Yoga for older adults: leg strength and getting out of a chair

Chair yoga is a practice method, not a strength test

A chair-based program has also been studied for leg strength. A quasi-experimental study involved 31 community-dwelling older women with low physical activity. Communities were allocated by drawing lots, producing a chair yoga group of 16 and a usual-activity group of 15. The yoga program lasted 12 weeks, with 2 sessions per week lasting 110 minutes each.[7]

The chair yoga group showed significant improvements in lower limb strength, upper limb strength and handgrip strength, among other measures. Other outcomes, including upper limb flexibility, did not show significant differences. This adds evidence for a chair-based method of practice while retaining the distinction between outcomes that improved and those that did not.[7]

The word “chair” describes different things in this literature. In chair yoga it describes the method used to practice. In a chair stand test it describes the equipment used to assess performance. A study of yoga can use a chair stand test without testing a chair yoga program, and a chair yoga program can be evaluated with several different assessments. Reading the practice and the test separately prevents the names from creating a misleading connection.[4][7]

The 110-minute sessions are also part of this study’s identity. They show the time commitment of the program that produced the reported findings. They are an example from research, rather than a universal session length for anyone considering chair yoga. An adult child helping a parent choose exercise can use this information to ask what a proposed program involves, while leaving the choice of suitable practice to the person’s health circumstances and available guidance.[7]

For readers interested mainly in chair-based practice, that topic has its own article in this feature. Here, its contribution is narrower and concrete: a chair yoga study reported gains in leg strength in older women with low physical activity. The finding expands the range of methods represented in the evidence without making all chair-based programs interchangeable.[7]

Some comparisons favored other exercise or found no difference

A small randomized trial of adapted yoga did not find a statistically significant difference between groups in the time needed to rise from a chair. This is an unfavorable result for the specific outcome discussed here, even though other studies reported improvement. The feature’s article on practice frequency and duration considers that trial in more detail. For leg strength, it is a reminder that a positive overall pattern can include individual comparisons that do not establish a difference.[18]

A 16-week trial involving 48 adults aged 60 or over compared tai chi and Iyengar yoga. Both programs improved strength and other measures, but tai chi was more effective for increasing the strength of the muscles that bend and straighten the knee. Iyengar yoga was more effective for static and dynamic balance. The choice therefore looks different depending on whether the priority is maximal knee strength or another aspect of physical function.[13]

Participant selection matters in that comparison. The study excluded people with cardiovascular symptoms during moderate exercise, poorly controlled high blood pressure or medication use that impaired balance, among other conditions. The control group received general education. Those criteria help readers see who was represented in the findings. Anyone with those concerns should discuss exercise with their doctor before using a trial result to guide their own plans.[13]

Diet introduces another important distinction. In a randomized 12-week trial, 116 community-dwelling older adults were allocated to a combined yoga and Mediterranean diet program or to a group receiving no intervention. Lower body strength improved in the combined-program group, with an effect size of 0.81. The result belongs to yoga and the dietary approach together, rather than to yoga alone.[8]

A cross-sectional study from Sri Lanka compared 50 yoga practitioners aged 65 or over with 50 non-practitioners. The average ages were 67.5 and 67.4, respectively, and each group included 11 men and 39 women. Researchers used a handheld strength measuring device for the upper limbs and a 30-second chair stand test for the lower limbs. They compared people at one point in time, based on whether they practiced yoga.[15]

The yoga practitioners averaged 14.2 chair stands in 30 seconds, compared with 9.68 among non-practitioners. Upper and lower limb strength differed significantly between the groups. These are group averages from a snapshot, rather than the increase experienced by a person after starting yoga. The finding shows an association between yoga practice and better measured strength in those groups.[15]

The study also used a questionnaire to assess health-related quality of life, with higher scores in several domains among yoga practitioners. It measured strength and quality of life together; it did not test whether stronger legs caused the quality-of-life difference. For the question of chair rises, the direct measurement remains the repeated standing task. Its group averages offer context, rather than a quota an individual needs to reach.[15]

The published summaries discussed here do not provide counts of injuries or worsening pain. Stop a movement if pain or other symptoms develop, rather than pushing through them. A favorable strength result is a reason to consider suitable exercise, not a reason to ignore how you feel while doing it.

