Category: Fall Prevention Yoga

Empowering Veterans: Weekly Online Movement Classes with Gail Pickens‑Barger

Empowering Veterans: Weekly Online Movement Classes with Gail Pickens‑Barger

Join me on the Veterans Yoga Project Online Studio, via the WellnessLiving platform, for free weekly classes designed to enhance strength, flexibility, balance, and resilience. These accessible sessions offer physical, emotional, and mental support for Veterans across the nation. In 2024, 76% of participants reported decreased distress, and 72% saw reduced pain.

Chair Tai Chi with a Splash of Yoga with Gail PB
Chair Tai Chi with a Splash of Yoga with Gail PB

📅 Wednesdays — Alternating: Chair Tai Chi & Gentle Yoga for Back Care

Every other Wednesday (1:00 PM CST / 12:00 PM PST), I alternate two foundational classes:

🔹 Chair Tai Chi for Beginners

A 45 to 60-minute seated class that blends:

  • Yang-style Tai Chi forms, Shaolin muscle-sinew exercises
  • Qigong detox movements, mobility drills for fingers, hands, eyes
  • Acupressure and gratitude-based breathwork relaxation

Benefits:

  • Helps relieve chronic pain
  • Enhances posture, balance, strength, and sleep
  • Boosts circulation, lymph flow, digestion, and emotional regulation

Gear needed: Just one sturdy chair

Beginner Friendly Gentle Yoga for Back Care class online through Veterans Yoga Project
Gentle Yoga for Back Care Beginners Class on Veterans Yoga Project Online Studio

🔹 Gentle Yoga for Back Care

This 60-minute class is designed for all levels and especially beneficial for people with back pain, arthritis, or joint limitations.

What to Expect:

  • Gentle yoga stretches and flows, either seated or on the mat
  • Tools and techniques that support spinal alignment and mobility
  • Breathing practices for stress relief and better circulation

Helpful Props:

  • Yoga strap, block, mat or chair
  • Optional: blanket, wall, or table for support
Fall Prevention Yoga Class using Two Chairs, Yoga Strap and Blocks for Improving Strength and Balance
Fall Prevention Yoga Class. Using Two Chairs, Yoga Strap and Block for Improving Strength and Balance

✅ Fridays — Chair Yoga for Fall Prevention

Join me every Friday at 1:00 PM CST / 11:00 AM PST for this energizing 60-minute session designed to improve balance, body awareness, and strength in a safe and supportive way.

Key Features:

  • Chair-supported balance exercises
  • Strength-building movements to reduce fall risk
  • No floor work required—great for people with limited mobility
  • Mindful breathing and body awareness to calm the nervous system

What You’ll Need:

  • Two chairs (one for movement, one for support)
  • Strap, yoga block
  • Optional: TheraBand, blanket, wall

💬 Side Note: Recent Student Reviews

Here’s what students are saying about these life-changing classes:

⭐ “I was experiencing level 6 pain in my hip and leg… After Gail’s class, my pain dropped to level 1. So grateful!”
— JA, July 25, 2025 – Fall Prevention Chair Yoga

⭐ “Gail PB is amazing! I’ve had two knee replacements and still get a great workout.”
— RM, July 24, 2025 – Gentle Yoga for Back Care

⭐ “Fantastic teacher! The practices make me feel better after class. The 3-step is really helpful—thanks Gail!”
— LC, July 12, 2025 – Fall Prevention

⭐ “Gail’s Chair Tai Chi is wonderful—good for both body and mind. Would love to see even more of these classes!”
— NW, July 16, 2025 – Chair Tai Chi

⭐ “I love Gail’s classes. They challenge me to get stronger and improve my balance. I’m thankful these are free.”
— DA, multiple reviews from June–July 2025

⭐ “Gail’s knowledge is deep, and she presents with humor and warmth. Her Chair Yoga is one of my weekly must-do’s!”
— DL, July 2, 2025 – Chair Tai Chi

🧘 Why These Classes Matter

  • Free for Veterans: Sponsored through the Veterans Yoga Project & VA partnership
  • Accessible and inclusive: No need to get on the floor
  • Safe and effective: Gentle movements adapted to your body’s needs
  • Whole Health support: Stress relief, pain reduction, emotional balance

📋 Weekly Snapshot

DayClassDurationFocus Area
Wednesday (alternating)Chair Tai Chi45 minMind-body connection, mobility
Wednesday (alternating)Gentle Yoga for Back Care60 minBack pain relief, strength & stretch
FridayChair Yoga for Fall Prevention60 minBalance, fall risk reduction

📝 How to Join

  1. Visit VeteransYogaProject.org
  2. Register for a free account on the WellnessLiving platform
  3. Reserve your spot for the class—and let’s move, breathe, and heal together

Let’s make mindful movement a part of your weekly wellness!
Reach out anytime if you have questions or need help getting started.

May the Force, er, um, May the Fall Prevention Chair Yoga Classes, keep you upright!

May the Force, er, um… May the Fall Prevention Chair Yoga Classes, keep you upright!

The month of May had FIVE Fridays on the calendar, and as such there was a lot of Chair Yoga for Fall Preventions classes up on Veterans Yoga Project online studio.

I record the classes (just on me), and provide these for my folks to do more than once a week, or they register and get a follow up email link with the video. I have about 6-8 students who regularly register, but can’t come to the specific time frame, but they love the videos.

I’m also learning to do YouTube SEO, Search Engine Optimization, to get these “said” videos a bit of traction on the #2 Search Engine out there… YouTube!

