20-Minute Chair Yoga to Stop Fixating on What’s Missing in Your Life

From Loss to Gratitude

This adaptive and accessible yoga routine, led by Rodrigo Souza, is designed to help you slow down and stay present. The goal is to access the part of you that recognizes and appreciates what you already have. Yoga offers far more than physical well-being; it invites us to pause, breathe, and appreciate the present. Each time we turn our attention to our body, we open ourselves to a world of self-awareness where even the smallest joys can be celebrated. Through this approach, yoga becomes a practice of inner peace and gratitude.

This philosophy became deeply personal for me after I suffered a traumatic spinal injury. Suddenly, my body began to feel like a foreign and challenging place, constantly reminding me of losses and limitations. Through yoga, I learned to rebuild my connection with my body, transforming it from a source of grief into a foundation for healing and strength. At the recovery center, where I teach yoga and self-awareness to others facing similar challenges, I continue to be convinced of the power of gratitude. I guide students to turn inward, encouraging self-compassion and embracing what remains, rather than what was lost.

When we focus on what remains, gratitude flourishes. We shift our perspective from a view of lack to discovering a sense of home within. As we reconnect with our bodies, we find comfort in the present moment and realize that life is our ally, supporting us at every turn. Yoga and gratitude teach us together that as long as we breathe, we have more on our side than against us. Embracing this mindset can transform our lives, turning challenges into opportunities for growth. As you explore your practice, let gratitude be your guide and let yoga be more than a routine. This way of thinking and feeling can become a way of life where you celebrate every breath and every moment with joy.

Reframing Perspective

This adaptive and accessible, gratitude-based yoga practice is what I call „the grateful heart.” So that you can see, I am in a wheelchair. I use this practice to help myself and others focus on what we have, not what is missing. It is a shift in perspective. This lesson will be very gentle. I would be happy if you adapted to your beautiful body. So this is your practice, understand? You have autonomy. You can move at my pace or stay in Mountain Pose and have time for introspection with yourself. It is more about how you feel.

I invite you to find a comfortable position in your chair and sit with your back straight and tall. You can anchor from your sit bones or anchor from your feet touching the floor. Lift your sternum slightly, relax your shoulders, and if it is comfortable for you, close your eyes or keep a soft gaze forward. Observe how we breathe. Observe how we can breathe life in with each inhale. Life is with you. Life is not against you. So let’s breathe life in. And be grateful for that.

Reposition yourself in the chair if needed. Once you have repositioned, go into Mountain Pose (Tadasana), anchoring from your sit bones. Feel the space between your ears and shoulders growing taller, and at your own pace, inhale through the nose and look softly toward the ceiling. Try not to tilt your head back too much. Exhale through the mouth, bring your chin to your chest, and look toward the floor. Let’s do this three more times, trying to synchronize breath and movement if possible.

Exhale back to center. You can lift the corners of your mouth slightly if you wish. Now look over your right shoulder as you exhale long and gently through the mouth. Bring your body back to center and release. Beautiful. We will work with the spine. We will open the spine in six directions, and the first movement is a variation of Cat-Cow on the chair. I would be happy if you placed your hands on your knees or on your chair. Choose what is comfortable for you. Sit with your back straight and tall. Observe how you feel here. Exhale long and gently through the mouth as you arch your back into Cat Pose, bringing your chin to your chest. Observe how your shoulder blades separate from each other here. And then we will enter a flow. Exhale back into Cat Pose. Inhale into Cow Pose.

The Grateful Heart Practice

Continue for a few more times.

Back to center now. I would be happy if we placed one hand on the center of your heart and the other on your belly. Keep a soft gaze or close your eyes if comfortable, and take time here to observe how you feel. I would like to invite you to take a short moment of introspection here. With each exhale through the nose, think of something you are grateful to be, and each time you exhale through the mouth, think of something you are grateful to have. For example, inhale, think of something you are grateful to be, such as „I am a son, I am a daughter, I am a spouse, I am spring.” Exhale something you have. „I have a home. I have health. I have a cup of tea.” Anything. Let’s do this three times. Let’s see how you feel when you do this.

Inhale.

Now we will do a side bend. So sit with your back straight and tall in Mountain Pose once more. Anchor yourself. Inhale.