Yoga

for Seniors--Introductory Instruction

N K Srinivasan (Iyengar) Ph.D.

INTRODUCTION Seniors, those above sixty years as I define the seniors,, can benefit a lot by yoga practice... As I enter the seventh decade of my life, I felt that I should write a few articles on practical yoga that could benefit seniors. Please note that all of us get into many health-related problems---serious or chronic or mild---which are difficult or expensive to treat ,if at all possible to treat them. Yoga practice can 'prevent' many illnesses

and can cure , at least to some level, many such problems. Yoga can confer longevity too....many yogis have lived long lives in a healthy way.To give two instances, B K S Iyengar is going strong at the age of 94 years and Pattabhi Jois lived upto 95 years; their teacher Tirumalai Krishnamacharya lived upto 102 years. [Indra Devi, another yoga master and also a student of Krishnamacharya lived upto 102 years.]Paramahansa madhavdasji lived upto 123 years. There are many such instances of yogis living for 90 years or more.

In this article , my aim is modest...to give general suggestions to practise yoga and

also to describe a few simple asanas, pranayam and a simple meditation that many seniors can perform easily and derive great benefits.May be , this article will inspire you to try and practise asanas in simple ways. One must practise regularly, however; the results will be slow for seniors; slow and steady wins the race...Do not expect miracles, but you will see benefits from almost day one ; your flexibility and strength will gradually improve; A young person in the twenties can see the benefits in about a week or so. Seniors may take weeks or months to get similar benefits.....Yoga practice is for life. A senior should not worry about the initial

condition of lack of mobility or flexibility or lack of strength to begin yoga....things will improve with practice. Note that many come to yoga for specific problems like joint pains [knee pain, back pain, neck and shoulder pain], arthritis, indigestion/constipation, lack of energy or strength, lack of balance...all these can be cured to a great extent by simple yoga practice, even if you are over sixty or seventy years....it is never too late to start the yoga practice.For specific illnesses,however, consult a yoga therapist.

Disclaimer: The present article is for general information only.It is not meant for

medical counseling or for directions for curing any disease.The present author is not responsible for any illness, injury, pain or discomfort that may be caused by following the suggestions/instructions given in this article.The reader must follow his or her own discretion in following the practices suggested here.

General Instructions 1 I suggest that you practice only for 5 to 10 minutes every day in the first two weeks...do not strain yourself beyond 10 minutes unless you have been practicing yoga for a year or two and have excellent fitness. 2 It is better to practise in the mornings;

you can also do yoga in the evenings at about sunset time. 3 Do yoga at the same time every day. 4 Wear loose clothing; bed-side pyjamas are the best. 5 Practise yoga with partially empty stomach; two hours must elapse after a heavy meal or one hour after light meals or breakfast. 5 Have a medical check up before starting yoga practice ; discuss with a yoga teacher your specific health problems and yoga practice. Follow the advice of a certified medical practitioner. 6 Clear the bladder and the bowels before starting a yoga session. Use of supports and props

The use of supports and props to perform asanas were introduced by Yogacharya B K S Iyengar in the early 1950's. They are very useful for seniors to perform the yoga asanas [poses or postures] easily , safely and properly; make use of yoga bricks, bolsters, chairs and ,on certain poses, wall too. I will indicate a few of their uses. There are several books that explain the use of supports. See the references at the end of this article. " Chair Yoga" has become a popular method of yoga for seniors. [ Visit : www.sunlightchairyoga.com] The use of wall and wooden furniture are easy to get used to and require no additional equipment or expense at all.

