Introduction to Chair Yoga
Practice & Teach
A 5-week, self-paced course.
First class is available as a free preview!
New classes drop once per week for 5 weeks.
You'll have access to all content for one year.
*Enrollments are currently closed - join our interest list below to be the first to know when our next round of enrollments open
Enrollments for Introduction to Chair Yoga are currently closed.
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Adaptation is part of our nature.
Join Jivana Heyman, the founder and director of Accessible Yoga, for a five-week workshop that will explore how to practice asana safely in a chair.
You’ll learn how adapting the practice can offer the same physical—as well as emotional, mental, and spiritual—benefits. Workshop sessions have been pre-recorded and are available on demand. This five-week workshop, previously recorded on Zoom with one live Q&A session, covers all the fundamental elements of a holistic practice.
In this course, you'll discover:
- How to build strength and flexibility through a chair yoga asana practices
- Nervous system regulation and relaxation through skillful breathing exercises
- How to cultivate focus through meditation
Whether you are a teacher eager to make your classes more accessible by offering options with a chair or a student seeking ways to adapt your asanas, Jivana’s workshop offers insight on how to begin, enhance, and grow your accessible yoga toolkit using a chair.
What Will I Need?
- 2 sturdy chairs (at least one without arms)
- 2 blankets
- 1 bolster (or firm pillow)
- 1 yoga strap (or belt)
- 2 yoga blocks (or large books)
- A designated or suitable practice space
Recommended resource to accompany this course:
- Accessible Yoga: Poses and Practices for Every Body, by Jivana Heyman
Is this an Accessible Yoga Training?
Jivana's comprehensive 38 hour Accessible Yoga Training offers the foundational aspects of equity and accessibility in yoga. Click here to learn more and register for the next available Accessible Yoga Training.
Will I get CEUs?
Yes. Completion of the entire course will make you eligible for 8 CEUs through Yoga Alliance.
Curriculum
FREE Preview - Class 1: Introduction to Chair Yoga
- Welcome
- Discussion: Keeping the Yoga in Chair Yoga
- Practice
Class 2: Chair Yoga for Strength & Stability
- Welcome
- Discussion: Preparing for Practice & How to Build Strength in Chair Yoga
- Workshop: Strengthening in Asana
- Asana Class: Chair Yoga for Strength (including some standing poses using the chair for support)
Homework: 5/5/5 Practice
Class 3: Chair Yoga for Flexibility & Freedom
- Discussion: What are the Benefits of Flexibility/Releasing Expectations
- Workshop: Focus on Safe Stretching
- Asana Class: Chair Yoga for Flexibility
Homework: Reflection on Personal Attachments and Where to Let Go
Class 4: Chair Yoga for Relaxation & Non-Attachment
- Discussion: Relaxation and the Nervous System/Using the Breath
- Workshop: Bringing Ease into Chair Yoga Practice & Accessible Breathing Practices
- Asana Class: Balancing Effort and Relaxation
Homework: Record Your Own Guided Relaxation
Class 5: Chair Yoga for Focus & Meditation
- Discussion: Making Meditation Accessible
- Workshop: Bringing Meditation into Chair Yoga Practice
- Asana Class: Chair Yoga for Focus and Meditation
Homework: Experiment with different kinds of meditation
Meet Your Instructor
Jivana Heyman, C-IAYT, E-RYT500, is the founder and director of the Accessible Yoga Association, an international non-profit organization dedicated to increasing access to the yoga teachings. He’s the author of Accessible Yoga: Poses and Practices for Every Body and Yoga Revolution: Building a Practice of Courage & Compassion (Shambhala Publications).
Jivana has specialized in teaching yoga to people with disabilities with an emphasis on community building and social engagement. Out of this work, the nonprofit Accessible Yoga Association was created to support education, training, and advocacy with the mission of shifting the public perception of yoga. Accessible Yoga offers Conferences, Community Forums, a Podcast, and a popular Ambassador program.
Jivana coined the phrase, “Accessible Yoga,” over ten years ago, and it has now become the standard appellation for a large cross section of the immense yoga world. He brought the Accessible Yoga community together for the first time in 2015 for the Accessible Yoga Conference, which has gone on to become a focal point for this movement.
Jivana is also the creator of the Accessible Yoga Training and the co-founder of the online Accessible Yoga School with Amber Karnes, which is a platform for continued education for yoga teachers in the field of equity and accessibility. They also created the Accessible Yoga Podcast in 2020.
Over the past 25 years, Jivana has led countless yoga teacher training programs around the world, and dedicates his time to supporting yoga teachers who are working to serve communities that are under-represented in traditional yoga spaces.
All featured photos by Sarit Z. Rogers, included in Yoga Revolution: Building A Practice Of Courage & Compassion by Jivana Heyman
