Chair Yoga

Since I currently have an injured knee and the physical therapist said no yoga, I decided to cheat a little. I went to a Chair Yoga class with India Henson at Villager Yoga. I figured with Chair Yoga I wouldn't risk putting additional stress on my knee. My physical therapist actually laughed at me when I told her, but she said it was ok for me to go. I think for most people, Chair Yoga sounds like a how-to video by Britney Spears, similar to the video above. Luckily, it was nothing like that...  Contrary to popular belief, it is very accessible for people of all ages.
I took my father-in-law with me, since he also has a history of knee injuries. We both used the mats, bolsters, and chairs provided and headed into the class of 5. The pace of Chair Yoga was quite a bit slower than my usual speed, but it kept me from over-doing it (which, knowing me, definitely would have happened had I attended an my usual class). It gave me a chance to have a good stretch, and a lot of the leg exercises were very similar to what I am doing in physical therapy.

Sean would have been bored out of his mind, but my father-in-law seemed to really enjoy the class. It was his first yoga class, and of course he was the only male, but he was a trooper. He has even taken Sean's mom to a few classes since then!

My physical therapist has told me that I can "ease into" my normal yoga routine this week, but I couldn't have made it this long on top of the house-buying-yoga-interruption we had. Chair Yoga was exactly what I needed to bridge the gap during my injury.

Chair Yoga is great for that person in your life who doesn't want to try yoga because of knee problems or a concern about having to get up and down from the floor. Savasana even had the option of sitting in your chair versus laying on the floor. The most interesting part of the class for me was the chair modified sun salutation. I have previously done a type of modified sun salutations, but they still involved getting on the ground. With the chair modified version you still stretch up and bend down, but the push up is done with your hands on your knees. Even as a seasoned yoga practitioner,  I was still able to reap the benefits of Chair Yoga. Just goes to show there is a time in your life for everything and a yoga out there for everyone.