15 Chair Exercises Good For Body Wellness

Looking for a simple and convenient way to fit in a quick workout? Grab a seat: Chair exercises allow you to target pretty much your entire body—and you don’t need a whole lot of room to get it done.

Chair exercises allow you to work your lower body while seated or supported, making them an excellent choice for anyone with balance or mobility issues or those who are recovering from an injury. They’re also great for pregnant people needing a little extra support as their belly grows. But it’s not just about your legs: You can also work upper-body muscles like your arms, shoulders, and chest while recruiting the critical core muscles to help with stabilization. Plus, a chair makes a perfect companion for doing seated stretches or Pilates chair exercises. So whether you’re sitting on a chair or simply holding onto one for support, you can definitely get a lot out of these exercises.

“Anyone can benefit from using a chair, but many times a chair is good for people who have a hard time getting up and down from the floor or just need support,” NSCA-certified personal trainer, Morit Summers, CPT, and founder of Morit Summers Personal Training, tells SELF. “In fitness, we need to learn to trust our bodies, and having a safety net like a chair can really help build that confidence.”

This is especially true for a beginner who may need that safety net while creating trust in their body with movement. Plus, chair exercises help you focus on the movements themselves without worrying about balance, Summers explains. This can be helpful for both beginners and for more advanced exercisers looking to master progressions.

There are tons of exercises you can do with a chair—some are variations of tried-and-true moves you’ve likely done before, while others are more chair-specific—but we’ve rounded up our favorites below. Before we get into our favorite picks, though, we’ll cover the ins and outs of chair exercises, including their effectiveness and why using a chair is beneficial for just about anyone who needs a solid, total-body routine.

How effective are chair exercises?

When done correctly, Summers says chair exercises can be incredibly effective, allowing you to work all the muscles in your body. The key to an effective chair workout is simple: Incorporate exercises that recruit as many muscle groups as possible while still allowing you to remain seated (if needed) or using the chair for balance or as part of the exercise.

One reason they’re so effective is because many of them work the same way as moves you’re already familiar with. Take a plank or push-up, for instance, where your hands are elevated on the seat. While the chair puts your body at an incline—which helps take some of the weight away—you’re still performing the same basic exercise, says Summers.

“Just because you’re using a chair, it does not change the purpose or movement; it changes the angle at which the exercise is performed and the way you’ll get it done,” she says. That means a push-up from a chair will still effectively work your chest muscles, shoulders, and triceps, while a plank from a chair will still fire up your entire core. So if you’re looking for a strengthen the core workout, chair exercises can help deliver.

Are chair exercises just for beginners?

Nope. The beauty of chair exercises is that they are scalable to different fitness levels. A chair allows you to both progress and regress moves, making them great for building on your fitness level.

A chair can take a basic move like a squat and make it easier to perform—while also requiring stricter form and giving you a cue (the seat!) as to how far to lower your body. Summers says when learning proper squat technique, a chair gives you a physical cue that allows you to go lower without feeling like you’re falling. It’s also there to sit on if needed. That said, she makes it clear that there is a huge difference between plopping down on the chair versus sitting with control (FYI: You’ll want to sit with control).

Chairs are also great tools for introducing more challenging exercises into the mix. Let’s go back to push-ups, for example. A traditional push-up, where you complete the move from the floor, is a difficult move. But elevating your hands can help make it more doable. So your first step might be performing a push-up with your hands elevated on the seat of a chair. Then once you’ve mastered that you may be able to take the surface closer to the ground—like on a box or step—before performing them right from the floor. Then, to kick it up even further, you can put your feet on the seat of the chair and your hands on the ground, for a decline push-up that feels way harder than a traditional version.

Same applies to a pistol squat, where you squat all the way down with one leg out in front of you. This is a really advanced move. But a move like the single-leg squat to chair (where you raise one leg off the ground in front of you and squat down with the planted foot until your butt touches the chair’s seat—see below!) can help you get used to that movement pattern and build the single-leg strength you’d need to complete it.

What exercises can I do while sitting in a chair?

