Choosing the Right Seats and Workout Routines

There are a range of workout options you can do seated. Many of them can be described as strength work, using lightweights, resistance bands, and your own body weight to tone and trim.

Yoga can be both strength work and aerobics depending on how strenuous it is, and how much breath work is involved in the various poses you do. 

Seated Yoga and Chair Yoga

There are many poses you can do sitting on the floor, and there are modified poses you can do in a chair as well. Certain yogas like Hatha and Kundalini have a meditation component, while others focus on vigorous physical movement, like Bikram and Ashtanga. Hatha and Kundalini are suitable for people of all ages and physical conditions.

In terms of breathwork, the various breathing patterns are designed to help detoxify the body and improve circulation and oxygenation, nourishing all the tissues in your body and filling them with energy.

Sounds great, right? And all you have to do is work out sitting down!

Exercise Ball Workouts

A popular option in recent years is for workers to swap their conventional desk chair for a stability ball. You need to buy the correct size for your height so your feet are planted on the floor solidly, with your knees at a 90-degree angle so you won’t topple over while doing your various tasks at your desk. The continual small adjustments required to keep your balance give your core muscles and legs a great workout, all while you’re getting on with your job. Those with disabilities may find stability balls challenging, however, so a more solid seat might be a better option.

Wheeled Desk Chair Workouts

The traditional desk chair on wheels can actually be an exercise tool as well. In order to avoid injury or strain, and any damage to the floor, it should be sitting on a smooth-gliding mat,

Straight-backed Chair Workouts

A straight-backed chair can support you in a range of workouts, including chair yoga and strength training. They are more stable than a wheeled desk chair, and therefore less likely to cause injury. They should have a sturdy seat and solid legs. A wooden kitchen chair or metal-legged chair will work well.

A Stool

A stool can be useful in certain instances where a chair with a back might restrict the range of movement. For example, you might wish to do exercises that require you to rotate your torso and arms freely, or exercises where you wanted to lean back as flatly as possible. An example of this would be a chair sit up. Wedge your feet firmly under the feet of your desk or a sofa and lean back. Then sit up using your abdominal muscles. A stool would even allow your head to go lower than your hips, to intensify the sit up.

A Wheelchair
People in wheelchairs can get good workouts too. It depends on the activity and the type of chair. Those with removable backs would give you more choices of activities. The important thing is to be sure all the wheels are locked before starting any workout. If the chair is too confining, try a kitchen chair or stool instead, as long as you can put your feet flat on the floor.