10-Minute Chair Yoga Flow With Lorraine Ladish

This video is part of the 30-Day Couch-to-Fit Challenge designed to help you improve strength, cardio, balance and flexibility. Start the challenge here: aarp.org/CouchToFit

Try this easy chair-yoga workout with fitness expert Lorraine Ladish as a way to take a break anytime at home.

Key takeaways

• Experience daily relief from stiffness as Lorraine Ladish leads a beginner-friendly chair yoga session.
• Boost flexibility and energy at your own pace using simple props and mindful breathing techniques.
• Stay motivated with Lorraine’’s 10-minute routine, part of the 30-Day Couch-to-Fit Challenge.

Summary

Chair yoga can transform your daily routine, especially if you spend long hours at a desk or have limited mobility. Fitness expert Lorraine Ladish guides you through a gentle 10-minute chair yoga flow designed to relieve stiffness, improve flexibility and boost your energy right at home. All you need is a sturdy chair and a few minutes — no fancy mat required. Lorraine emphasizes moving at your own pace, listening to your body and using simple props like a soft blanket or non-slip surface for safety.

Throughout this easy chair yoga workout, you’ll learn effective stretches and mindful breathing techniques that can reduce hip tension, open the chest and help you rediscover calm. Flows like warrior II and goddess pose are adapted for seated practice to ensure everyone can enjoy the benefits of yoga, including increased strength, balance and relaxation. For extra motivation, this session is part of the 30-Day Couch-to-Fit Challenge, helping you stay consistent as you work toward greater well-being.

The key takeaways and summary were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.

Full Transcript:

[0:00:00] AARP’s GET MOVING! Wherever You Are

[0:00:02] 10-MINUTE CHAIR YOGA FLOW WITH Fitness Expert - Lorraine Ladish

[0:00:06] Lorraine Ladish: Hi! I’m Lorraine Ladish.

[0:00:08] And today, we’re going to do a

[0:00:09] 10-minute easy chair yoga flow.

[0:00:12] This is something you can do at any

[0:00:14] time during the day, especially if, like me, you

[0:00:17] spend long hours in front of

[0:00:19] the computer.

[0:00:20] All you need is any kind of chair.

[0:00:22] I have a blanket under my seat to

[0:00:25] make it more comfortable for me.

[0:00:27] And under your feet, you can have

[0:00:29] absolutely anything that is non-skid

[0:00:31] for your own safety and comfort.

[0:00:34] And please remember to take this

[0:00:36] at your pace and that you may

[0:00:38] start, stop, rewind or do whatever with

[0:00:42] the video at any time.

[0:00:44] So now, we’re going to get started.

[0:00:47] We’re going to scoot forward on

[0:00:49] our seat and make sure that our

[0:00:52] feet are firmly planted on the floor.

[0:00:56] The back is straight,

[0:00:58] the neck is elongated, and our head is

[0:01:02] projecting towards the ceiling.

[0:01:04] From here, we’re just going to

[0:01:05] take one cleansing breath, bringing the

[0:01:07] arms out and up, inhaling and

[0:01:10]  sighing out, hah, good.

[0:01:14] Now we’re going to place our hands

[0:01:16] on top of our thighs and perhaps

[0:01:19] close our eyes and ask ourselves

[0:01:22] how we feel. How do we feel

[0:01:25] around the heart's center?

[0:01:27] Are we calm? Are we agitated?

[0:01:30] We’re not going to judge that.

[0:01:31] We’re just going to sit with that

[0:01:33] feeling

[0:01:34] as we move through our practice.

[0:01:37] From here, we’re going to take

[0:01:38] another breath.

[0:01:39] Inhale and exhale. The breath is one of the

[0:01:42] most important parts of yoga

[0:01:44] and of life.

[0:01:46] So from here, we’re going to take one

[0:01:48] arm and cross it and place it on

[0:01:50] the opposite leg, and then we’re going

[0:01:53] to open our chest towards the ceiling

[0:01:56] and extend the side body.

[0:01:59] The shoulders are going to be soft.

[0:02:02] The neck is also going to be soft.

[0:02:04] And remember that we’re still breathing.

[0:02:06] If that is too intense, then,

[0:02:08] of course, we can bring our hand

[0:02:10] to our shoulder, and keep projecting

[0:02:13] the heart towards the ceiling

[0:02:15] to open up.

