Photo: Deposit Photos

By Lauren Maher, LFMT, C-IAYT

The following is an excerpt from the Fall 2026 issue of Healthy Aging® Magazine.

For some, the word yoga conjures up images of lithe, leotard-clad women performing seemingly impossible, acrobatic poses that require pretzel-like flexibility. It’s hard to see images like that and not think of yoga as an inaccessible practice that is far away from what our own bodies are capable of — especially as we age.

While there are indeed yoga poses that can push the body to its limits, this is not the purpose — or even the goal — of yoga.

As a longtime yoga teacher and yoga therapist, I’ve learned that yoga can be easily adapted in myriad ways to meet the specific needs of the individual. One of my favorite ways to make yoga accessible is through chair yoga.

Sample exercise card from The Chair Yoga deck by Lauren Maher. Used with permission from Adams Media

Chair yoga is a gentle practice that adapts traditional yoga postures to be done seated, or with the support of a chair. This style of yoga is quite different from practices that you might see in a traditional yoga class. It is inherently low impact, and since you have the support of the chair, there is no need to transition up and down off the floor.

This can make it an ideal practice for a variety of concerns and conditions, including arthritis, balance or mobility issues, injury recovery, and chronic illness.