You can do exercises that are similar variations to strength training moves you may already be doing, as well as some moves that are more chair-specific. Plus, like we mentioned above, you don’t have to actually be sitting in the chair to do some of these moves: In many, you can simply hold onto the chair for support.

If weight-bearing is possible, you can also try standing exercises that use a chair as a prop. Pilates chair exercises—think Pilates barre—are a great example of incorporating a chair into a routine. Instead of a ballet bar, simply grab the back of a chair for support. Just make sure it is sturdy, secure, and tall enough to support your weight. For example, you can try some Pilates chair exercises like leg raises or circles, ballerina squats, plié pulses, and different foot positions (first, second, and third).

You can also use a chair for weighted exercises. For instance, you can do a box squat to a chair with dumbbells racked on your shoulders, a single-arm row with your non-rowing hand on a chair for support, or an overhead press while sitting in a chair. Seated shoulder presses tend to feel a little easier than standing versions, since your core doesn’t need to work as hard to keep you stable.

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  Mountain Climber

  • Stand facing a sturdy chair with your feet hip-width apart and arms at your sides.
  • Lower your upper body toward the chair and place your palms flat on the edge of the seat directly below your shoulders.
  • Extend your legs straight out behind you with your toes planted and heels elevated off the floor.
  • Brace your core muscles and keep your back flat and straight. Keep your eyes looking down at the seat. Your body will be at a slight angle.
  • Bring your right knee toward your right arm. Then, as the right leg returns to the starting position, bring your knee toward your left arm. That’s 1 rep.
  • Continue alternating. Keep the pace moderate and modify if needed. To make it easier, perform this movement at a walking speed. Quicken the pace to make it more advanced. The mountain climber works your core, as well as provides a cardio challenge and helps shoulder stability.
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  Seated Banded Abduction

  • Sit on the seat of a sturdy chair with your torso upright and your feet planted on the ground. Wrap a mini-band below your knees. This is starting position.
  • Push your knees away from each other. You should feel this in the small muscles on the side of your butt.
  • Slowing bring your knees back together. This is 1 rep.

  This move works your hip abductors, the small muscles on the sides of your glutes that fire when you move your legs out to the side.

  

  Elevated Push-Up

  • Stand facing a sturdy chair with your feet hip-width apart and arms at your sides.
  • Lower your upper body toward the chair and place your palms flat on the seat. They should be directly below your shoulders.
  • Extend your legs straight out behind you with your toes planted and heels elevated off the floor.
  • Brace your core muscles and keep your back flat and straight. Keep your eyes looking down at the seat. Your body will be at a slight angle.
  • Bend your elbows to slowly lower your chest to the seat until the elbows are at a 90-degree angle.
  • Push your body away from the chair until your elbows are extended. This is 1 rep.

  This variation of the classic push-up works your pectoral muscles and shoulders. Because your hands are elevated, it’s easier than a push-up from the floor, so it’s great for beginners.

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    Seated Overhead Press

    • Sit on the seat of a sturdy chair with your torso upright and your back up against the back of the chair. Keep your feet planted on the ground.
    • Hold a dumbbell in each hand at your shoulders, palms facing in and elbows bent. This is starting position.
    • Press the dumbbells overhead, straightening your elbows completely. Make sure to keep your core engaged, and try not to arch your back.
    • Slowly bend your elbows to lower the weight back down to starting position. This is 1 rep.

    The overhead press works your shoulders and triceps. Because you don’t have to worry about stabilizing your core as much as you would if you were standing, it’s a great beginner variation of the shoulder press.

  • 

    Triceps Dip

    • Stand with your feet hip-width apart and back facing a sturdy chair. Sit down on the edge of the seat.
    • Place the palms of your hands on the edge of the seat, shoulder-width apart. Your fingers will wrap around the edge of the seat.
    • Slide your butt off the seat and extend your legs in front of you with your heels on the floor and toes pointing up.
    • Slowly bend your elbows and lower down as low as you can go. If you feel discomfort in your shoulder or wrists, decrease the distance you lower your body.
    • Pause at the bottom and contract your triceps (muscles in the back of your upper arm) to push yourself back up to starting position. This is 1 rep.

    This exercise works your triceps, the muscles along the back of your upper arms. Home 

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