[0:02:17] And our other arm could

[0:02:18] also be here.

[0:02:20] Now, we’re going to go to the other

[0:02:21] side and do the same thing.

[0:02:23] I’m going to give you all the options.

[0:02:25] Just make sure that you’re breathing,

[0:02:28] and that you’re opening your chest.

[0:02:30] You could also be looking forward,

[0:02:32] maybe looking down. We don’t want

[0:02:34] to stress the neck. So whatever works

[0:02:37] for you is what we’re going to

[0:02:38] be working with.

[0:02:40] Now, we’re going to extend the

[0:02:41] arms out and up one more time,

[0:02:44] and then bring them down by your sides.

[0:02:47] From here, we’re going to take

[0:02:49] care of our hips.

[0:02:50] So we’re going to bring one

[0:02:52] foot over the opposite knee.

[0:02:54] And make sure that foot is flexed.

[0:02:56] That is the most important thing.

[0:02:58] Now, this knee, it doesn’t matter

[0:03:01] where it is. It’s going to depend

[0:03:02] on our personal anatomy.

[0:03:04] So we’re just going to place a hand on

[0:03:07] the knee, but I’m not

[0:03:09] pushing my knee down.

[0:03:10] And now we could close our eyes

[0:03:13] and think of that hip and releasing

[0:03:15] the tension in the hip, which is sore

[0:03:18] from so many hours of sitting

[0:03:21] and of not moving.

[0:03:22] So now, even though we’re

[0:03:24] not in motion, we are actually

[0:03:26] releasing that tension in the hips.

[0:03:29] So we’ll breathe in and out again.

[0:03:31] And please imagine a white light

[0:03:35] coming through you and going to

[0:03:37] that hip so that it can release

[0:03:40] the tension, and you can

[0:03:42] feel much better.

[0:03:44] Now, we’re going to cross the

[0:03:46] opposite leg.

[0:03:47] Same thing,

[0:03:48] the top foot is flexed—that is the

[0:03:51] most important thing—and the positioning

[0:03:54] of the knee, whether it’s high

[0:03:55] or it’s low, does not matter.

[0:03:58] We’re placing a hand on that knee

[0:03:59] just to remind ourselves that we are

[0:04:02] trying to think of opening the hip,

[0:04:06] of releasing. I’m closing my eyes

[0:04:09] and thinking of that hip and imagining

[0:04:11] a white light coming through my body

[0:04:14] and towards that hip and releasing

[0:04:18] all the tension,

[0:04:19] and making sure that I remind

[0:04:22] myself that I need to stay open

[0:04:26] throughout the day.

[0:04:28] Now, both feet back on the floor,

[0:04:30] hands out enough — this is always going

[0:04:32] to be our transition between poses.

[0:04:36] Now, we’re going to do some traditional

[0:04:38] warrior poses. Anything you can do

[0:04:42] in yoga standing up, you can

[0:04:43] do in a chair, which is great.

[0:04:46] So this is our initial position.

[0:04:48] One leg is out to the side, and we

[0:04:50] can keep the other leg out to the front.

[0:04:52] Make sure that the knee is above

[0:04:54] the ankle in both cases and that both

[0:04:56] feet are firmly planted on the floor.

[0:04:58] And now, we’re extending our

[0:04:59] arms out while our shoulders are

[0:05:01] soft, our neck is soft,

[0:05:03] but we’re filling ourselves with energy

[0:05:06] and we’re breathing in and out.

[0:05:07] This is a version of warrior II.

[0:05:10] Now, you can stay here, or if you

[0:05:13] would like a more traditional version

[0:05:14] of warrior II, then please hold on

[0:05:17] to the seat of the chair for stability

[0:05:21] and then bring out the back leg — and

[0:05:23] this is the same position we would

[0:05:25] have standing up except that I am

[0:05:27] still sitting in the chair. Then

[0:05:29] engaging both legs, I still have my

[0:05:32] arms powered up and I’m still

[0:05:34] breathing in and out of the nose.

[0:05:36] And, of course, you can breathe any

[0:05:38] way. We just need to breathe.

[0:05:40] So for the first warrior, we can

[0:05:43] have our hand here. We can simply

[0:05:45] open the chest or just stay here.

[0:05:48] All of these options are fine. Now,

[0:05:50] we’re going to go forward into side angle.

[0:05:53] And of course, you can be here,

[0:05:57] maybe here if that is a little too

[0:06:00] much on your shoulder.

