Inclusive yoga for all abilities at Guided by Humanity
One afternoon, when I was around ten, I wandered into the living room to find my grandmother on the floor. She wasn’t hurt but rather on her hands and knees. I tucked around the corner and watched, unsure what she was doing.
Wearing her requisite light blue polyester pants and white shirt, she started rocking back and forth.
She wiggled her butt.
She muttered out loud, “C’mon, Myrt. You can do it!”
She tried to get off the floor and failed.
She then muttered words that I didn’t know that my grandmother knew…
Exasperated, she scooted closer to the couch. With a dramatic OOF, she managed to get herself off the floor and eventually to a standing position. She exhaled and saw me standing in the doorway with a shocked expression.
I didn’t know what to say. Gram laughed and mussed my disheveled Dorothy Hamill haircut.
“Becky Boo, if you plan to get on the floor at my age, you better plan how to get back up!”
Flash forward 45 years, and as part of a misguided New Year’s Eve resolution, I was determined to dig my old yoga mat from under my bed and head to a class.
Misguided was the operative word. Oh, boy.
I was in a yoga class at my local gym with someone’s foot in my face. I was pressed in a corner near the air vent, listening to Imagine Dragons and imagining how I might be able to get off the floor, put my shoes back on and go home. Unlike Myrtle, I didn’t have a plan.
I emerged from the class with my body and ego bruised. I knew that yoga offered multiple health benefits, from reducing stress to increasing flexibility and boosting one’s mood. I saw the yoga adverts packed with images of stylish, svelte people balancing precariously and gracefully in handstands and backbends. Yes, these yogis do exist.
Yeah, but not me.
I was familiar with yoga when I was a bendy 20-year-old. Now, in my late 40’s, a car accident affected my mobility and how fast I could think. Sometimes it takes me a minute to make the mind/body connection. Determined, I did some research for someone like myself.
And, to my chagrin, I discovered while taking a foot in the face that it takes me a few to get off the floor. I definitely wanted to be something other than the Life Alert lady in a future yoga class.
The foot/floor incident made me quit my gym membership altogether out of shame.
I also was afraid of commitment. I didn’t want to sign a contract or spend tons of money on a class that didn’t fit me.
My initial searches could have been more fruitful. Yoga was expensive and moved too fast for me. Or it was too hot. Too far, too full, too competitive, too much pressure to have a decent pedicure…
I searched for inclusive, gentle yoga, and more specifically, yoga for someone who hasn’t touched their toes since the late 80s. I thought yoga wasn’t meant for someone like me. Undeterred, I pressed on.
One afternoon, I visited the Peace and Humanity Smoothie Bus while attending an outdoor jazz concert. The Smoothie Bus is co-operated by Guided By Humanity—a yoga studio located in Englewood (south of Denver). I decided to look them up, and that’s when I discovered they had an inclusive yoga class made for someone like me.
Chair yoga is a gentle form practiced while sitting on a chair or standing and using the chair for support. The concept was developed in 1982 as an option for a student with arthritis. Chair Yoga uses the same elements as traditional yoga, including physical poses (asanas), meditation, and breathing techniques (pranayama). It is gentle but still provides improved flexibility, strength, and reduced joint strain.
I was intrigued. Using a chair meant I could stand and use the chair for support on my good days when I had great focus and abundant energy.
On my bad days, I could sit.
On all days, I could reap the benefits of yoga.
I contacted Guided By Humanity and discovered that the yoga class fees were pay what I can: donation based, and I didn’t have to sign up for a membership. I could register for a class and come on my good days.
No wasted money.
No random foot in my face.
No shunning.
I was accepted just as I was. No backbends are required.
I took a chance and never looked back.
What is Chair Yoga like?
The class flow generally involves three sequences: Awakening, centering, and balancing, with times of deep rest interspersed for restorative benefit. When flowing from one sequence to the next, you are encouraged to listen to your body and move in the way that suits you.
It feels good. It’s empowering because it meets me where I’m at that day. Somedays, I feel strong and connected, and other days, due to my head injury, I need more rest and quiet.
Here are a couple of examples of Chair Yoga Poses from Lucile HR.com.
Who benefits from Chair Yoga?
Everyone! All-Abilities and All-Bodies are welcome at Guided By Humanity. Chair Yoga accommodates everyone. If you use an assistive device such as a wheelchair or walker, you can fully participate. Need a friend to help you? Bring them along! Therapy animal? All-Bodies include furry ones as well.
The inclusive, safe, tranquil space at Guided By Humanity provides yoga for all regardless of ability to pay, age, identity, and gender—all are welcome at Guided By Humanity.
Whether seeking to affirm a New Year’s resolution or just wanting to feel better, Chair Yoga helps you build strength, increase flexibility, and reduce stress.
Plus, you don’t need the plan to get off the floor. It’s Myrtle Approved.