Simple warm -up movements You can do simple movements for warm-ups. 1 Sit comfortably in a chair with feet planted on the floor. Lift your arms to the sides, keeping horizontal.Remain for 30 seconds and then lower the arms. 2 Raise the arms vertically ,above the head, with forearms touching the ears.Remain for 30 seconds and lower slowly. 3 Stand with two feet closely by the side of a chair.Hold the back of the chair with one hand for support. Keep the other hand on the hip. Swing one of the legs freely like a pendululm. Then swing the other leg.Repeat 5 to 10 times. 4 This may be difficult---but try. Keep one

arm extended horizontally sideways.You can rotate your arms slowly in a circle. Rotate 3 to 6 times ,clockwise and then anti-clockwise. Then repeat with the other arm. Simple Asanas Begin each yoga session with Savasana ["corpse pose"] and end with savasana.What is savasana? 1 Savasana --This is a relaxing pose. Lie flat on the floor or on a mat spread on the floor.You can keep a soft pillow or towel under the head. Spread your legs in a V shape. Keep the arms at the sides with palms facing up. Relax your shoulder and neck first...start relaxing various muscles starting with your feet; take 3 to 5 minutes

for this process. Follow your breath; it should be regular and soft.Focus on this practice. Keep other thoughts out of your mind... Make sure that no one disturbs you [phone or door bell too] during this asana practice. Initally you will stay for 3 to 5 minutes in Savasana...you can increase this duration to 15 minutes after a few weeks of practice. The Breath Cycle In yoga, the breath cycle has three phases: inhalation, retention and exhalation. For seniors, I would not suggest retention of breath at all. The simplest breath cycle is equal time for inhalation and exhalation. If you inhale for 3 seconds, then exhale for 3 seconds.

But in yoga practice, you should try to do this cycle: inhalation : exhalation is 1 : 2. That is , inhale for 3 seconds, exhale slowly for twice the time ,that is ,for 6 seconds. This cycle is a healthy one, giving time to empty your lungs fully.[More CO2 emission from you!] Retention can be practised by students studying under a trained yoga teacher. [The breath cycle is written as follows: inhale : retain:exhale = 1: 2 : 4. This means that if you inhale for 3 seconds, you retain for 6 seconds and exhale for 12 seconds.] While doing the asanas described later, note that you exhale while your abdomen is pulled in and exhale while the abdomen is

distended. In many poses, when you lift your back or bend forward, exhale; Inhale while straightening your body.

Seated poses You can first practise seated poses as they are less strenuous than standing poses. You can be seated cross legged if you are comfortable.Or else, sit on a chair [preferably without arms ] comfortably. If you use a chair, make sure your legs are straight and your feet are firmly placed on the floor. Do not lift your heels . [You can also take the poses of Lotus {Padma asana] or easy pose [Sukhasana] instead of being cross legged while sitting on the

floor.] 2 Parvatta asana [hill pose] Sit cross legged or on a chair, as explained above. Lift your hand upwards towards the ceiling. Make sure that your elbows are straight and not bent. Your forearm should touch or press on your ears...this is important.Keep the palms and fingers vertical .[ You can clasp the hands with fingers twined.] Stretch the hand up, as if your chest and torso are pulled upwards. Keep this position for 15 secs to 30 secs and then lower the hands. Repeat this four times. Breathe normally and slowly during this practice....

3 Dandasana and Eka-pada Uttana asana

This is also a seated pose. Sit comfortably on a chair or on the floor.Keep the two legs straight, without bending your knees. If you use a chair, keep another chair in front and place your legs and feet on the seat of chair opposite to you. You can bend your feet forwards and backwards four times, thus working your ankles. Slowly lift left leg to about 45 degrees from the floor or the chair opposite to you..Hold for 15 seconds or four breaths and lower the leg slowly. Repeat this with right leg. Repeat four times in each yoga session...four left leg lift and four right leg lift.

This uttana-asana can be strenuous and cause initially abdominal discomfort. In such cases, repeat only twice in each session. [This asana may improve digestion and relieve constipation.] This asana is mainly recommended for reducing the belly fat and trim the waist. [A variation is to lift both the legs at the same time and hold for a few seconds...This is certaily a strenuous pose for many seniors.] 4 Ardha matseyandra asana or spinal twist

Sit comfortably on a mat or chair.Twist your shoulder and torso to the right side. If you use a chair, sit in the reverse position on the seat of the chair,that is , your face

towards the back rest of the chair.Hold the back of the chair with left hand to help with this twist.The right hand can be held horizontal. Do the twist to the right side; then ,by holding the back of the chair with right hand and left hand lifted horizonatally, turn to the left side. Initially you will be able to twist only by a few degrees, say 20 degrees.But keep practising... Twist four times on each side.You can hold the twisted position for about 5 seconds. Note that the shoulder should be horizontal or level with the floor and twist to either side. Imagine your shoulder as a horizontal rod, parallel to the floor.This rod is twisted to the left or right side.

