It’s such a profound practice when it comes to living holistically, as it upgrades all aspects of our being – the physical body, the mental and emotional body, and even the spirit. It’s also accessible to every single kind of body – flexible, stiff, short, tall, big, small, young and old. The yoga door is always open to those who wish to enter. And once you do, you’ll find just how truly empowering yoga is.

A recent study published in the journal Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine examines the physical performance effects and biomechanical correlates on a group of twenty seniors over the age of seventy. This Yoga Empowers Seniors Study (YESS) consisted of thirty-two weeks of bi-weekly, hour-long hatha yoga classes, in which all participants had their functional performance, flexibility, muscle strength, and balance evaluated – at week 16, and again at week 32.

Yoga Empowers Seniors

The findings were every bit as positive as I would’ve guessed! Now we have even further evidence to support the need for more yoga programs for seniors – in yoga studios, hospitals, online, and in community dwellings.

While flexibility and balance remained about the same after the 32-week yoga intervention, physical function and muscle-specific lower extremity strength---as measured through timed chair stands, 2-minute step tests, vertical reach, and a practice called the 8-foot up and go---improved significantly. What’s more, isometric knee flexor strength and heel rise repetitions also improved.

[ctt template="8" link="4JU8a" via="no" ]The study found that yoga significantly improves physical function and muscle-specific lower extremity strength. @LongevityTimes[/ctt]

My 90-year old grandmother, who unfortunately has dementia, also has one hell of a healthy physical body – no high blood pressure, no high cholesterol and no high blood sugar levels. She practiced her ‘yogi berra’ (as my grandfather endearingly called it) for as long as I can remember, and I can’t help but give that life-long yoga practice credit for her current state of physical health.

I have no doubt. Yoga empowers seniors. - Aimee Hughes, N.D.