Health Information Center

An active lifestyle is one of the keys to a long life. In our elder years, it is important to keep moving in order to enjoy the wonderful essence of life. Yoga is a fantastic activity for seniors, as it is low impact, promotes overall wellness, and can be modified to suit the mobility of any practitioner. If you have been practicing Yoga for many years, you will see your youth extended, and your ability to practice is mildly affected as you age. Even if you are well into your senior years, and have never stepped foot on Yoga mat, it is never too late to start a healthy habit (though it is important to follow your body’s own pace).

Yoga is especially beneficial for seniors because it caters to many of their special health needs. In some cases, Yoga is useful because it helps ease the pains caused by arthritis and limited mobility. It improves balance and stability, reducing the chance of falls. When practiced regularly, Yoga also is known to lower blood pressure. Yoga classes, geared toward seniors, can also help them establish a sense of community with one another and adopt a better outlook on life.

If a senior is a beginner to Yoga, it is best to start off slow, and go at his or her own pace. There is no need to try to push the body to do something that it has not been trained to do before. Applying force in Yoga can cause problems, regardless of a student’s age. It is always wise to move through the poses slowly and gently. Adjust the intensity, and time, held in a pose, to meet the body’s unique demands. Some of the best poses for seniors to try are relaxing, restorative, and gentle stretching postures. The corpse pose (Savasana) is great because it promotes relaxation and healthy blood flow.

Table, Cat, and Cow poses connect one’s breathing to body movements and can be very beneficial to seniors, as well. Pose of a Child is another relaxing posture, which is good for everyone. If mobility is a big issue, Chair Yoga might be the right style to choose. With Yoga practice, at a studio or senior center, students will bring their practice home. This is time to try some gentle postures, flows, meditation, and breathing exercises (pranayama). Each of us has different expectations from Yoga practice, and seniors are no different. Senior Yoga students tend to have a deep appreciation for being pain free, keeping the mind active, energizing the body, and experiencing complete wellbeing.

With a little help from Yoga, and a positive state of mind, each of us can get the best quality life out of our golden years. Remember, it is never too late to create a healthy lifestyle, stimulate the mind, and tone a healthier body. Yoga practice for active seniors is “the icing on the cake.”

© Copyright 2011 – Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, has written many books on the subject of Yoga. He is a co-owner and the Director of Yoga Teacher Training at: Aura Wellness Center, in Attleboro, MA. He has been a certified Master Yoga Teacher since 1995. To receive Free Yoga videos, Podcasts, e-Books, reports, and articles about Yoga, please visit: http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/

By Paul Jerard

I have been a student of yoga for 11 years now. Usually I will take about two classes a week and alternating with other forms of exercise, such as walking or karate, but during my three pregnancies I have taken as many as 4 yoga classes per week, especially near the end. Whether pregnant or not, I have found yoga practice to be very beneficial. I sleep better, I feel better, and I’m more flexible. There are no pregnancy yoga classes in my area, but I have studied with more than a dozen instructors over the years, many of them certified in teaching yoga to pregnant women. I have been given some very strange and contradictory advice over the years — some of the strangest coming from the instructors so certified.

With my current pregnancy well into my 9th month and after months of trying to contain my frustration with well-intentioned but erroneous instructors, today I snapped. I got into an argument in the middle of one of my yoga classes with an instructor who forbade me to lie on my back with my legs elevated against the wall. She informed me (incorrectly) that to do so would harm my unborn child. This was like being told not to take a multivitamin because swallowing the entire whole bottle is toxic. The first time she told me I was harming my unborn child, it scared me. I worried about it, talked to another instructor, and finally asked my doctor. My doctor informed me that, while she wouldn’t want me to lie on my back for an hour or fall asleep that way, there is absolutely NO problem lying on my back during a yoga class for up to 15 minutes (personally, 5 minutes is enough for me). Short periods of lying back with legs elevated reduces edema, and is beneficial for pregnant women.

This is not the first time I’ve been given misinformation regarding pregnancy yoga practice by an instructor who considered themselves knowledgeable. I’ve also been told:

• never to stand on one foot in late pregnancy (e.g. tree pose) because of pressure to my pelvis
• never to use my abdominal muscles
• never to raise my arms in the air

My doctor found these strictures mystifying and amusing.

Reasonable modifications I’ve been given by yoga instructors include:

• not standing on my head
• not laying on my stomach, and
• not doing spinal twists in late pregnancy

For yoga instructors who are concerned about safely supporting pregnant women in their classes, and worried about any of their students’ capacities, I would suggest requesting a doctor’s note. I’ve had massage therapists ask for this too. I would advise instructors to be very specific about any postures of concern (e.g. list and describe any such postures and ask the doctor to grant permission for their patient to do each one). There are many kinds of woman’s bodies, and there is a big difference between someone taking yoga for the first time vs. an experienced long-term student. There is a big difference between a healthy pregnancy and a high risk pregnancy. There is not one type of pregnant body. What is safe for one woman might not be safe for another.

Yoga instructors: get your facts straight. It is obvious to me from my own experience with numerous instructors that many books and teacher trainings about pregnancy yoga are as likely as not to pass on over-simplified, incomplete, or simply inaccurate information. Others are extremely conservative, probably due to fear of liability. If you are going to give advice, make sure it is accurate and complete. Make sure it is evidence-based and not an old wife’s tale. Try to avoid passing on unwarranted fear and stress through misinformation. When in doubt, consult with a health care professional – or more than one.

Pregnant Yoga students: Listen to your body. Take it easy, and do not push yourself beyond your limits. At the same time, if you are used to being physical active in your pre-pregnancy life, are in good physical condition, and have your doctor’s permission to exercise, do not be afraid to give yourself an actual workout. Don’t be afraid to question your instructor. If it does not feel good, don’t do it – even if the instructor tells you it is okay. Conversely, if something feels good, it is probably okay. However, take any of your concerns, or those expressed by your instructor, seriously enough to double check with your doctor or midwife. Too make things even more complicated, health professionals are not always in agreement either. So, when in doubt, we must all navigate sometimes contradictory advice to make as an informed choice as possible.

A teacher student relationship is a trust relationship. The student trusts that the information given by the instructor is accurate. The instructor trusts that the student will communicate their needs and limitations and behave responsibly. This is particularly essential when the student is pregnant, so I am distressed that there is so much contradictory and inaccurate information being passed around. The only advice I can offer, is to seek multiple sources of information within both the health care and the yoga communities. Do not to be afraid to question authority. If necessary, seek additional opinions, new classes and mentors. Make decisions that are thoughtful and informed – not based in fear or ignorance.

Pamela Block, Ph.D.
Cultural Anthropologist, yoga enthusiast, and mother of three