Staying flexible and active during your senior years comes with a wide range of health benefits.
However, the risk of joint pain and strain is a serious concern for the older generation that wants to remain fit and active. And this is where seniors yoga swing workouts come in!
For older people who are looking for an effective and safe means of enhancing their overall health and wellness, seniors yoga swing workouts can be a great choice.
And while seniors may need to modify some of the yoga swing poses at first, they stand to gain considerably from regular yoga swing workouts.
In this article, we will explore the main benefits of yoga swing workouts for seniors, preparation tips for yoga swing workouts as well as the best yoga swing poses for older people. With that said, let’s jump straight in.
Benefits of Seniors Yoga Swing Workouts
Considering that yoga swing poses can be modified to adapt to individual needs, aerial yoga provides a safe but effective means for the elderly to remain active, regardless of their ability or fitness levels.
Yoga swing workouts are a great means of keeping your body flexible and strong, without the joint strain that comes with conventional workouts like weight lifting.
In this section, we will explore some of the main benefits of yoga hammock workouts for seniors.
Stronger Bones and Joints
Our bones lose density while our joints become stiffer as we grow older. And with time, Osteoporosis becomes a serious health challenge for many people.
Fortunately, a gentle and restorative aerial yoga workout can prove to be highly effective in preventing Osteoporosis and reducing the loss of bone density.
Enhanced Flexibility
Also, restorative yoga swing poses can help to boost flexibility, which is extremely important for older people.
Yoga swing poses for seniors can provide safe but effective stretching exercises.
And by holding a particular pose or movement for several minutes, it will allow your muscles as well as your connective tissues to loosen and relax.
If you do these workouts regularly, you will soon become more flexible and your range of motion will increase.
Thanks to this increased range of motion, you will be lesser prone to injuries.
Improved Body Balance
As you may expect, people lose balance with age and this exposes older people to slips and falls, due to their reduced balance.
Fortunately, yoga swing workouts can help to improve and restore body balance. Various yoga swing poses for older people focus on strengthening the core muscles.
Consequently, this will help you to become more stable, thus minimizing the risk of falls.
Better Sleep Quality
Similar to other types of yoga, yoga swing workouts can also help to improve your sleeping habits.
Also, they can help you to enjoy quality sleep, by increasing the “pressure to sleep” in the evening and boosting much needed hormones – which is vital for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
For instance, performing some simple breathing exercises and stretches on your antigravity yoga hammock will help your body to relax.
As you may expect, you’ll find it easier to sleep when your body is relaxed and your mind is at ease, compared to when you have racing thoughts.
Reduce Stress and Anxiety
The serotonin hormone plays an important role in regulating happiness, mood, anxiety and stress. When the levels are low in the body, you may experience stress and anxiety.
When the levels are high, you will experience a feeling of happiness and well-being. And, studies have shown that exercising can help to boost the release of this hormone in the body.
Hence, seniors yoga swing workouts which are also a form of exercise can also help to lower or even stress, anxiety, and depression.
Alleviates Back Pain
Doing seniors yoga swing workouts regularly can also help to boost back strength, enhance core stability and flexibility as well as correct posture. And all these are vital when it comes to a healthy back.
The gentle stretching that you will be doing during your yoga swing sessions will help to decompress your spine and back muscles, thus boosting back flexibility and mobility.
So, if you have been experiencing back pain as you age, you should consider incorporating aerial yoga swing workouts into your fitness regimen.
Safe Workout Method
Maintaining an active lifestyle comes with numerous health benefits.
Unfortunately, most seniors shy away from fitness activities, due to their invasive nature. Most conventional workouts like lifting weights can lead to serious injuries for older people.
Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about such issues when it comes to aerial yoga swing workouts. As earlier noted, seniors yoga swing workouts can be modified to suit the needs of any individual, regardless of their age, physical fitness level or abilities.
Hence, if you are a senior who needs a safe workout method, then yoga swing workouts will be an ideal choice.
Slows Down Aging
Relaxation and strength are the two foundational principles of aerial yoga. And these two can help to slow down the aging process.
For instance, aerial yoga breathing poses will calm down your breathing and help your body to relax, thus slowing down your heart rate and improving your circulation.
At the same time, the stretching poses will help to keep you mobile and build overall body strength, thus helping to slow down the loss of muscle tissue related to age.
Improved Productivity
As mentioned earlier, yoga swing workouts will boost your flexibility and strength. They will boost back strength, make your bones stronger, boost body balance, and enhance your core strength. As a result, you will find yourself being more productive, to attend to various tasks in your life.
Whether you are going on a short hike or attending to your daily tasks, the benefits derived from regular yoga swing workouts will enable you to be more productive.
Hence, while productivity levels in your inactive age-mates will be reducing, yours will remain high, thanks to remaining active via yoga swing workouts.
Preparing for Seniors Yoga Swing Workouts
Without a doubt, yoga swing workouts can benefit seniors in numerous ways. But, to enjoy the benefits that yoga swing workouts offer, it’s important to practice it safely.
Here are some tips that will help you to prepare your seniors yoga swing workouts so that you can have a safe practice.
Consult a Physician
While yoga swing workouts are mainly safe for seniors, some movements may pose health complications for the elderly.
Therefore, it will be highly advisable for seniors that want to start doing yoga swing workouts to consult a physician. A physician will inspect your overall health condition and advise you accordingly.
Purchase the Right Workout Gear and Supplies
If your physician has given permission to proceed to do yoga swing workouts, you now need to purchase workout gear.
To perform yoga swing exercises properly, you will need to purchase stretchy, comfortable clothing. Jogging pants and leggings, together with a tank top and well-fitting T-shirt are ideal for yoga swing workouts for seniors.
As for footwear, you don’t need anything special. A pair of non-slip, yoga socks will get the job done. You also have the option of doing these workouts barefoot. So, don’t stress over footwear.
It will also be advisable to buy a yoga mat. A yoga mat for aerial yoga are generally thicker and will provide you with cushioning if you happen to slip and land on the ground, thus helping to prevent serious injuries.
Shop around and choose the items that align best with your needs and budget.
Install a Yoga Swing
After purchasing your yoga workout gear and accessories, you will also need to install an aerial yoga swing in your home. Gravotonics Yoga Swings come with everything that you will need.
However depending on where you are setting up your yoga swing, you may need to purchase some ceiling brackets. Make sure you hire a professional to install your yoga swing if you are not confident, as this will ensure that the swing is properly and safely rigged up.
Hire a Qualified Aerial Yoga Instructor
By now, you have almost everything that you will need to begin your seniors yoga swing workouts. But if you are a beginner, it is advised that you don’t attempt to do these workouts by yourself.
Instead, you should consider hiring a qualified aerial yoga instructor. A qualified instructor will take you through your elderly yoga swing workouts until you’ve mastered the basics. And from there, you can begin doing them by yourself.
The Best Yoga Swing Poses for Seniors
While seniors can do almost all types of yoga swing poses, some are considered safer and more beneficial for this age group.
They include:
· Mountain pose aerial
· Tree pose aerial
· The downward-facing dog
· Cat-cow pose
· Warrior poses
· Child’s pose
· Modified aerial planks
Yoga Swing Workouts for Older People
Seniors have a wide range of workouts to choose from when it comes to maintaining an active lifestyle.
They include lifting weight, running, jogging or taking walks. The problem with most of these workouts is that they may be unsafe or ineffective. And yoga swing workouts for seniors can solve this issue.
They are both safe and highly effective, making them the ideal choice for seniors who are looking to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle.