help you reduce stress with its breathing and relaxation session. All the moves are easy to follow, fit for seniors who are just starting to dive with yoga. I like that the DVD provides modifications for every pose, so you’ll never get behind.
3. Chair Yoga With Nadia Narain
If you like a little challenge, you can go with Chair Yoga With Nadia Narain DVD. This DVD provides a special session for combining seated poses with standing ones. Another session also focuses on-ground practice, including meditation.
Editor's Pick: The Best Chair Yoga DVD For Seniors
Why Is Chair Yoga Good For Seniors
Chair yoga is a wonderful way to enjoy the health benefits of yoga. Compared to other yoga positions, being seated is more gentle to the senior’s frail bones and muscles. Here are a few benefits of chair yoga for seniors.
Gives Strength To Bones And Muscles
Getting old means weak bones, muscles, and joints. Chair yoga can help strengthen your muscles and bones. Your muscle and bones tend to get more resilient as you use your body more constantly.
Provides More Flexibility
Since chair yoga is more into stretching, you make your body limber in the process. Notice how you can be able to tie your shoelace after regular practice of chair yoga.
Reduces Stress
The chair yoga moves are usually slow-paced, so you have time to focus on breathing. As you do this, you release the tension that’s build up inside you. Studies have shown that regular practice of yoga can help reduce stress.
Helps Manage Pain
Simple chair yoga can help reduce chronic pain, like arthritis. Chair yoga can help alleviate the pain by increasing strength, improve flexibility, and letting go of muscle tension.
What To Look For On A Good Chair Yoga DVD For Seniors
Good Instructor
You want a good instructor that’s supportive of your condition. They don’t need to be patronizing, but they should motivate you to make all the moves. Of course, it’s a must that they should give clear instructions in a relaxing voice.
Pace
The pace should be slow so that seniors can follow the moves easily. It will be ideal if the DVD provides enough time for you to perfect the moves.
Difficulty Level
You want the moves to be at the beginner level. If it’s hard for you to get on the ground, avoid DVDs that include floor movements. The best chair yoga DVD should be all seated positions and nothing more.
5 Best Chair Yoga DVD For Seniors Reviews
1. Yoga Vitality: Chair Yoga For Healthy Aging
Yoga Vitality shows four levels of different yoga routines, namely Yoga Core, Yoga Move, Yoga Balance, and Yoga Firm. I like that this DVD guides you through the fundamentals and beyond of every pose in a gentle way. You don’t need to be flexible to make all the moves because the seniors’ safety is focused on this program.
The instructor is very good at giving explanations and demonstrating each pose. I enjoyed that he tells you what you should be feeling and which muscles should be worked out. Best of all, the background is relaxing, and the audio is crystal clear.
However, Dean’s naked torso is a bit distracting. I hoped he had put a tight shirt on. The instructor is also a bit of a chatterbox, so he can be annoying at times.
PROS:
- Splits into four levels for variety and versatility
- It shows the basics and beyond of every pose
- It requires no flexibility to make all the moves
- It provides a good explanation of every pose
- It has a relaxing background and clear audio
CONS:
- The instructor’s naked body is slightly distracting
- The instructor talks too much
Best For:
The Yoga Vitality DVD is ideal for seniors who want to start at a gentle stage and progress to a more advanced stage.
2. Stronger Seniors Yoga Chair Exercises
The Stronger Seniors Yoga Chair Exercise DVD is a nice way for beginners to try yoga. This program helps improve strength and flexibility so as you can go on with your daily life more comfortably. My favorite part is the relaxation part because it helps me relieve stress and improve my sleeping habits.
It’s good that the DVD offers modifications for every pose so everyone can follow successfully. The instructors give room for advancement, making it an excellent way to improve yoga and fitness. The moves are simple, so even a person with arthritis can do it effectively.
The stretching routines really help me reduce the pain, so this was an excellent DVD. However, I find the background a bit loud for my preference. Also, the instructors didn’t give enough detail of the poses, which can be cumbersome for someone not learned about yoga.
PROS:
- It contains simple moves to improve flexibility
- It has a special section for relaxation to minimize stress
- It provides modifications to make the poses doable
- It gives particular room for progress and development
- Stretching routines help relieve pain
CONS:
- The background music is too loud
- Not enough details for certain poses
Best For:
The Stronger Seniors Yoga Chair Exercise DVD is perfect for those who want to relieve stress because there’s a special section for relaxation.
