Chair Yoga Poses To Keep Your Neck, Shoulders, Back And Knees Healthy

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This chair yoga sequence will work on your neck, shoulder, back, and even eyes and wrists. This is a must-try sequence in order to stay stress-free and feel happy while working.

Chair yoga – what?

Is winter killing your yoga routine? Sometimes it can cause our joints to get stiffer and will-power to go down with the shrinking Mercury.

OR

You are a firm believer in just “one posture yoga routine” – the Savasana! (Sometimes known as sleeping).

But what’s the point of chair yoga?

• You are on a desk job that means most of the time you are working on a PC or a laptop. Setting your back, neck, eyes, digestive system, even wrists on fire.
• You are on a long journey where you can’t find a place to lay your yoga mat.
• You belong to a certain age group or a body type with a limited ability to move.
• You need a prop to showcase your innovative yoga postures.

There are numerous reasons why you should give a try to chair yoga! Let’s start with deep breathing. Our today’s intention is…

I am flexible… I am at ease

Mindful breathing

Starting everything with mindfulness has its own credits. Be it your day or a yoga routine!

• Sit on a chair with an erected spine.
• Put your right hand over the belly and left hand over the chest.
• Take a deep breath from your nose, feel the rise in the chest and then in the belly due to the inhale.
• Exhale from the mouth with the sound haaa…
• Two more times. Inhale and open your mouth…haaa….

Relax your eyes

Do you love your eyes enough? Taking care of your eyes is very important because these are the most significant but delicate organs in our body.

• Inhale and look at your left then extreme right, extreme up, and down.
• Try keeping your head stable.
• Repeat with the left, right, up, and down eyeballs movements.
• Repeat two more times.
• Continue with mindful breathing.

Squeezed face

Squeezing and releasing your facial muscles increases the blood circulation in your face and eyes, giving you a natural glow and relaxation.

Squeezing also works on preventing wrinkles and sagging of skin. Hence giving a wonderful glow to your face.

• Inhale and squeeze your eyes and the whole face, hold for 5 seconds, and release.
• Repeat with inhale, squeeze, hold your breath for 5 seconds, and with an exhale…release.

Repeat your intentions: I am flexible. I am at ease.

Neck rotations

Sitting longer exerts pressure on the entire spinal column straining our neck which in long term may cause discomfort and even lead to cervical spondylitis. This neck-work is a sure way to keep you going!

• Inhale and bring your chin on the chest.
• Very gently let your neck move clockwise and then anti-clockwise.
• Let your ears get in touch with the shoulders.
• Repeat for two more Times.
• Breathe mindfully.

Sit-ups and side bends on the chair (without support)

Sitting also hinders blood circulation in your pelvic floor and puts a lot of pressure on the joints. Moreover, If you are constipated, this sitting may be the culprit!

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• That said, the next pose is a moving one to increase the blood circulation in our pelvic floor and digestive organs.
• And to message the knees and hips joints.
• Set your arms behind the head so that you are not touching your chair for support.
• Inhale and stand up tall on your feet.
• Gradually bend back.
• Stand tall, then bend your torso right then left, come to the center, and sit down.
• This is one round.
• Repeat 5 times initially then go further.
• Keep the core engaged by pushing the navel in.

Leg raises

• While on your chair, working on your legs and hips joints is a great way to stay active and relaxed.
• Place your palms on your chair seat. Inhale and raise your legs so that both the legs together are parallel to the ground.
• Exhale and bring both feet to the ground.
• Repeat for 10.

Shoulder rotations

• Ease your neck and shoulder joints by giving your shoulder this ‘rotating love’ thus preventing freezing out!
• Inhale deeply and exhale slowly.
• Squeeze your chest so that your shoulders come together and forward.
• Exhale to bring your chest forward.
• Simultaneously rotate your ‘ball and socket’ joints, clockwise, five times.
• Next, set your ball and socket joints to move, anticlockwise, five times.

Seated Eagle Pose

• Eagle pose on the hands and legs helps to increase flexibility and blood circulation in the area.
• ‘The squeeze and release’ action brings an abundance of blood flow.
• Sit straight on your chair and breathe mindfully.
• Inhale and Open your both arms parallel to the ground.
• Now bring your left arm beneath the right and wrap them around so that both the palms are together in Eagle pose or Garunasana.
• Inhale open once again and this time bring your right hand beneath the left take the package up and breathe.
• When you feel comfortable, you can cross your legs too, in the eagle pose by crossing the legs and squeezing the inner thighs against each other.
•  Set up some organic movements by bending forward and touching your knees with the elbows.
• And going back to the normal position.