You must relax after this spinal twist for about 2 minutes,for the spinal vertebrae to be 'lubricated' properly by sinovial fluid. This is an excellent pose for releiving many back problems. 5 Simplified [Laghu] padaghustana asana This is a forward bend pose done from a seated position---in a simplified manner. Sit comfortably on a chair. keep the feet firmly on the floor ,widely separated by 12 inches or more. Sit close to the edge of the seat of the chair. Keep the thighs widely separated ,into a V shape. Keep the back straight. Stretch the hands in front [horizontal to the floor], clasp the fingers tight. Slowly bend forward in an

effort to touch the floor with your hands/fingers. Initially your hands may be several inches above the floor...but keep practising.

After bending forward, hold for 5 to 10 seconds; then slowly lift the back up . Repeat twice only...;after a week of practice, repeat four times. Note that you should bend forward bending

from the hip...Avoid curving the back. The back must be straight to the extent possible! [If you have a large belly or paunch, this pose would gradually reduce this bulge. You may repeat this forward bend 8 times after about a month of practice.

Standing poses Most of the standing poses are easily performed by standing close to a wall.This helps to align your back and avoid any curvature in the back. You can place your palm on the wall for support in certain poses. 1 Tadasana [mountain pose] This is perhaps the easiest pose to perform. Stand close to the wall, your back should

rest on the wall. Keep the feet firm on the floor. The feet should be parallel , not in V shape. Keep the feet a few inches apart if you feel lack of balance.Look straight in front .[DRISHTI is the sight position used in a yoga pose. Pay attention to this. In this pose you look straight. You can keep a marker or dot or picture opposite to your face.This helps in 'drishti' for this pose. Stay in this pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Focus on the firmness of your feet pressing on the Mother Earth. Relax, walk a few steps.Repeat the pose again. 2 Vrikshasana [Tree pose] This is also a standing pose , but balancing on one foot. It can be done in two ways. 1 Stand close to a wall as in Tadasana.

Slowly lift left leg and tuck behind, bending your knee..Lift your right hand above your head.Stay for 10 seconds or longer.Relax...repeat with your right leg tucked behind. The Dhristi is same as before--a dot or marker on the wall opposite to your face. You can also rest your leg on the opposite thigh.,instead of tucking behind. 2 The second method is simpler. Stand close to a chair and support yourself with holding the back of the chair with right hand.Lift left hand above your head and tuck the right leg behind, by bending the knee. You are standing on the left leg only. Relax. Repeat with left leg tucked up. You can also rest the leg on the thigh

instead of tucking up.

Stand in this position for 20 to 30 seconds.[Some advanced yogis used to stand in this tree pose for 20 to 30 minutes for intense 'tapas; or penance...Such things are not recommended for modern persons!]

The Tree Pose [without support here!]

3 Simplified Trikonasana [Triangle pose] This is one of the important and essential poses. Here is a simplified or laghu

variation that can be done with the support of chairs.This is a sideways bending pose. Keep a chair at your left side at a distance of about a feet from your hips.Stand with your feet apart by about 18 inches. Stretch the hands at that sides so that your hands are held horizontal, with palm downwards.Slowly bend your body to the left side and try to place your palm on the seat of the chair. During this pose, you can bend the knee. Adjust the position of the chair ,closer to you ,if that is comfortable.Stay for 10 seconds and slowly come up. Repeat the side bend twice. Do the same with right hand ,keeping the chair to your right side. This asana stretches your hamstring muscles and also reduces fat in the hips. It tones

