HOW CHAIR YOGA CAN HELP RELIEVE STRESS DURING YOUR COMMUTE
HOW CHAIR YOGA CAN HELP RELIEVE STRESS DURING YOUR COMMUTE
Posted on May 2, 2023
At Honda, we believe in the power of community. Lately, in our community around Pembroke Honda, AWE Yoga have been hosting chair yoga sessions for anyone interested in joining in a safe and inclusive environment. These yoga sessions are hosted every Tuesday and Thursday from 10:00 am – 11:00 am. We got in touch with one of the Yogi’s (a yoga master), Erin Norris, to ask about their yoga sessions and how you can use it to help relieve stress.
Chair yoga is a form of yoga that is accessible to everyone, not just the elderly and disabled. You can do this form in any chair, including a wheelchair. Their program at PMC is done entirely in a chair but they also teach variations where students can stand and use the chair as a prop.
Yoga brings all sorts of benefits to those who practice it regularly. These benefits include flexibility, paid reduction, tension release, increased mobility in limbs and joints, and even emotional improvement! Erin told us that some of their students have experienced improvements to their mental health and even helped dealing with stress. Plus, practicing yoga with others can make one feel connected, even if its virtual.
Another great thing about yoga is that anyone can do it. Erin said that they’ve successfully trained infants and babies, to adults of all life stages, and folks with disabilities like traumatic brain injuries and more. Yoga can be taught to anyone and easily incorporated into your daily habits.
So, how can you bring it into your commute? Well, it’s easy! While driving or waiting in traffic, you can practice shoulder rolls, some of the neck movements, and squeezing your shoulder blades which are known to help relieve stress. Another big yoga technique for relieving stress is just simple breathing!
You begin by squeezing your shoulders tightly to your ears as you inhale, pause for a moment, and then let your shoulders drop with a big, noisy exhale! It’s easy and effective. Another easy thing to do while driving is to unclench your back teeth and gently wiggle your jaw back and forth.
Yoga can be as easy as breathing and as difficult as you want. This flexible form of exercise can become a big help to those who have felt stressed recently and we hope you take some of these practices to use while you drive to and from work, and through your daily life. If you’re interested in signing up for yoga from AWE Yoga, check out their site here.