Do Chair Exercises Actually Help You Lose Weight?

Exercise is essential for healthy weight loss and healthy aging because physical activity burns calories and builds muscle mass. Exercise is also important for maintaining weight after weight loss. Unfortunately, losing weight after 50 can be difficult because not everyone who wants to lose weight can do calisthenics or go for a daily run. Many people have underlying conditions, such as heart problems or breathing issues, which prevent them from moving around enough to burn calories and fat. Others may have conditions that affect their mobility or put them at increased risk for falling. 

Compared with just a few years ago, a larger number of people are working remotely, which often requires sitting behind a computer desk for hours on end. This shift towards remote work, fueled by the pandemic, can result in weight gain. In fact, 42 percent of those who responded to American Psychological Association’s (APA) annual Stress In America report said they experienced unwanted weight gain – the average weight gain was 29 pounds. 

The good news is that chair exercises can help you lose weight, especially if you are interested in staying healthy after 50. Incorporating these low-impact exercises into your daily routine can provide other benefits too, such as better balanced, improved mobility, and increased strength. Exercising from the comfort of your chair can even be safer than other forms of exercise. 

Benefits of Chair Exercises

Burns calories

While there are many factors that may come into play, such as metabolism and your starting weight, losing weight comes down to burning more calories than you consume. Generally speaking, you need to burn about 3500 more calories than you take in to lose one pound. This means you need to burn 500 more calories than you consume each day to lose a pound in a week. Some types of exercise burn calories more quickly than others, of course, but all forms of physical activity burn calories. 

Depending on your weight and the intensity of exercise you perform, you can burn about 100 calories by doing chair exercises for a half hour. Adding weights or resistance bands can burn even more calories. 

Builds muscle mass

Muscle tissue burns calories faster than does fat tissue, so the more muscle you have, the more calories you can burn with chair exercises. 

Strengthens muscles

Strong muscles allow you to exercise in your chair longer and with more intensity. Strengthening your muscles can also help you do more when you are out of your chair. 

Increased circulation

Blood delivers oxygen, nutrients, and healing compounds to nearly every part of the body. Exercise stimulates blood circulation, which can speed healing of wounds and injuries, shorten recovery time, increase lung capacity, and improve mobility. Fast healing and improved mobility helps you continue exercising for weight loss.

Improve balance

Balance is important, especially as we get older. Each year, one in four adults over the age of 65 experiences a fall, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). One in every five falls results in a serious injury, such as a broken bone or head injury. These injuries can incapacitate you and derail your weight loss efforts. 

Poor balance and weight issues go hand in hand – overweight people sway more when they stand up, according to research, which suggests that they have balance issues. Balance issues can increase your risk for falls while exercising. Performing chair exercises can simultaneously help you lose weight and improve your balance. 

Performing specific exercises can improve your balance by strengthening the muscles that keep you upright. These balancing exercises strengthen the core muscles in your abdomen, pelvis, lower back, and hips to help reduce your risk of falls and fall-related injuries. 

Reduce your risk for chronic illnesses

Regular physical activity reduces your risk for long-term illnesses by improving your overall health and fitness. Exercise can help you avoid specific chronic conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, heart disease, many types of cancer, depression and anxiety, and dementia, as many of these conditions are associate with being overweight. These chronic illnesses can significantly decrease your quality of life – they can also make it more difficult to get the exercise you need to stay healthy.

Improved posture and alignment

Chair exercises can strengthen the muscles that help you stand – and sit – straight and tall. Good posture and alignment improve blood flow, keeps blood vessels and nerves healthy, and supports your muscles, bones, joints, ligaments, and tendons. Proper alignment and posture can help you get the most out of exercise to optimize your weight loss potential. 

Sharpens your memory

Exercise helps you stay sharp by boosting blood flow to your brain. Recent research shows exercise increases blood flow in two areas of the brain associated with memory; this means chair exercises may potentially support memory in people with Alzheimer’s disease and other memory issues. Chair exercises are also repetitive, so they require your brain to learn a new routine, which also helps boost memory. Engaging in chair exercise can help you get past mental fatigue and afternoon slumps.

Boost confidence and self-esteem

Older adults can sometimes lose confidence, especially after experiencing a serious fall or after gaining weight. Gentle exercise can restore confidence. 

Chair Exercises for Weight Loss

Seated jumping jacks

Seated jumping jacks are a good warmup exercise, but they do burn calories for weight loss.

Sit up straight in your chair, with your knees bent and together, and your toes touching the floor. Bend your elbows and open your arms so that your palms are facing forward. In a motion that resembles a traditional jumping jack, quickly open your legs out to the side while extending your arms overhead; be sure to flex your feet and land on your heels. Return your arms and legs to the starting position, and repeat 11 times. For best results, perform seated jumping jacks quickly and with vigor. 

Seated toe stretch

Seated toe stretch works your hamstrings and lower back to improve flexibility and mobility. 

To perform seated toe stretches, sit on the edge of your chair and lean forward. Carefully reach for your toes while remaining seated. Be sure to avoid leaning too far forward and maintain a seated position throughout this exercise. 

Chair running

Chair running helps you burn calories to lose weight.

Practice chair running by sitting straight with your knees bent. Straighten your right leg out in front of you while planting your left foot on the ground. Next, in a motion similar to running, bend your right leg and extend your left leg quickly. To burn more calories, pump your left and right arms back and forth in a manner that is also similar to running. 

Skater switch

This chair exercise provides a workout for your core, shoulders, biceps, triceps, and inner thigh muscles. Done with intensity, this exercise can also burn calories to optimize weight loss. Skater switch also improves joint motion, flexibility, and core strength to maximize weight loss potential. 

To perform the skater switch exercise, sit on the edge of your chair with both feet flat on the floor. Straighten your left knee and extend your left leg straight out while keeping your right foot flat on the floor. Extend your arms straight out in front of you and lean forward slightly; next, move your left arm towards the inside of your right foot while raising your right arm up behind your body, twisting through your torso to do so. Return your arms to the front while lowering your left leg. Switch to the opposite side and repeat the same motion; repeat for 30 alternating repetitions. 

Chair exercises for weight loss are easy to learn, simple to perform, and a lot of fun. To try some of our chair exercises, consult with your Mighty Health coach.