SCI Superstar: Matthew Sanford

When Matthew Sanford was 13 years old, his entire life changed. He and his family were traveling along an icy road at Christmas when the car skidded, killing his sister and father. He, his mother and brother survived, but Matthew was left with a spinal cord injury.

Matthew however hasn’t let a diagnosis of paraplegia confine him, especially when it comes to his body. He is one of the most well-known, if not the most well-known, yoga teacher with a disability. From founding a successful yoga non-profit to being one of the most dynamic speakers you’ll ever meet, read on to learn about the zen-filled yogi, Matthew Sanford.

Why He’s Fearless

The journey of discovering the healing power of yoga with the mind-body relationship didn’t happen overnight for Matthew. When he was finally able to, he moved out to California in the 1980s, and that is where he met Jo, a yoga teacher that would transform his life. Matthew at first didn’t even think yoga would be possible for him, but Jo proved him wrong, showing him how to open himself up to the teachings, and yes modify poses along the way.

Soon Matthew was doing his own yoga practice at home, but he wanted to share all of the yoga amazingness he was experiencing with other people with disabilities. After moving to Minnesota, he began to teach adapted yoga in a Monday night class at the Courage Center, a huge rehab facility for people with disabilities in Minneapolis, MN. In 2002, his studio and nonprofit, Mind Body Solutions, was born. The studio as of 2024 is no longer an in-person studio, and now all classes are online and free for students with disabilities.

In 2008, Matthew won the Volvo for Life award, where he won $100,000 to improve his yoga studio. Yoga teachers and healthcare professionals from all over the world would fly to learn from Matt and learn the principals of adaptive yoga. Matthew also wrote a book, Waking, where he documents his journey in discovering yoga.

What’s Next?

Matthew’s studio partnered with the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation in 2013, creating how-to videos on adaptive yoga so they can be shared online. They also created a 1 hour in-chair yoga video, Beyond Disability. Currently, Matthew teaches every Monday online, with 12 FREE adaptive yoga classes a week. You can check it all out on their website.  Additionally, Matthew’s classes are recorded and are freely available on our website here.

— Follow Mind Body Solutions (and Matthew) on Instagram