You will feel your spine twisting, which can relieve the build-up tension from sitting too much. Next, begin to twist your back to the left. To do a spinal twist, first grab onto the push handle of your wheelchair with your left arm and with your right arm reach across your lap and grab the left corner of your seat. Many people find it beneficial for lower back pain. Spinal TwistsĪn easy pose you can do from your wheelchair is a spinal twist. Also, make sure to breathe in and out of the nose as you breathe. You can also do the same by holding onto your rib cage as you breathe. After you have found your alignment, hold your hands on your stomach and breathe inward and outward, gently pressing on your belly as you breathe. Be Aware of Your Breathingīeing aware of your breath is another important component of adaptive yoga. Next, rest your hands on your lap, palms upward, close your eyes and pay attention to how your body feels. Try to think of your shoulders as angel wings that you are resting behind you. And you must sit as straight as possible, with your shoulders back. To feel aligned, get a strong connection with your feet on your footplate or the ground. This can be difficult when you have scoliosis or paralyzed torso muscles. Before you do any pose, you must practice getting aligned in your wheelchair or on the mat. Get AlignedĪlignment is by far when of the most important aspects of adaptive yoga. By doing yoga, you can stretch your back muscles and help your back get into alignment, which helps the energy flow better through your spine. The right position throughout the day can make or break the way you feel at night. One of the principles of yoga is that all energy flows upwards through the spine, which is why how we sit for example is so important. After a spinal cord injury, this is especially important. Yoga harnesses the energy flowing through the body and helps redirect it positively to benefit your health. All of these things help people with paralysis feel more grounded and aligned, which we will explain in more detail below. An adaptive yoga class will also employ, other than trained volunteers, equipment such as Thera-Bands, yoga blocks, straps, and wooden dowels. This is referred to as passive yoga and is still very beneficial. It also can help relieve anxiety, as it has proven therapeutic benefits to helping people relax.Īlso, when going to an adaptive yoga class or trying it at home, know it is also ok to have help getting into a pose and holding it. Yoga can help you feel reconnected to your body even when you have a complete injury. For many people living with paralysis, it is very difficult living with the disconnection from their bodies.

Yoga also can improve your mind-body connection. Whereas able-bodied yoga tends to be heavily centered on the pose, adaptive yoga focuses on improving flexibility, balance, strength and breathing through simple poses you can do sitting in a wheelchair or on a mat. One of the greatest things about adaptive yoga is that it can be catered to various mobility restrictions since it is a very liberal form of yoga. If you need assistance and want to get on the mat but cannot bring someone with to help, make sure to inquire if there are trained volunteers present.Įither way, do not let your level of paralysis sway you. Sometimes people will be paired with two volunteers. Many classes will have trained volunteers on hand to help transfer students onto the floor and be there by their side to help them get into the various poses. If you want to get out of your wheelchair, however, that is popular in adaptive yoga too. People of all levels of paralysis can benefit from it, and one of the best parts - you don’t have to get out of your wheelchair. It has proven therapeutic benefits and there is anecdotal evidence to back it up. Adaptive yoga has grown exponentially since the 1990s, with rehab facilities across the country now offering it to their patients.

Spine align yoga