3. Chair Yoga With Nadia Narain
If you want more versatility, you can use this Chair Yoga With Nadia Narain, which features three different sessions. The first session focuses on chair yoga poses, while the second one combines seated postures with standing ones. I particularly love the third session because it includes meditation and other stretching exercises to help me release tension.
Nadia Narain is a great instructor herself because she gives out detailed directions. I like her calm voice because it stimulates seniors to do each move carefully. The video and audio qualities are also excellent, adding a pleasant experience to the yoga practice.
However, the instructor is slightly too fast in transitioning from session 2 to 3, so I had a little hard time following her. While there’s more variety, the second and third sessions need more practice and skill to perfect because they’re done off the chair.
PROS:
- It combines chair yoga poses with standing poses for versatility
- It includes stretching and mediation to relieve tension
- Easy to follow, thanks to the instructor’s clear directions
- The instructor has a stimulating, calm voice
- It has superb video and audio quality
CONS:
- A bit fast-paced
- Needs more skill and practice for the other two sessions
Best For:
The Chair Yoga With Nadia Narain DVD is perfect for seniors who want a little challenge. This DVD includes other sessions, which include standing poses and floor routines.
4. Ageless Yoga: Chair And Standing Routines
If you have a problem getting down on the ground or getting back up, then this Ageless Yoga DVD might be perfect for you. The chair yoga routines are very relaxing and easy to follow. After doing one session, I feel reinvigorated and felt relief on my aching shoulders.
The instructor, John Shclorholtz, is a senior himself, so he feels very relatable. I like that he always reminds you to breathe. A the end of every routine, there’s a quiet meditation to help you feel relaxed.
The pacing is just right for seniors: a bit slow to give time for adjustments. However, most of the movements are basic stretches and simple joint releasing moves. Also, the editing is a bit poor because it shows different students in the next take.
PROS:
- Slow-paced and consists of elementary chair yoga routines
- It helps reinvigorate tired muscles
- The instructor is very relatable
- It never forgets to remind you to breathe
- It infuses meditation after every routine for relaxation
CONS:
- Poor editing quality
- More stretching and fewer yoga moves
Best For:
The Ageless Yoga: Chair And Standing Routines DVD is ideal for seniors who want essential stretching exercises. This DVD provides the most gentle chair yoga moves ever.
5. Healthy Yoga For Seniors Beginner
Yoga Chuck provides gentle, slow-paced yoga chair routines to help improve your quality of life. This DVD offers modifications to make sure that everyone can do the pose perfectly. I like the 13-minute relaxation part because it’s very soothing and helps me reduce stress.
The instructor is very good at explaining every position and supportive of every movement. I like that he constantly reminds you not to push yourself and always do the moves at your comfort level. The slow pace is just perfect and the poses vary from stretching to coordination.
However, there are some moves that use the floor within the 45-minute duration. My old friend has to sit out because she can’t do the floor moves. The setting also looks lonely because Yoga Chuck has no students behind to follow.
PROS:
- It provides modifications to make each move doable
- It includes relaxation to give stress relief
- The instructor explains each move very well
- Very supportive and reminds you not to push too hard
- Slow-paced, making it perfect for seniors
CONS:
- Includes some moves on the floor, which can be a little difficult
- No students to make reference for the routines
Best For:
The Healthy Yoga For Seniors Beginner DVD is perfect for seniors or anyone with a disability because the instructor is an inspiration himself.
FAQs:
Q: What type of yoga is best for seniors?
Restorative is the best form of yoga for the elderly because it’s slow-paced and focuses on the art of relaxation. Iyengar is another type of yoga that uses props to make postures accessible.
Q: Is chair yoga safe for seniors?
Definitely! Chair yoga is very gentle for the elderly because most poses are done in a seated position.
Q: How often should seniors do yoga?
A study shows that yoga done thrice a week can provide significant results in respiratory function.
Conclusion
It’s never too late for seniors to start yoga. Chair yoga can bring many health benefits to help improve your quality of life. As for me, the best chair yoga DVD for seniors is Yoga Vitality because it provides the most variety of moves and modifications for each skill level.
If you want to ease your stress, Stronger Seniors might be a good alternative. This DVD includes a special section for meditation to help you relax. For a more challenging chair yoga exercise, Chair Yoga With Nadia Narain is an excellent option.
Allen Wei is someone who believes in living his best life, focusing on balance, happiness, and relaxation. He fosters a positive lifestyle in terms of his body, mind, and environment, and he is a huge proponent of learning to be balanced via relaxation techniques integrated into our busy lives.
