Via Waylon Lewis

on Oct 6, 2008

Matthew Sanford: Yoga for the Disabled! Chanda Plan, via 9News.com.

DENVER – Grab your yoga mat. You’re about to learn about a mind-body exercise like no other. 

For the past decade Minnesota-based yoga instructor Matthew Sanford has been showing people what they can do with their bodies when then open their minds.

What makes his approach different is he does it all from his wheelchair. 

Sanford was in a car accident nearly 30 years ago that killed his father and sister and left him paralyzed.

He’s been practicing yoga for 17 years now because he says he wasn’t ready to forget about the parts he couldn’t feel.

“I missed my body, I missed hanging upside down and playing with balls and jumping over things,” he explained. 

For video, click here. 

Sanford came up with adaptive yoga moves anyone can do, and he now teaches those moves to others living with disabilities.

“I want everyone to sit up straight and tall,” he said to a room full of students on Saturday. 

Chanda Hinton was paralyzed from the chest down when she was nine.

Her sister Crystal first got her involved in yoga before she met Sanford, but she wasn’t sure it would work.

“I couldn’t really grasp that whole reality, because I was like, ‘I can’t do yoga,’” said Hinton. 

Hinton was wrong.

“You get into slight movements or slight poses that are affirming for the body,” she explained. 

Three years ago, Hinton decided she wanted others to experience that same feeling so she formed the Chanda Plan Foundation in Denver.

“I looked at what the Chanda Plan was doing and I looked at what Sanford was doing and I knew that there was a huge collaboration piece,” Hinton said. 

The two forces came together in a gym on the Auraria Campus on Saturday as a room full of both able-bodied and disabled people learned yoga together. 

“It’s about the mind body connection,” said Hinton.

To learn more about the Chanda Plan Foundation and alternative therapies, click here:http://iamtheplan.org/.

Founder of elephant magazine (founded: 2002, went national as indie magazine, & successfully transitioned online in 2009 [because mainstream magazine distribution is wildly inefficient from an eco-responsible point of view]) is dedicated to "bringing together those working (and playing) to create enlightened society." It's about anything that helps us to live a good life that's also good for others, and our planet. elephantjournal.com (named Top 10 in the US by over 40 sites) and host of "Walk the Talk Show with Waylon Lewis," a national “top ten ‘green’ video blog," Waylon was born in Boulder, Colorado, raised at a Buddhist meditation retreat in Vermont, graduated from Boston University’s top-ranked magazine journalism school; and is a top columnist for Huffington Post, daily bike commuter, workaholic, mediocre climber & best friend of Redford (a rescue hound). His goals in life: to take a long bath tonight with Dwell, The Sunday NY Times, The New Yorker & a glass of Talisker with one ice cube; publish a best-selling novel (and get filthy rich); have 12 red-headed chil'n (and only one wife); run for President (and lose) & have fun all along the way. ~~~ founder: elephantjournal.com | host: Walk the Talk Show with Waylon Lewis. Ft. on 20 sites, incl. Huffington Post. ~ 200,000 unique visitors/month: Google Analytics. ~ Treehugger: Reader's Choice "Eco Ambassador in Culture & Celebrity" + 2010 "Changemaker" ~ Discovery Network's Planet Green: "Green Hero" ~ Shambhala Sun: "Prominent Buddhist" ~ Naturally Boulder: "'07 Entrepreneur of Year" ~ 5280 Magazine: "Top Single '09" ~ MNN: Top 10 US Green Video Blog ~ Beliefnet: Top 10 Buddhist Blog ~ Shorty Awards: #1 Green Twitter in US ~~~ To connect: "elephantjournal on Facebook" "Waylon Lewis on Facebook" & "Walk the Talk Show with Waylon Lewis" on Facebook On twitter: twitter.com/waylonlewis and our award-winning twitter account, named #1 nationally in green: twitter.com/elephantjournal