What each measurement adds to the picture

The yoga and Pilates study described the chair stand procedure in some detail. Participants began sitting on the edge of a chair, then repeatedly stood and sat during 30 seconds. Researchers used the average number of repetitions from 2 tests lasting 30 seconds each as the final record. This turned lower limb strength into a defined movement under specified conditions, making the outcome more precise than a participant’s impression of feeling stronger.[17]

The practice being evaluated was broader than that test. Yoga included postures, breathing exercises and meditation. Pilates involved a warm-up, main practice and cool-down, with movements performed lying down, sitting and standing. The Pilates movements progressed from simple to more complicated activities. The improvements in lower limb strength came from comparing those overall programs, with no significant difference between their gains.[17]

That detail is useful when considering what to practice. The researchers did not simply assign the assessment itself as a daily routine. Their test asked whether performance changed after the intervention. The description of the intervention tells us what participants did, while the description of the assessment tells us how researchers judged the result. Those are separate pieces of information, even when both concern the legs.[17]

The same study assessed dynamic stability with a stepping task. Participants stepped up and down 7 times using a 20-centimeter step or chair, moving one leg and then the other, while their time was recorded. Chair stands assessed lower limb strength; the stepping task assessed dynamic stability. Everyday movements may involve both, but the study treated them as different outcomes.[17]

The combined yoga and Mediterranean diet trial also distinguished body regions. It used the 30-second chair stand test for lower body strength and a strength measuring device for handgrip. The reported effect sizes were 0.81 for lower body strength and 0.39 for handgrip strength. Both improved, but the measurements and sizes of the effects differed. A claim about the legs should therefore use the result that corresponds to the lower body.[8]

That trial compared 57 people in the intervention group with 59 receiving no intervention. Its assessments also included nutritional status, flexibility, balance and walking. The lower body finding is the part most relevant to getting up from a chair, within a program that involved both exercise and food. Whether the same result would occur without dietary change was outside that comparison.[8]

The tai chi and Iyengar yoga trial adds a further perspective through a strength measuring device. It examined maximal force from the muscles that bend and straighten the knee, and found improvement in both programs, with greater gains from tai chi. That differs from counting repeated chair rises. Both approaches concern the legs, but they ask different questions about their performance.[13]

Finally, the 32-week senior Hatha yoga study was connected with earlier work using biomechanics, the study of movement and forces in the body, to assess the demands of yoga postures. The authors reported that the changes in physical function and specific lower limb strength corresponded to previously measured demands of the poses. This supplies a measured basis for thinking about yoga as leg exercise, alongside the everyday task of standing up.[5]

Common misconceptions

“Yoga is only stretching, so it cannot change leg strength.” That view misses what the research measured. Reviews found benefits for lower limb strength, and a direct comparison with conventional stretching and strengthening found improved chair stands in both groups. Flexibility is part of the picture, but it is not the only capacity that has been tested.[1][4]

“If yoga improves strength, it must be the best exercise for stronger legs.” The comparisons offer a more useful answer. Yoga and conventional exercise produced similar functional fitness improvements in one trial, while tai chi produced greater improvements in knee strength in another. Yoga can be a positive choice without leading every comparison. The decision becomes more practical when the outcome you want and the method you can maintain are considered together.[4][13]

“A better chair stand result means more muscle and fewer falls.” The tests discussed here assessed strength or physical performance. Those results do not directly measure changes in muscle mass or the number of falls. The frailty review also reported that none of its included studies used a validated definition to assess frailty as a whole. Progress in a specific task is meaningful on its own; it does not need to be enlarged into a different claim.[4][5][3]

What you can do today

• If exercise is permitted and you can move safely with instruction, use the study of senior Hatha yoga as one practice example: sessions lasting 60 minutes, 2 times per week over 32 weeks. Make leg function a goal to discuss with the instructor. Chair stands and heel rises were assessments in that study, not prescribed home repetition targets.[5]
• If suitable for your health, consider guided yoga involving postures, breathing practice and meditation 3 times a week for 8 weeks, as in the yoga and Pilates study. Use about 1 hour per session as a guide from the separate Hatha yoga comparison, adjusting the duration to your capacity.[17][4]
• Record which part of ordinary standing up feels difficult. Put the movement you want to work on into words instead of competing with research participants’ times or repetition counts.
• If you have a chronic condition or take medication, consult your treating doctor before starting. Stop if pain or other symptoms occur. If you feel unsteady, do not test how quickly you can rise by yourself.

