I am currently working with an elderly lady who has had low energy since recovering from pneumonia in February. She is just beginning yoga so I am proceeding VERY slowly, with joint freeing series and some very simple forward bends and twists. Can you recommend some poses for building both her energy level and her immune system? Thanks very much…
S
Without hearing more clearly of her limitations I would recommend more than poses pranayama instead. There is way too much emphasis on Asana and not enough on pranayama. This is more appropriate for the elderly than Asana. I would spend more time here than with poses. Just doing lengthening of the breathing with ujjaye technique can do wonders for increasing stamina and strengthening immune function. Prolonged exhalations with abdominal tone emphasized can assist her. Monitor her heart rate and be sure she is relatively steady there before doing more than a couple of minutes. There are many simple variations you can also give her. For more variety you can check with Richard Miller (www.nondual.com) and order his Breathing for Life cassettes on Ujjaye. It is optimal to learn pranayama first hand and when you do stick with that lineage do not mix them. If you know agnisar DHOUTI (purifying the digestive fire) I would give that also.
As far as postures I would recommend inverted poses provided her circulation is back to normal and she is free from heart conditions and uncontrolled elevated blood pressure. In general do not hold poses but do them dynamically, inhale into pose and exhale out. More specifically exhaling during any abdominal contraction motion. Also bridge pose repeatedly, legs up (Upavistha Konasana) back and forth to knees to chest (Apanasana) mildly with breath rhythm.