Thinking of taking up yoga in your golden years? Here are 6 beneficial yoga poses for seniors to get you started…

While most images you see of people doing yoga feature young, thin, agile-looking women, the fact is that yoga is for people of ALL ages. In fact, yoga can be extremely beneficial even in your golden years. It can help to keep you flexible and strong, lower your risk of injury, maintain bone and joint health, and more.

Yoga is great for seniors because you can do it anywhere you want to and you don’t have to have any type of special equipment to do it. Even if some of the yoga poses seem difficult, most of them have a modified version that you can do no matter how much prior experience of yoga you may have.

If you are a senior and are thinking about getting into yoga, here are a few simple and beneficial yoga poses for seniors to start out with:

1.) Tree Pose

This pose will help you with balance and core strength, reducing your risk of falls and related injuries. Here’s how to do it…

2.) Puppy Pose

This pose is a combination of Child’s Pose and Downward Dog Pose. It provides a great stretch for the arms, shoulders, and back muscles, and helps you maintain a flexible spine for enhanced mobility as you age. Learn the pose here…

3.) Bridge Pose

This is a great pose for maintaining flexibility and mobility in your hips, and also helps to strengthen the core and lower back muscles. Learn some options for this pose here…

4.) Warrior II Pose

This pose is great for building strength in your lower body. It also helps to increase flexibility in your inner thighs, hips and groin area. Here’s how…

5.) Low Lunge Pose

This pose offers a great stretch for your inner thighs and hips, while reducing stress on your knees by keeping your back leg on the ground. This is a great pose for maintaining mobility at any age! Learn how here…

6.) Legs Up the Wall Pose

A favorite restorative pose, this one is a very gentle pose that helps to improve blood circulation, and balances out the hips without any strain. It’s great for low back pain, or as a rest pose at the end of a yoga stretch session. Here’s how to do it…

If you’re just getting started with yoga as a senior, these are all good poses to learn. They are easy, will help you gain balance, and will help you build up your muscles without needing any heavy workout equipment – or any equipment at all, for that matter! All you need to perform these poses is a yoga mat (and a wall, for the last one).

If you’re totally new to yoga, it’s a good idea to try a few different yoga classes in your community and find an instructor that you like and will work with you to find modified versions of the poses that you would like to explore. Most of the classes you find will do this with you and will help make you feel comfortable throughout your yoga experience.

No matter what age you are, yoga can be a great addition to your life, so try these simple yoga poses for seniors and learn how beneficial yoga can be!