your hip bones/joint and sacro-iliac joint. 4 Simple (Laghu) Forward bend Stand with your feet separated by 2 feet or 1 meter. Keep your hand horizontal with palms downward. Bring your hands in front. Slowly bend forward from the hips and try to keep your palms over your knees . Try to lower the palms down your leg. Stay for 5 to 10 seconds and slowly come up. Repeat upto four times. [This pose is the familiar stand basket ball players hold while getting the ball after a free throw.] Supine Poses These are poses done while lying flat on the

floor. They can be restorative poses which rejuvenate your body. Many of these poses work on your abdomen and improve digestion and clean the bowels. Eka-pada uttana asana is indeed a supine pose that can be performed while lying down. Lift your leg to about 45 degrees from the floor...one leg at a time. [Eka means one ,pada means foot.] This was described earlier. If you are strong enough, you can lift both the legs at the same time.But this would place some strain on your abdomen. If this pose is strenuous, keep a chair near your feet and lift the leg and place it on the edge of the chair. But the leg should be straight.

1 Makarasana [Crocodile pose] This pose is a relaxing pose and an alternative to Savasana. Lie flat on the mat with your face and chest touching the floor. You can keep your arms at the side or raise your arms over the head and keep on the floor or tuck your arms under the head as an improvised pillow for your head. Stay in this pose for 5 minutes or longer. This pose is often suggested for relieving the lower back or lumbar pain. This restful pose can be practised after doing tough poses. 2 Baddha kona asan This is one of the most important asanas

with several benefits. Some yogis claim that this can cure one of diabetes.[ This is also called "Cobbler's pose' since cobblers in India sit on the floor and hold the leather pieces between their feet for stitching them .] Sit firmly on a mat on the floor. Stretch your legs first. Then bend both the legs at the knee and bring the two palms of the feet together. You can press the two palms together. The knees should be flat on the floor and should not lift up...In initial practice, the lifting of knees from the floor is acceptable!

Baddha Konasana Stay in this pose for 1 to 5 minutes. For major benefits ,one should stay for longer times--say 15 minutes or longer.

[A variation of this pose is to bend the back forward and the face should touch your feet. This is difficult and can be attempted after several months of practice.] 3 Leg-on-the wall pose This is a simplified form of the pose---"viparita karani" which has many excellent benefits and rejuvenates the body.You will look and feel younger after practising this pose. This pose is very simple to perform. Lie close to a wall. Lift both the legs and rest them on the wall at an angle of about 60 degrees.Your legs will appear like a ladder resting on the wall. You can keep some towel or carpet below the buttocks for comfort. Keep your hands at the sides with

ease. Breathe normally...relax or meditate. You must stay in this pose for 5 minutes initially. After one week, stay for 10 minutes.After two weeks ,stay for 15 minutes.

If there is any discomfort or if you have eye problems such as glaucoma or retinal detachment or eye surgery of any kind, do not do this pose. Leg on the wall pose has another great benefit: it can reduce varicose veins. You may check your blood pressure after this asana... usually the BP will decrease. If there is any increase in BP [systolic] , discontinue this pose and discuss with your

doctor.

. I have written a separate article on Viparita karaani in scribd.com 4 Sethu bandana asana This is called 'bridge pose' [sethu-bridge bandana -construction] because you arch your back like a bridge. An easy way to do this pose is to keep a few blankets at the cenrre of the mat so that your mid-back [thoracic] will rest on this pile of blankets.The height of the blankets

may be 6 inches. Your head will be at a lower level when you lie on the mat. You can stretch your leg well. Your back takes the pose of an arch of a bridge. Remain in this supine position for 30 seconds to 1 minute. If you have neck injury or had neck surgery, avoid this pose. This pose expands your chest and is good for strengthening the lungs. Some yogis claim that this pose can cure asthma. This pose can reduce back pain of various kinds and can strengthen your spine. It would also improve your breathing process. 5 Modified Fish Pose or Matsyasana Lie flat on the floor or mat. Keep a thin blanket below your chest region. Keep the hands at the sides close to hips, with palms

