The Practice of yoga during times of social isolation: limits and possibilities related to the life quality of individuals with visual impairment

Abstract

This study aims at acknowledging, understanding, and analyzing the possible living contributions of Yoga regarding health and life quality in an inclusive perspective, for adults and elderly with visual impairment, members of the extension project named “Pedagogical Practice of Adapted Physical Education for Disabled People”, within the social isolation context due to the Covid-19. The work discusses the several senses and meanings attributed to the practice of Yoga, based on the need to adapt/adjust to multiple resources necessary to this new context of education, such as technological accessibility, adaptation of residential spaces for classes, audio description of the activities, and the personal availability to experience the new class format. We adopt theoretical-methodological assumptions of a qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive research, in pursuit of promoting direct and analytical engagement with the research field. Twelve adults and elderly people with visual impairment, from the district of Vitória, enrolled in the Adapted Physical Education Lab of the Federal University of Espírito Santo’s Physical Education and Sports Center (Laefa/Cefd/Ufes), participated in the study. To collect the data, we use analysis and investigations of field diaries, the project’s internal evaluations, and photographs and video recordings from the years of 2020 and 2021. The results indicate that practicing Yoga contributes significantly for the health and life quality of the participants, positively influencing in physical and psych emotional dimensions, favoring a greater body control, the comprehension of varied feelings caused by the pandemic and the maintenance of social interactions.