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Chair yoga serves as an increasingly popular alternative exercise because it delivers gentle yet powerful results to practitioners. The modified practice of traditional yoga enables all individuals to perform classic yoga postures from the comfort of their seated position. The art of chair yoga gets professional recommendations because its benefits match what standard yoga practices deliver, including flexibility improvement along with strength development and relaxation effects.
But here’s the burning question: Is chair yoga good for weight loss? The answer is yes. Chair yoga can be a great way to shed some pounds, especially for those with limited mobility, older adults, or anyone seeking lower-impact workout options. This blog will be all about the effects of chair yoga and introduce you to specific poses that can help you achieve the best results.
So, without further ado – let’s get started!
The Science Behind Chair Yoga for Weight Loss
The science behind chair yoga for weight loss usually revolves around three factors: calories burned, muscle movement, and relaxation. These factors positively influence and help you with your weight loss journey.
Research shows that any form of yoga actually burns calories, especially when you engage in vigorous movements and hold the poses for long periods. While these calories might not be as much as those burned in any other form of exercise, chair yoga still promotes body movement. When you regularly practice it, it can help increase your overall caloric expenditure and help you lose weight.
Read, also – The Incredible Chair Yoga Benefits You Need to Know
Chair yoga also involves different poses, engaging different muscle groups. This helps to build lean muscle mass, which increases the metabolism. This means that the body burns even more calories even at rest. Some poses in chair yoga can stimulate the digestive system and help better absorb nutrients. In this way, improved gut health can also aid in weight reduction.
Lastly, research indicated that yoga can massively reduce stress levels. High levels of stress are often linked to binge eating and weight gain. But when yoga promotes relaxation and mindfulness, it helps manage stress, leading to healthier eating habits and better weight control.
Even though chair yoga is effective for weight loss by reducing BMI and fat, exercise alone doesn’t guarantee weight loss. However, the results of chair yoga can skyrocket when you add other healthy habits to your routine, such as healthy eating.
Top 3 Chair Yoga Poses to Lose Weight
Real best chair yoga exercises for weight loss usually depend on your physical abilities. But here, we have chosen all those that target the abdominals and make you burn more calories, hence helping you lose weight if you stay consistent.
1. Seated Sun Salutations
Seated sun salutation is an excellent way to build lean muscle and boost metabolism. It’s a full-body workout that engages muscles from head to toe, and research indicates that one round can burn up to 14 calories. Sun salutation has different poses that you must perform precisely to get the best result. 
- Sit on the edge of a chair with your feet grounded on the floor. Exhale and join palms together at the level of the chest.
- Then inhale and raise your arms above your head with palms facing each other. Look at your fingertips and stretch your spine.
- Now bend forward and exhale simultaneously, lowering your hand to your thighs and your legs towards your feet. Keep your neck and spine straight.
- Slowly rise and inhale. Bring your right thigh towards your chest and keep looking forward.
- Now bring your hands and legs back to the starting position and exhale. Lower your head and round the back as in the cat pose.
- Again inhale and bring the body into a cow pose. Exhale and return to cat pose. As you inhale, hold your left thigh – bring it to your chest.
- Release the leg and exhale. Bend forward, bring your hands to your thighs, followed by your legs and towards the foot, and relax the neck.
- Inhale and place your hand back on the thighs. Lengthen the neck and come back up with a long spine.
- Raise arms and hands above the head and look up gently. And exhale and bring your palms together in front of your chest.
2. Chair Boat Pose
The chair boat pose is one of the best chair yoga poses for weight loss, focusing on all the target areas, such as the abdominals, core, legs, and back.
To do a chair boat pose, you can follow these steps:
- Start by sitting on a chair so that your sitting bones do not touch the back of the chair.
- Rest your hands on the seat of the chair from both sides.
- Now, lift both legs from the ground and bring them parallel to the floor.
- Keep your back straight and engage your core.
- Hold this position for 4-5 breaths, then lower your legs to the floor.
- Repeat this a few times.
3. Seated Plank Pose
This chair yoga targets the abdominals and core muscles. Like a general plank, it is also an excellent calorie burner. 
To do it:
- Stand in front of the chair, facing it.
- Now bend forward slightly to hold the sides of the seat with both hands approximately shoulder-width apart.
- Slowly walk away from the chair until your body is in a straight line from the head to the feet.
- Now, engage the core and tighten the leg muscles to maintain this position for 20-30 seconds.
- Then, slowly release this and repeat it a few times or as much as you can.
How to Build a Sustainable Chair Yoga Routine?
To achieve the best result with chair yoga, you need to add it to your daily life. Here are some ideas on how to incorporate it:
- Start slowly and safely
The best is to begin with a few minutes of chair yoga each day and add up time as you build your pace.
- Stay consistent
Like everything else in life, consistency is the key. So, try to do chair yoga at the same time, be it in the morning or evening. Do it at least three times a week to get optimal results.
Read also – The Best Yoga Poses For 2: The Power of Collaboration
- Mindful breathing
While you focus on the pose, also be mindful of your breathing techniques. Proper breathing can enhance relaxation and the effect of the exercise you perform.
- Your body – your navigation
Pay attention while you practice chair yoga. If anything feels off, try altering the pose or skipping it altogether.
- Incorporate cardio elements
While chair yoga is gentler, adding cardio moves like arm raises can help you increase your heart rate. Also, you can add more varieties of poses that target different muscle areas and parts to get a well-maintained and toned body.
If you are eager to learn more about these chair yoga poses, especially in terms of losing weight, look no further than Lasta app. As the best chair yoga app for weight loss, it offers a variety of exercises that you can easily integrate into your routines.
Success Stories: Real Results with Chair Yoga
Many people have achieved the best results from chair yoga as a part of their weight loss journey.
One user shared on a forum that doing chair yoga for weight loss has been very effective for her, as it has boosted her metabolism. By combining her chair yoga regimen with mindful eating, she has started seeing visible differences in her body.
Another motivating example is a 72-year-old woman who happens to have Parkinson’s disease. She has stated that after only two months of doing chair yoga, she has experienced a noticeable increase in her strength and mobility and a much greater reduction in her weight. This shows that chair yoga is effective for weight loss regardless of age and physical fitness.
Conclusion
Now, we have answered the question about whether chair yoga works for weight loss.
It is evident that it might not burn as many calories as other rigorous exercises. However, it is still a great alternative for weight loss, body toning, and metabolism increase, particularly for those who find it too hard to exercise with traditional methods.
You mustn’t view chair yoga as your exclusive method for weight loss. When aiming to maximize its effectiveness, it needs to combine chair yoga with healthy eating habits and a consistent routine.
So, what are you waiting for? Start doing chair yoga today. In the end, the effort will bring changes not only to the physique but, more importantly, to overall health and well-being.
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Alex is a health sciences writer with experience in sports performance and rehabilitation settings. His areas of expertise include health and fitness, sports nutrition, and injury prevention. He is passionate about health science education and health/wellness optimization for people of all ages.