[0:06:02] And perhaps you’re still here. That

[0:06:04] is a great place to be as well.

[0:06:06] Just remember that we’re all breathing

[0:06:09] together from our own homes. It’s

[0:06:12] very nice to feel connected to the

[0:06:15] community out there doing the same

[0:06:18] things that we’re doing right at home.

[0:06:20] So this is our warrior II on the

[0:06:23] other side. Same thing: The feet are

[0:06:26] straight under the knees, and breathing

[0:06:29] in and out, feeling powerful, engaging

[0:06:32] that core and healing energy from

[0:06:35] one tip of a finger to the tip of

[0:06:38] fingers of the other hand.

[0:06:40] And for those who want the more

[0:06:41] traditional warrior II, we’re going

[0:06:44] to hold on to the seat of the chair and

[0:06:47] make sure that we have the proper

[0:06:48] positioning of knee over ankle, and

[0:06:51] that we are pressing into the floor

[0:06:54] with both feet, but that we’re also

[0:06:56] engaging the pelvic floor even as

[0:06:59] we are sitting on the chair.

[0:07:02] From here, still breathing. We’re

[0:07:04] still reaching and grounding, and

[0:07:08] reaching and grounding, or perhaps

[0:07:10] we’re doing it right here, or perhaps

[0:07:13] we’re looking at the video. And now,

[0:07:17] we’re going to do our extended side

[0:07:20] angle. And I’m giving you all the

[0:07:22] options right here.

[0:07:24] And some will still be here in this

[0:07:27] position, and that is still extended

[0:07:30] side angle. Great!

[0:07:33] So now, back to center with our feet

[0:07:36] firmly planted in reality as we

[0:07:39] reach out for hopes and dreams and

[0:07:42] breath that we are sharing with all

[0:07:44] these other people at home.

[0:07:46] Now, we’re going to do another of

[0:07:48] my favorite poses — a power pose, which

[0:07:51] is goddess, but we’re going to do

[0:07:52] it sitting down. It could also be

[0:07:54] a variation of a malasana, which is

[0:07:56] also a hip opener. From here, we’re

[0:07:59] going to bring our arms out strong.

[0:08:02] We’re pressing those feet into the

[0:08:04] ground and once again feeling powerful

[0:08:07] and making sure that we are engaging

[0:08:09] our back for mobility and we’re

[0:08:11] going to lift one heel off of the

[0:08:14] floor, bring it back to the floor,

[0:08:16] the other heel that’s up or under

[0:08:19] still powered up, both heels lift up.

[0:08:22] We’re holding and holding and

[0:08:24] breathing and smiling, and then we’re

[0:08:28] going to let it all go. Bring both feet

[0:08:31] to the front. Now, we’re going to

[0:08:32] wind it down a little bit, and we’re

[0:08:34] going to do a forward fold. Now,

[0:08:36] forward folds, we’re reaching from

[0:08:38] the hips and we could just take it

[0:08:40] down here. We’re just extending the[0:08:43] back.

[0:08:44] Forward folds are relaxing. They

[0:08:46] trigger the rest and digest response

[0:08:50] in the body. We can also go all the

[0:08:52] way down to the floor, and they allow

[0:08:55] us to feel calm and grounded, and

[0:08:59] like we hit the reset button. So

[0:09:01] that’s why we’re doing that one.

[0:09:04] We’re going to extend to one side —

[0:09:06] again, just as we did

[0:09:08] in the beginning,

[0:09:09] to the other side. And now, we’re going

[0:09:12] to place both hands on our legs again.

[0:09:16] And once again, close our eyes and

[0:09:18] ask ourselves, “How do we feel now?

[0:09:21] Did our energy change? Do we feel

[0:09:24] more joyful, more energetic?”

[0:09:26] Hopefully so.

[0:09:27] So arms out to the sides and up as

[0:09:30] if there was a big ball of energy

[0:09:32] that we’re collecting, and then we’re

[0:09:34] bringing those hands to our forehead

[0:09:37] to remind us to have positive thoughts,

[0:09:41] to our lips to remind us to have

[0:09:42] positive communication,

[0:09:44] and to our hearts to remind us to

[0:09:46] have positive intentions.

[0:09:49] I really hope that you enjoyed this

[0:09:51] chair flow as we designed it.

[0:09:53] See you in the next video.

[0:09:55] END