As you age, the prospect of bending into a yoga handstand may seem unreasonable or impossible. However, chair yoga offers an alternative to traditional yoga poses. Yoga instructor Lakshmi Voelker-Binder pioneered this yoga variation in the late 1980s after a student with arthritis was unable to complete standard yoga positions. Obtaining certification in chair yoga allows you the opportunity to expand your yoga instructor practice while helping those with movement difficulties find a way to enjoy yoga.
The Course
Voekler-Binder offers a chair yoga certification course at various yoga studios across the country. The chair yoga certification course requires attending a four-day program that earns you a 25-hour teacher certification that also can be put toward your continuing education credits as a certified yoga instructor. Voekler-Binder does require prerequisites before entering the course. These include being a physical or occupational therapist, certified yoga instructor, yoga instructor in-training or one who has read the "Kripalu Beginner Yoga" book and watched the Kripalu instructional DVDs. When you sign up for the course, you also will receive an instructional DVD, CD and book from Voelker-Binder.
Poses Learned
To become certified in chair yoga, you must master the chair pose variations on traditional yoga asanas. These include the Warrior series, Sun Salutation, Moon Salutation and Earth Salutations. In addition to learning these poses, you must learn variations and contraindications for when a student should not practice a particular pose. These variations allow you to serve the needs of your students and their special health conditions better.
Settings Performed
Chair yoga is ideal for elderly patients who may be chair-bound or for those who are recovering from injury or accident whose movement must be restricted. While those that practice chair yoga may be able to stand, performing chair yoga helps them reduce their risk of falls by sitting in a stable chair. Upon obtaining certification, you may wish to offer chair yoga at locations like hospitals, senior centers or nursing homes.
Restorative Yoga Certification
In addition to Voelker-Binder's specific chair yoga certification course, another practice known as restorative yoga incorporates aspects of chair yoga into certification. If a chair yoga certification course is not available in or around your area, check for restorative yoga courses, which teach chair poses as well as how to use other physical therapy tools to help yoga students with special health conditions continue to practice yoga.
References
- Discovery Yoga: Lakshmi Voekler Chair Yoga Teacher Certification
- New York Open Center: Chair Yoga Teacher Certification Training
- Yoga Teacher Training: Restorative or Chair Yoga Certification for Experienced Yoga Teachers; June 15, 2010
- Get Fit Where You Sit: Become Certified in Chair Yoga
- MSNBC.com: Chair Yoga Catching on Among Seniors: Feb. 4, 2005
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