Seated twists

Yoga twists are well known to improve the digestive system, massage your internal organs, and detoxify the body.

• Twisting Postures are also wonderful for your spinal cord.
• Inhale and place your left hand on the back of your chair and from your spinal cord twist left.
• Exhale and take three deep breaths here.
• Repeat on the other side.
• and helps to invoke your digestive system.
• Hold the back of your chair so that you prop yourself better and maintain a nice balance.

Seated forward fold

• Inhale and raise your hands.
• Exhale and fold forward from the crease of your hips and slightly bring your toes and fingers together.
• Repeat two more times…

Seated cat and cow posture

• Cat and cow pose a. k.a. Marjareyasana would supercharge your spinal cord and prevent back pain.
• Place your hands behind the head or hold your chair from both sides.
• Inhale and arch your back.
• Exhale and round your back bring your chin to chest, suck the belly in.
• Repeat two more times.
• Inhale, expand open, exhale, and round your back.

Seated side bends

• Sit upright on your chair so that your legs are at 90 degrees from the ground.
• Knees joints are again at 90 degrees and the hips joint making 90 degrees from your torso.
• Press both the feet from all the corners to feel grounded.
• Inhale to bend right-hand side.
• With an exhale, try touching the ground with your right hand.
• Come back to the center.
• Inhale to bend your left side.
• Touch the ground from your left hand and come back to the center.
• Repeat two more times.

Seated pigeon pose

Pigeon pose or Rajkapotasana works on your hips flexure and knee Joints.

• Sit erect on your chair.
• Place your right leg on your left knee so that your right ankle is touching your left knee.
• Hold your chair, inhale and with an exhale, bend forward from your hips, try pulling the spine forward without straining.
• Hold for 5 to 10 seconds.
• Repeat on the other side.
• Bring your left ankle over the right knee.
• Inhale and exhale to bend forward.
• Again hold for 5 to 10 seconds then come back to be seated erect.
• Make your chair work as a prop.

Wrist rotations

If you type a lot on a keyboard, you might suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome, in which the veins in the wrists get pinched causing a tingling sensation. This wrist-work would help you to keep your wrist joints healthy.

• Sit comfortably on the seat of a chair.
• Bring both hands in front of you.
• Let all the fingers together to form a fist.
• Rotate your hands clockwise and anticlockwise.
• Keep breathing.

Go for your today’s intention- I am relaxed, I am at ease.

Palms-To-Fingers stretches

• Now release your fists.
• Spread your fingers long.
• With your right hand pull the fingers of your left hand towards your chest.
• Feel the stretch in left-hand fingers and the wrist.
• Reverse your fingers facing towards the ground and pull back again with the right-hand palm.
• Repeat with your left hand pulling the right hand’s fingers.

Temple massage

With all these wonderful Yoga stretches you must be feeling relaxed. Finally, you can massage your temple for a more relaxed feeling.

• Press on both sides of the temple using your fingers of both hands.
• Massage with a circular motion clockwise and then anti-clockwise.
• Take a deep breath and express your gratitude for your office chair-
• “I am happy working on my office chair because I am most productive here”.
• You can modify your office yoga routine with the number of repetitions or doing with a fewer number of Postures.

Now you are good to go on your chair yoga journey:)

P.S.-You might have read my post on office yoga, or the book -A COMPLETE BOOK ON OFFICE YOGA. This chair yoga sequence is an advanced version.

Next in the row, I have released a video on the same topic on YouTube.

“20 Minutes Yoga Sequence For Neck, Back, And Shoulders”.

I hope you would love it.

Best chair yoga poses

Chair yoga is a gentle form of yoga that can be done while sitting. Some poses can also be done standing using a chair for support. You can do chair yoga nearly anywhere you can find a place to sit. Chair yoga can improve your flexibility, concentration, and strength while boosting your mood and reducing stress and joint strain. That said, you can relax and massage almost all of your organs sitting on your office chair except the lower body part.

Remember, this is not a substitute for your regular yoga routine which should be done on a yoga mat.

Thanks for reading! Don’t forget to share this best gift for your chair savvy yogi friend 🙂