Here is May’s Chair Yoga Classes. I still have a bit to learn (well a LOT) on YouTube SEO, to bear with me folks. Any insider pointers would be nice to know too!

MAKE NOTE. Two chairs, yoga block and strap make this a great class. A wall and one chair work too! Some folks use a theraband, but I like the cloth straps for better muscle building. P.S. There is an opportunity to do homework too!

May 1, 2025
Chair Yoga Fall Prevention. This video contains hand and finger mobility, plus hand tapping in addition to our traditional working toward homework assignments
https://youtu.be/7_S_fF37gGg

May 9, 2025
Chair Yoga Fall Prevention. Discover simple, effective yoga movements designed to improve balance, build strength, and prevent falls — especially for seniors and older adults. In this short class, we’ll guide you through essential poses and gentle stretches proven to enhance stability and confidence in everyday movement.
https://youtu.be/h56D_Ior52k

May 16, 2025
Chair Yoga Fall Prevention. This class has a longer rotation of conciousness or otherwise known as a body scan, for lessening anxiety, reducing the monkey mind, easing pain in the body sequence.

May 23, 2025
Chair Yoga Fall Prevention. This class features a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Technique for lessening pain in targeted areas. See the table to contents for specific exercises. This class also has the targetted three homework assignments.
https://youtu.be/dpKWjM4v26E

May 30, 2025
Chair Yoga Fall Prevention. In this class there is an additional joint freeing sequence to allow you to work towards a deeper squat.
https://youtu.be/MPla5bqFZgI

🧘‍♀️ Fall Prevention Yoga: Simple Moves to Improve Balance, Strength, and Confidence

🧘‍♀️ Fall Prevention Yoga: Simple Moves to Improve Balance, Strength, and Confidence

Worried about your balance or afraid of falling? You’re not alone—and the good news is, you can do something about it.

FALL proof with Yoga

In this article, we’ll explore how yoga can help prevent falls, improve balance, and build strength—especially for seniors or anyone looking for a gentle, effective way to stay steady on their feet.

✅ Why Fall Prevention Matters

Falls are the leading cause of injury among older adults. But many of these falls are preventable with the right exercises. That’s where Fall Prevention Yoga comes in. It’s low-impact, easy on the joints, and incredibly effective at improving:

  • Balance
  • Core strength
  • Flexibility
  • Body awareness

🧘‍♀️ What Is Fall Prevention Yoga?

Fall prevention yoga is a targeted yoga routine designed to strengthen the muscles that keep you upright—like your core, glutes, and legs—while also improving coordination and mobility.

Unlike high-intensity workouts, this type of yoga is gentle, intentional, and beginner-friendly. No crazy poses, no stress—just movements that make you feel strong and supported.

💪 Benefits of Yoga for Balance and Fall Prevention

  1. Improved Stability: Yoga teaches you how to engage your core and stabilize your body in different positions.
  2. Increased Flexibility: Loosening tight muscles helps you move more freely and safely.
  3. Greater Confidence: The more balanced you feel, the more confident you’ll be doing daily activities.
  4. Stress Relief: Deep breathing and mindfulness help reduce anxiety and improve mental clarity.

▶️ Follow Along: Fall Prevention Yoga Video

Looking to get started? Check out my full Fall Prevention Yoga Routine on YouTube! It’s designed for seniors and beginners, and takes you through a step-by-step session to boost balance and strength.

👉 Watch it here:

Pro Tip: Repeat the routine 2–3 times per week for best results!

🏠 Minimal Equipment Needed

All you need is:

  • A yoga mat or soft surface
  • Two chairs for balance (optional)
  • A yoga strap
  • A yoga block
  • A little space to move

💬 Final Thoughts

Staying balanced and strong doesn’t require hours in the gym or fancy equipment. Just a few minutes a week of focused movement can help you feel more secure, mobile, and empowered in your body.

Take that first step—literally! 😊

👉 Don’t forget to subscribe to the YouTube channel for more senior-friendly workouts and wellness tips.

Fall Prevention Yoga for better balance

Fall prevention yoga movements for better balance

This format follows the old timey aerobic class workout. The warm up, in which we do a modified Seokmun Hoheup warmup movements. It really works all the places in the body, and warms up the major and minor joints in the body.

Then a traditional strength and stretch section. We use therabands, yoga straps, a chair and yoga block. If you don’t have the gear, minimally have access to a chair!

Lastly we do balance, stretches and more strength building, using two chairs or access to a wall and a chair. Ending with a guided rest & relaxation and gratitude practice.

Checkout my latest video playlist for this movement series.

Playlist for Chair Yoga for Fall Prevention

Current Playlist for Chair Yoga for Fall Prevention with Gail P-B.

Received some nice feedback on the Fall Prevention Chair Yoga class, that has been added to the schedule for online offerings for Veterans Yoga Project online studio.

It is an hour long class, then we have a discussion afterwards of what worked well for the folks, and what did not work well. Everyone is in a different place in their balance journey, so it is a “balance” (ha ha) to try to please most folks. (Get it, “balance”, Fall Prevention?)

When I was in a breast cancer study at MD Anderson a couple of years ago (get my mammograms at either the Houston, or Conroe location), one of the testing parameters was how many “Sit to Stands” movements I could do, unassisted. If one is below the average in these numbers, then there is a high probability that you will have a fall.

I shared this image a couple of years ago on my Instagram feed. It has stuck with me all these years.

Are you at Risk for Falling?

Check out the free yoga classes over on Veterans Yoga Project website!

https://veteransyogaproject.org/vyp-classes