Lower back, hips, knees and ankles

Warrior III: Chair Supported

Chair support reduces the balance challenge, allowing you to focus on developing single-leg hip and spinal alignment without fear of falling.

How to do it

1. 1

   Face a stable chair and rest your hands on it

   Use the chair back or the seat, whichever height lets your spine stay long. The chair should be against a wall or on a surface where it cannot slide.

2. 2

   Hinge forward from the hips, not the waist

   Send the hips back and the chest forward as one piece. Because the arms are supported, you can spend your attention on this hinge.

3. 3

   Slide one leg back and lift it

   Lift to hip height at most, and only as far as the pelvis stays square to the floor.

4. 4

   Keep the standing knee soft and the neck long

   Gaze down and slightly forward so the head stays in line with the spine.

5. 5

   Hold for thirty to sixty seconds, then change sides

   If the shape is hard to find, take the version with the lifted foot resting on a wall instead.

What to watch for

Leaning so much weight into the chair that it starts to travel, and letting the chest sink below hip height. The hands steady you, and the hinge still comes from the hips.

Ways to adjust it

• Warrior III: Wall
• Wall

If this one is too much today

Try the gentler version instead. It asks less of you and does much the same work.

• Warrior III: Wall

Other ways to do this movement

Every version below is the same movement set up differently, so one of them usually suits. See all Warrior III versions in one place, ordered from gentlest to strongest.

• Warrior III: Classic
• Warrior III: Movement
• Warrior III: Small Range
• Warrior III: Wall

Before you try it

Move within a range that stays comfortable. Stop if this brings on sharp pain, dizziness, or symptoms that travel down an arm or a leg, and speak to a clinician before repeating it.

From the clinically authored Vinys movement library.