Stay healthy. Stay safe. Stay connected!
Two months ago, January 2020, I am in Sydney attending a chair yoga teacher training with LV Chair Yoga I get to teach a class in a community centre with lovely ladies. Until then, I had manly taught chair yoga classes in corporate companies where all my students have full mobility. Now, I am in these community hall and I am facing a very different type of student and I have to adapt the chair yoga class to their needs. This was one of the best lessons I learnt during the training course with the lovely and kind Claire Cunneen from LV Chair Yoga Australia (https://www.getfitwhereyousit.com.au/).
How easy it is to adapt each yoga pose to different levels of flexibility or fitness depending on the students mobility range on a chair. Everybody can benefit from the fantastic results of chair yoga and a meditation practice. That is why when the corona virus started showing in Ireland and we were recommended self-isolation, I decided to start sharing my passion for chair yoga with everybody online via social media platforms.
The response has been unbelievable with hundreds of people joining Flowithme to do chair yoga every morning from all around the world. Families and the kids doing it together in their front room while having fun! From Waterford in Ireland, to the UK or to Australia.
In these challenging times, connection with others and keeping the mind and body healthy are key. Yoga enhances body systems related to social connection.
Research shows that can yoga improve the function of the vagus nerve, a key nerve in stress resilience. People with low vagal tone tend to have trouble recovering from stressful events, while people with high vagal tone tend to recover with greater ease. In addition to indicating one’s level of resilience against stress, vagal tone is also correlated with feelings of social connection. The greater your vagal tone, the greater your perceived sense of connection.
What does this have to do with yoga? For one, there’s a growing body of research showing that yoga improves vagal tone. Loving-kindness meditation (in which you actively send good wishes to yourself and others) has been shown to improve both vagal tone and feelings of social connection. Bottom line? From a physiological perspective, yoga may increase feelings of bonding because it improves vagal tone.
Yoga means union and we know that the experience of connection can be cultivated, and that it has fantastic effects on the body and the mind. In a moment where we need to isolate, this is indeed a precious gift.
If you want join Flowithme every day at 11.30am GMT and let’s practice chair yoga together
11.30 am Ireland & UK time 12.30 pm Spain time 7.30 pm Manila time 10.30 pm Sydney time 7.30 am Toronto & Curacao time
Link to the event is here: https://www.facebook.com/events/2622841684666772/
Go to Flowithme Facebook page to join the live video or go to Youtube Channel to livestream the class.
All you need is a chair (preferably with no arms and no wheels but if they do, it is ok too, I will give different variations) and a smile!
Chair yoga can be practiced by everybody no matter age or flexibility level. Get the kids entertained for few minutes.
What are you waiting for to start your first chair yoga class? Join us tomorrow at 11.30am GMT.
If you want to talk about other wellness activities like chair yoga or cooking workshops, contact sara@flowithme.com
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