What Type of Chair is Recommended for Chair Yoga?
Question
Is there a brand of chair that you prefer for your classes? The local Senior Center I work with is undergoing an expansion and I’d love to outfit it with a good chair. Currently we use “dining room” type chairs – which are very sturdy and have a nice cushion, but the position of the chair legs interferes with windshield wiper type movements or when we open the legs wider. For my home I have a folding chair – which works fine for someone who is strong and steady on the feet, but I would not like to see it used for the majority of people I work with.
Kim
Answer from Sherry
Great question. And I can only speak from my experience. When I owned the Yoga studio, I bought folding chairs from Staples that had a vinyl padded seat and thoracic support. I find these are sturdy enough and provide a bit of comfort. And you can slide side to side with them… and they store easily. I had carpet so there was no concern for slippage. If there is not carpet, I would suggest a yoga mat under the chair.
I also teach at a Library where they ordered chairs without my input. Oh my… they are terrible. Any chair that has a curved seat (they thought it would be more comfortable!) is really hard to sit upright in. Those curved seats encourage the rounding of the lower back which we know is not a good thing.
Dining room or banquet type chairs with no arms can work as they are sturdy and usually have a bit of padding. But, as you said, the legs can get in the way of certain movements. I would avoid any chairs with arms as they are quite limiting in a lot of the poses we do that require big body movements or twisting.
