5 Chair Exercises For Seniors: Just For Fun

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Chair Exercise Routine For Seniors: Add Some Fun To Your Seated Exercises

We can probably all relate to not wanting to exercise from time to time. From lacking motivation, to not having the energy to get started, to just not knowing what to do- there are a number of reasons why we don’t do it. I have talked about these before – Motivation for Movement.  One thing to remember about exercise is that it does not have to be all or nothing- a little bit can go a long way. Of course, we are less apt to do things that we do not enjoy or that do not fit into our life. This happens even if we know the results are beneficial. You may be interested in some research that looks at this issue:

Make Fitness Fun: Could Novelty Be The Key Determinant For Physical Activity Adherence?

Everyone’s definition of fun is surely different and this is subjective. But, today we have a chair exercise routine for seniors (or anyone really) with 5 seated exercises  that are just for “fun”. Although, I will let you decide! They all serve to move the body, work the muscles and the mind, and engage more than one part of the body. Try them out and don’t worry about repetitions or doing each one perfectly- just have a little bit of fun. Sit back in your chair, or forward as desired. Sitting forward will be more challenging- especially with the Hurdles. I am sitting back in my chair for this one! If you want to see a quick demonstration, check out this short video here. I am doing each exercise for about one minute.

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Remember to always so what is right for you. Always consult your healthcare provider before starting this or any exercise program. Stop immediately if you experience pain, shortness of breath, or dizziness. I use a yoga block for one exercise, but you could substitute a lightweight object or book. Here is a link for a relatively inexpensive yoga block or set of 2.

Keeping track of and planning our exercise and activity can be useful for helping us to stay on track, you may be interested in this simple weekly habit tracker notebook : Habit Tracker Notebook

Chair Exercise Routine For Seniors (or anyone!) – 5 Seated Exercises Just for Fun

1.Cross Punch

A woman seated in a chair near a window with both elbows bent and hands in a loose fist preparing for seated cross punch exercise.

A woman seated in a chair near a window with one arm near the body and the other punching across the body for seated cross punch exercise.

  • Sit tall with a long spine
  • Bend your elbows and make a loose fist
  • Straighten your right elbow as you punch in front and slightly across the body
  • Bend the right elbow and bring the hand back to the body
  • Repeat on the left side
  • Pick a pace that works for you and continue for 1 minute as tolerated or as desired

2.Arm Circle With Hip Hinge

A woman seated in a chair near a window with both elbows bent and practicing arm circles.

A woman seated in a chair near a window doing forearm circles with a hip hinge exercise.

  • Sit tall with a long spine, plant both feet firmly on the ground
  • Bend your elbows and being to circle the arms 
  • Keep the arms moving as you hinge forward at the hips 
  • Keep the spine long and the chest broad
  • Hinge back to center 
  • Keep repeating the hip hinge while maintaining the arm circle- make sure to reverse the direction of your circle
  • Continue for 1 minute as tolerated or as desired

3.Front Pass with Yoga Block (or any lightweight object)

A woman seated in a chair near a window holding a yoga block with both hands in front of the body.

A woman seated in a chair near a window with both arms stretched out wide with one hand holding a yoga block.

  • Sit tall with a long spine and feet planted firmly on the ground
  • Hold a yoga block or any lightweight object with both hands in front of the body
  • Pass the object to one hand and stretch both hands out wide
  • Bring the arms back to center as you pass the block or object to the other hand
  • Stretch both hands back out wide
  • Continue for 1 minute or as desired

4. Hurdles

A woman seated in a chair near a window with one foot planted on the ground and the opposite knee raised up toward the sky.

A woman seated in a chair near a window with her hands slightly braced on the chair and both knees raised up toward the sky.

  • Sit tall with a long spine and bring awareness to the core (sit back in the chair if you need to and place your hands on the armrests or seat of the chair)
  • Begin to march by alternating lifting the knees- go at a pace that works for you
  • On a count of your choice- bring both knees up at the same time (this is challenging-use your hands on the chair for support)
  • Release both feet back down
  • Repeat for 1 minute as tolerated or as desired

5.Knee Extension With Alphabet Ankles

A woman seated in a chair near a window with one knee extended and performing ankle range of motion exercises.

  • Begin seated with a long spine
  • Ground down through one foot to stabilize
  • Straighten the opposite knee (the back of the thigh stays on the chair)
  • Hold the contraction in the thigh as you begin to move the ankle
  • You can draw the alphabet in the air with your toes or spell any words you want (the idea is to get the ankle moving in all directions)
  • Release that foot to the ground and repeat on the other side
  • Continue for 1 minute as tolerated or as desired

I hope that you enjoyed this chair exercise routine for seniors. You can make it your own. Feel free to add any movement or modifications that you need and repeat the exercises once you get familiar with them. These five exercises can give you some ideas for other movements you can do right from the chair to get the body moving. Let me know what you think!

Want More Chair Exercise Routines For Seniors?

You may be interested in these Chair Exercises using the Yoga Block

Or these lower body exercises using the block.

Take a look at Chair Yoga and Cardio for some more suggestions on getting in some cardio exercise.

If you are interested in more chair yoga poses that help stimulate the brain, take a look at Chair Yoga For The Brain

Here are two more chair exercise routines for seniors you may be interested in:

Chair Exercises With a Ball

Chair Exercises With  Towel

I invite you to visit The Peaceful Chair Etsy Shop for health and wellness related printable pages and more

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Namaste!

Disclaimer: The Peaceful Chair and thepeacefulchair.com strongly recommends that you consult with your physician before starting this or any exercise program.The information provided on this website is for informational purposes only and is not to be used in place of medical advice or information from your healthcare provider. Neither The Peaceful Chair, the peacefulchair.com, nor any of its contributors shall be held liable for any improper or incorrect use of the information described and/or contained herein and assumes no responsibility for anyone’s use of the information contained in any links, videos, or any content on this website.