By Abigail Atkinson
Adaptive chair yoga under the pergola at the 2026 Denver Yoga Summit.
Chair "yoga", ahahaha 😂 Fake yoga.
↑ An actual comment on one of my recent adaptive chair yoga videos.
Probably just another internet troll. But the comment reflects a misconception that's surprisingly persistent: chair yoga isn't real yoga.
I couldn't disagree more.
Adaptive yoga starts with the person, not the pose. We adjust the movement, support, or approach to make the practice meaningful and accessible to the person experiencing it. Sometimes that means bringing in a chair.
A chair doesn't dilute yoga or make it less real. It transforms the practice from a test of physical privilege into a supportive space for injuries, disabilities, and changing bodies. It makes yoga a real possibility for more people.
I know this firsthand. After my stroke in 2012, I couldn't practice yoga the way I had before. A chair gave me a way to keep practicing when standing and balancing were no longer reliable options. It made yoga real for me at a time I needed it most.
So there's something wonderfully fitting about how those Instagram videos led me to Denver Yoga Summit.
Brittany, the Summit's founder, came across my adaptive chair yoga videos and reached out with an invitation to teach. By September, I was in Denver leading two morning adaptive yoga classes at the inaugural Denver Yoga Summit.
Both classes filled up.
People in their twenties through their seventies. Yoga teachers and students. Different abilities, different reasons for practicing, and plenty of enthusiasm for what we could explore together.
So much for fake yoga.
A full class under the pergola.
A Class to Come Back For
We explored mobility, strength, balance, and coordination from our chairs. Some students were looking for a practice that worked with their neurological conditions or mobility needs. Others were yoga teachers gathering fresh ideas for their own classes.
I loved having that mix in one space.
When people hear "adaptive yoga," they sometimes assume it's intended for a very specific group. In practice, it's a way of making yoga useful for the people who are actually there.
And one of my favorite moments was having Brittany's dad attend my classes.
She'd been encouraging him to try yoga for a long time. He joined my first morning class and enjoyed it enough to come back for the second (and even brought his wife!).
I think that's one of the best things adaptive yoga can offer. It gives people more ways to experience yoga, including those who might never have considered a class was for them.
Morning adaptive yoga at the 2026 Denver Yoga Summit.
A Chair Is a Teaching Tool, Not a Shortcut
Adaptive yoga isn't about removing everything challenging from yoga. It's about understanding what a practice offers and adapting movement, breathing, and meditation to make it accessible to more people.
A chair can support weight, provide a stable surface to press against, and give someone choices about how much balance or coordination to practice. That creates opportunities for creativity, not fewer of them.
My favorite surprise in Denver was how many yoga teachers came to practice. Several told me afterward that they were taking fresh ideas back to their own chair yoga classes.
If you teach yoga, here are three ideas you can try in your own classes.
Three Chair Yoga Ideas for Your Next Class
Bring the floor up. Before you skip a floor pose, consider ways you can bring the floor up to the student. For example, place a second chair in front of the student to use for a butterfly posture that doesn't require getting down to the floor.
Turn the chair into a dial. One-legged balance has steps between "holding on" and "letting go." When working with balance use hands on the chair or wall for support. Then explore removing the support and reference of the chair. Start with two hands. Then try one hand at a time. Try fingertips. Try different head positions. Always make sure the student feels safe to go back to the most steady option as needed.
Add creative joint movements. Add wrist, finger, ankle or toe movements like circles, figure eights or other patterns to activate the brain. Wrists and fingers take up lots of space in the brain and ankles are a proprioceptive hub. Mobilizing these while in a chair yoga posture is an easy and fun way to amplify the yoga benefits.
A chair plus two blocks: one of Abigail’s prop setups for hip and spine mobility.
What the Denver Yoga Summit Got Right
I loved that accessibility wasn't just a good intention at Denver Yoga Summit. Adaptive classes were on the schedule, alongside so many other ways to practice and learn.
People signed up, showed up, and filled the space.
I'm grateful to Brittany and the entire Denver Yoga Summit team for including adaptive yoga in the programming. I left with new teaching conversations, meaningful connections, and a great story about a dad who came back for more.
As for that Instagram comment, I'm not particularly interested in winning an argument about what makes yoga "real."
I'd rather keep finding ways for more people to practice it.
Want More Tools for Teaching Adaptive Yoga?
My next 20-Hour Adaptive Yoga Teacher Training takes place February 26–28, 2027, at Balance Yoga in Alpine, Utah.
We'll get hands-on with creative posture adaptations, intelligent prop use, breathwork, meditation, and opportunities to practice teaching adaptive yoga students. You'll learn practical skills to make your teaching more accessible, interesting, and useful for a wider range of students.
Registration opens soon! Join the waitlist and you'll be among the first to have the opportunity to join.
Abigail Atkinson teaches yin, adaptive yoga and Yoga Nidra in Utah, where she's the Yoga Program Director at Wasatch Adaptive Sports. She's a stroke survivor who trains yoga teachers in adaptive yoga. Find her at wellwithabigail.com and on Instagram @wellwithabigail or @abigailadaptiveyoga.
Join Us at the 2027 Denver Yoga Summit
The Denver Yoga Summit returns September 10 to 12, 2027, at Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield Farms in Littleton. You get three days of yoga, sound, and meditation outdoors at the foothills of the Rockies. Every body is welcome here, chairs included.
Our Super Early Bird Weekend Pass is $333. The full price is $444. You can split it into six monthly payments.