A weekly place for leg exercise at On the Shore Tachikawa

Building a habit of leg exercise begins with a fixed weekly time to keep moving.

Older guests considering On the Shore Tachikawa should start with room-temperature yoga. Anyone sensitive to heat or living with a chronic condition should check with their doctor first. Guests told by a doctor not to exercise cannot join. Pregnant guests cannot participate in lava-stone hot yoga; room-temperature maternity yoga is available.

The lava-stone hot yoga studio is open every day from 8:00 to 23:30. It is a 1-minute walk from the North Exit of JR Tachikawa Station, at 3F Etoile Bldg, 2-14-10 Akebonocho, Tachikawa, Tokyo. Many of our yoga instructors speak English, and the studio’s owner often helps guests from the US bases in English herself.

The studio offers 25+ kinds of yoga lessons, including room-temperature yoga, as well as Pilates and personal training. Read the studio website to consider which activity to build into your week.

A 60-minute trial yoga lesson costs ¥1,980 including tax, with 2 bath towels, 1 face towel and mat rental included. The prices and trial booking information provide details for arranging a visit.

References

1. The effects of yoga compared to active and inactive controls on physical function and health related quality of life in older adults- systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials — D. Sivaramakrishnan et al., 2019, The International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity. DOI: 10.1186/s12966-019-0789-2
2. Effects of yoga on physical and psychological health among community-dwelling older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. — Ka-Yan Ko et al., 2023, International journal of older people nursing. DOI: 10.1111/opn.12562
3. Effect of Yoga on Frailty in Older Adults — Julia V. Loewenthal et al., 2023, Annals of Internal Medicine. DOI: 10.7326/m22-2553
4. Yoga Is as Good as Stretching-Strengthening Exercises in Improving Functional Fitness Outcomes: Results From a Randomized Controlled Trial. — Neha P. Gothe et al., 2016, The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences. DOI: 10.1093/gerona/glv127
5. Physical-Performance Outcomes and Biomechanical Correlates from the 32-Week Yoga Empowers Seniors Study — Man‐Ying Wang et al., 2016, Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine : eCAM. DOI: 10.1155/2016/6921689
6. Effectiveness of Chair Yoga for Improving the Functional Fitness and Well-being of Female Community-Dwelling Older Adults With Low Physical Activities — Ching-Teng Yao et al., 2019, Topics in Geriatric Rehabilitation. DOI: 10.1097/tgr.0000000000000242
7. Effects of a Yoga Program Combined with a Mediterranean Diet on Nutritional Status and Functional Capacity in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial — María del Carmen Carcelén-Fraile et al., 2024, Nutrients. DOI: 10.3390/nu16111601
8. Comparisons of tai chi and Iyengar yoga intervention effects on muscle strength, balance, and confidence in balance. — Renkun Zhu et al., 2021, The Journal of sports medicine and physical fitness. DOI: 10.23736/s0022-4707.20.11752-3
9. Comparison of upper limb muscle strength, lower limb muscle strength and quality of life of older adults who practice yoga and do not practice yoga in selected settings in Colombo District — A. M. T. Lakmali et al., 2025, Proceedings of the Annual Research Symposium 2025, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka. DOI: 10.66281/70130/8652
10. The Effectiveness of Yoga Exercise on Muscle Strength in the Elderly — G. Kumara, 2022, International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Analysis. DOI: 10.47191/ijmra/v5-i8-41
11. Research Paper The Impact of Yoga and Pilates Exercises on Older Adults — Khadijeh Irandoust et al., 2016, . DOI: 10.21859/sija-1101152
12. Adapted yoga to improve physical function and health-related quality of life in physically-inactive older adults: a randomised controlled pilot trial — G. Tew et al., 2017, BMC Geriatrics. DOI: 10.1186/s12877-017-0520-6

Cover photo: A person holds chair pose with knees bent, hips lowered and both arms extended forward. (Photo: Nikiwiki242 / CC BY-SA 4.0 / Wikimedia Commons)

Information as of October 2026. For your own health, consult a doctor.

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