down on the floor. Slowly raise the hands, bring them over head and above your head. Then rest the back of the hand on the floor.If you cannot touch the floor with your hands ,do not strain yourself. Gently take the hands back as far as possible. Remain for 20 to 30 seconds or 4 to 5 breaths. Then slowly lift the hands and bring thme back to original position by the side of your hips.Look up straight at the ceiling and do not bend the neck backwards . This pose will give a gentle stretch to your chest and rib cage and at the same time good bend to your middle back. This is a modified and simplified variation of 'Fish pose' which is difficult for many seniors.

Repeat three to four times. Back bending poses These poses are considered to be strenuous and demanding poses. Yet they are so useful to energise the body, we should do at least simple ones. A simple back bend is done as follows: Stand in tadasana [Mountain pose],at a distance of one foot from a wall; stretch your arms in front and slowly raise your arms above the head, such that the arms are touching the ears. Then gently bend backwards, with your back curving backward. You can try to touch the wall with your finger tips. During the back bend, you can bend your knees. With practice, you can touch the wall at lower

points. Increase the distance of your start position from the wall. This will enable you to bend backwards to a greater degree and also touch the wall at a lower position.

Restorative Poses I have already described three restorative poses: 1 Savasana 2 Makarasana 3 Leg-on-the wall pose. Here is one more classic resotrative pose that is very easy to perform for seniors. 4 Supta Baddha Konasana 'Supta' means reclining. This pose is like lying on a hospital bed, reclining with a few pillows. Keep a few blankets or soft

pillows below your back so that you can recline at 30 to 45 degrees slope from the floor. But the legs are kept folded as in Baddha konasana described earlier. Bend your knees such that the palms of your feet are touching each other... Initially your thighs and knees may not touch the floor or mat...Don't worry. Keep soft cushions or blocks below your knees to support...after a few weeks , your legs will lie flat on the floor in this position. Close your eyes and you may use an eye pad or napkin to cover your eyes. This pose is relaxing for your internal organs ---lungs,heart and abdomen. Remain in this position for 5 minutes to 15

minutes. You can take this pose whenever you feel tired or tense, say after a day of hard work. This is also good for relieving back pain. Your pulse rate and BP will go down slowly during this practice.

Neck and shoulder moves-"choo-choo" train

Our neck and shoulder muscles are always in much stress. You need to relax them by gentle movements and massage.Turn your face gently to the left and right and also up and down a few times. For shoulder movement, keep your hands bent at the elbow , and stretched in front. Make a rotation of the shoulder like children playing 'choo-choo train',rotating your hands in front. This gentle movement is a good exercise for your shoulders at any time.This limbers up your elbow joints too.

Pranayama This is breath-control or regulation. It has three parts---inhalation, retention and exhalation.

For seniors, it is recommended that you do not practice retention or holding the breath. [Some can do retention under the guidance of an experienced yoga teacher.] The simplest and the best pranayam is to inhale slowly for about three seconds and exhale very very slowly for about 10 seconds. The mouth must be closed. Practise this timing with your watch or clock. If you can take longer time to exhale,that is good.

While inhaling you can distend your abdomen.While exhaling , draw your abdomen in.But do not force yourself to tuck in your abdomen. Practice this breath cycle three times and then relax.. Repeat once again after a few

minutes.You can do this two or three times in a day. Avoid overdoing this breathing pattern. With practice of asanas indicated earlier, pranayam will be an easy step forward. Do not practise pranayam before asanas. First do asanas and then only pranayam. Meditation This is a vast subject and I can give only some indications in this article. If you are already following some form of meditational practice, then I do not wish to suggest anything more. If you are new to meditation ,here is a simple one. Start your meditation with a short ,simple chant that you know....any peace chant will do.

