10 Ways to Use a Chair for Yoga

This blog is about using a chair. You can buy specific yoga chairs, but any sturdy dining room style chair without arms will work just as well.

BKS Iyengar was credited with popularising the use of yoga props through his school of yoga. Over the years many yoga props and supports have been developed to support the spectrum of yoga poses but you can’t go wrong with the basics. Simple yoga props include: belts, bricks, blocks, blankets, chairs, bolsters, cushions and using a wall. In my blog I will be sharing some ways to use these props in your practice.

You may be aware of Chair Yoga classes, these are based around yoga movements and adapted poses that can be done seated in a chair, or standing and using the chair for support – this style of yoga can be really beneficial for anyone recovering from injury or who for any reason are unable to move up and down from the floor easily.

A chair can be a useful support for any yoga student

They can help you to support a yoga pose; find your way into a yoga pose more fully; and in restorative yoga, chairs can be really helpful to help hold the body in yoga poses so that the body can rest and enjoy the benefits of the pose without the effort of holding the pose.

Yoga props are useful, but not essential. Many styles of yoga don’t use props at all. But from experience of my own yoga practice and teaching over the past ten years, props can help students to feel the shape or essence of a pose better, especially if they are more restricted in their movement or flexibility. They can make poses more achievable, especially if you are a beginner. For the more advanced students they can help to find more nuance in poses.

So what poses can you do with a Chair? Here are just a few ideas...

For all the poses ensure your chair is stable and isn’t gong to slide away from you by placing it on your yoga mat or against a wall.

Eka Pada Rajakapotasana - Pigeon Pose

This is a seated version of pigeon pose, designed to open the hips and stretch the muscles of the buttocks and down the leg – it is particularly helpful for easing sciatica.

Sit with your spine away from the back of the chair, feet firmly on the floor. Then carefully lift an ankle onto the opposite knee. If you have flexibility in your hips and want to add a little more stretch to the pose you can lean gently forwards, keeping your chest lifted and spine straight, to intensify the stretch.

Make sure you repeat on the other leg.

2. Adho mukha svanasana – downward facing dog pose

Ensure your chair isn’t gong to slide away from you by placing it on your yoga mat or against a wall. Place your hands on the seat of the chair and walk backwards into a high version of downward facing dog. You can bend your knees if you need to.

A great spine and leg stretch, and helpful if you can’t take a lot of weight on your wrists in the traditional pose with hands on the floor.

3. Ustrasana – Camel Pose

This is a wonderful pose to counterbalance a lot of leaning forwards. Using the chair is a more accessible form of the pose as you don’t need to reach to your heels.

From kneeling use the chair behind you to lean your elbows onto. Gently open your chest towards the ceiling. Only take your head back to where it feels comfortable for the neck – you may choose to look forwards.

A cushion or folded blanket under your knees can provide more comfort. If kneeling is hard for you, you could sit on the chair and hold the back of the seat behind you in a similar gentle back bend.

4. Virabhadrasana II – Warrior 2

Sit on the chair and then take one leg out to the side, bending at the knee – you can place a block or cushion under your foot if it doesn’t reach flat to the floor.

The other leg extends straight out to the side, again ensure your foot is on the floor. This is a lovely opening for the hips and you can extend your arms out to the side and sit tall to feel like a warrior.

Using a chair takes the work out of the legs a little so that you can focus on the hips and upper body, rather than the balance.

Make sure you repeat on the other side.

5. Parsvokonasona – Side Angle Pose

Setting up as in Warrior 2 above, you might place your hand or your forearm onto your bent leg and extend your other arm up or even over towards your ear for a really good side stretch. See if you can turn your chest towards the ceiling and really open up.

Again the chair enables you to focus on the hips and upper body rather than the balance and often enables the chest to open up a little more as a result.

Make sure you repeat on the other side.

6. Lunge

Sit facing one side of the chair, then extend the leg at the front of the seat behind you, into a supported lunge. You can shift your seat a little to make sure you feel steady and supported. Hands could rest on your front thigh, come into a prayer position at your chest, or for a really good stretch reach towards the ceiling.

Make sure you repeat on the other leg.

7. Upavistha konasana - Seated Wide Legged Forward Fold

A chair can really help you with this pose if you have tighter hips or hamstrings. Sit on a cushion or yoga block to lift your hips slightly and take your legs to either side of the chair. You can bend them if you need to. Then keeping your spine straight lean towards the chair. You can relax your forearms onto the chair seat and it’s very soothing to rest your forehead on your arms or the chair.

A little tip is to thread one of your legs between the chair legs to narrow the position if it is uncomfortable to have the legs either side of the chair. pile of books, folded blankets or cushions could work.

8. Vrksasana – Tree Pose

You can simply stand next to the chair and hold the back of the chair for support for Tree Pose. Then you can focus more on your leg position without having to worry about your balance. You can practice resting your foot below the other knee, above the knee to add more to the pose, or keep your toes on the floor if you need it to be less challenging. You could try letting go of the chair for a moment or two to test your balance.

In this version I have rested my knee onto the chair seat this can steady you in the pose and enables you to be able to move the arms – prayer position, out to the sides or stretch arms overhead are all good options. The knee on the chair holds you in place without having to hold the chair with your hand.

Repeat on the other leg.

9. Restorative legs on the chair

Lying down and resting your legs on to the chair seat is such a soothing pose. You might need to rest your pelvis on a cushion, folded blanket or flat yoga block, or even put a blanket or cushion on the chair seat to ensure your legs are at a right angle – it will depend on the chair height and your leg length! Try to make sure the backs of your knees rest into the side of the chair.

A cushion for your head and even a cosy blanket to cover you can make this a wonderful way to rest for as long as you are comfortable.

10. Seated meditation

Using a chair to sit on for meditation can be really helpful for anyone, and especially if sitting on the floor is uncomfortable for longer periods of time. Be sure to have your feet flat to the floor – or resting on a cushion or yoga block, and sit away from the back of the chair, with a long spine to keep you awake. A cushion at your lower back can help you with this. Your hands can rest gently in your lap.