Breath-watch Sit comfortably; take three deep breaths and relax. Close your eyes. Gently watch your breath going in and out of your nostrils.Focus your mind on your nostrils...keep the face , the jaw bones and the neck and shoulders fully relaxed. Continue with breath-watch for three minutes to five minutes..Do not count your breaths or control the breath. Focus on your breath and do not think on any other topic or issue. Gently open your eyes. Say "Namaste" [Visualization: some prefer to mentally visualize a serene or pleasant scene---say sunset at the beach or a mountain scene during meditation.]

Record keeping I would suggest that you keep a record of certain measurements you can do; 1 Measure height and weight once a month and keep a record. 2 Measure BP and pulse rate 10 minutes after a yoga session and keep a record. 3 You can measure flexibility by measuring the angle of bend of your knees or hips and keep a record. You can take the help of your friend to make the measurements. Note that your height might show a slight increase due to stretching of vertebrae and removal of curvature in the back. Weight readings should be carefully analysed. Initially there could be a drop in weight due to removal of fat..After the

muscles grow well, there could be a slight increase in weight. Note that the yoga poses would remove lot of belly fat, fat in the thighs and buttocks in about a month or two of practice. Closing Comments 1 Practise yoga daily, at least for 10 minutes. [It is not sufficient to practise only for two or three times a week , as many modern yoga teachers may suggest.] 2 The vegetarian or vegan diet is highly recommended for all serious yoga students. 3 Please do not perform shoulder stand [Sarvanga asana ] and head stand [ sirsasana] without a yoga teacher near you. These are very important asanas===shoulder stand is called the "Queen of Asanas" while

head stand is called the "King of asanas". But these are considerably risky for senior persons and should not be done if one has high blood pressure or eye problems like glaucoma and retinal detachment . It is better to avoid these poses.Instead perform the simple "leg on the wall" pose . 4 Dietary regulations for seniors: A. Have a light meal at night; it

should be half the quantity of that of lunch . Take the night meal at least two hours before the bed time. B. Two great enemies for your health

and longevity are excess sugar and excess salt. When we are young, due to greater activity, our body is able to expend or excrete large amounts of sugar and salt.

Salt is eliminated largely through sweating . But not so after we age; our movements are less and we hardly work outside to sweat. Sugar and salt climb to excess levels in the body. C. Take plenty of fruits and vegetables

, and cut down on rice and white flour items like white bread. D. Fasting , at least once a week

skipping meals, helps to give rest to your intestines. But opinions vary a lot on observing fasting. E. Keep your skin healthy; the skin

serves as the means to get rid of lot of toxins. Ancient gurus in India advocated bath three or four times a day. Take bath at least once , preferably twice a day.

Easy does it--the Yoga 1 Whatever may be your present condition of strength and flexibility, you can start yoga with simple poses and slowly work towards your goals. 2 Use props with seriousness---- props can be chairs, wall, bolster, brick and ropes. 3 Take a brief rest for 30 seconds or one minute after doing any asana.This way even very weak persons can finish doing several asanas. 4 Yoga can be done just for a few minutes every day-- that would be quite sufficient in the beginning. Best Wishes!! -------------------------------------Contact: nksrinivasan@hotmail.com

References 1 Lasater, Judith-- Relax and renew--Rodmell Press, 1995 2 Suza Francina-- The New yoga for healthy aging--Health communications,Deerfield beach, Florida, 2007 3 Loren Fishman --Yoga for Arthritis--W W Norton & co,NY , 2008 4 Loren Fishman --- Yoga for Osteoporosis Norton & co 4 Cappy, Peggy---Yoga for all of us--St Martin Press, NY, 2006 5 Silva Mehta et al-- Yoga, the Iyengar way,Knopf, NY, 199. 6 James Hewitt --The complete Yoga book --Schoken Books , New York ,1977 [ a small encyclopedia on yoga and a practical

reference book] 7 William Zorn -- Easy yoga exercises, Sphere books ,London, 1977. Web references: 1 www.agelessyoga.com 2 Web sites of Lakshmi Voelker and Liz Franklin among others. 3 Web site of 'Yoga Journal". -------------------------------------------