Customer Reviews

Baron Baptiste's Live! Series DVD

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have had this DVD for about six weeks, and it is still one of my favorites, and one that I keep reaching for. The DVD contains three workouts. The workouts are similar and contain some of the same poses, but they each have a different emphasis. Soul of Strength is an advanced level 60 minute workout that covers a little bit of everything. It starts with sun salutations and warrior series. Then it moves on to some challenging balancing poses that will really work your legs. There are a lot of standing on one leg poses including eagle and tree pose. Then you move on to back bending poses like camel, bridge, and wheel. Then you do some abdominal poses and hip openers, and end with the final relaxation. The second workout is
Core Power, an intermediate level workout that emphasizes back bending and abdominal strengthening. This workout is about 29 minutes long. Some of the back bending poses include bow, camel, bridge, and tabletop poses, as well as cat back arches. The abdominal section includes some slow bicycle-type exercises and boat pose. This workout also has you stay in the plank (push up, up position) for a longer period of time and you can really feel your entire core working. The third workout is Unlocking Athletic Power. This is a 30 minute intermediate/advanced workout that is meant to help athletes stretch out and reduce the effects of repetative stress that is placed on your body while doing sports. Baron does a lot of \"runner stretches\", for the legs and hip openers as well as abdominal and back bending poses. This workout includes some challending poses like chair, crow, half pigeon and crescent moon poses.
The DVD Menu includes \"Play\" and \"Sequences\" for each workout. When you go into \"Sequences\", you can choose between Sun Salutation A, Warrior Series, Balancing Series, Back Bending Series, etc. This workout really flows smoothly from one pose to another, and the music is great. During each of the final relaxation poses, Baron says that you should stay in that position for 5 to 15 minutes if you can. When the workout ends, the music keeps going, which is very relaxing. The workouts on this DVD range from intermediate to advanced, giving you variety, as well as a DVD that you can grow with.
Instructor comments: Baron Baptiste is an excellent instructor. He walks you through the poses step by step, telling you exactly where to place your feet and your arms. He gives good form pointers too, reminding you to check the positioning of your arms and feet. He is also very encouraging. He reminds people to only go as far as they can go, and he shows modifications for some of the poses. During the balancing poses he says its ok if you fall, just get back up and keep trying.

This DVD has three very nice workouts on it: the first is a 60-minute full workout that reflects Baron's teaching these days. Age has made him a more gentle and careful teacher, but this session will still move that healing heat and deep sweat through your body. I found the session an interesting combination of gentleness and challenge, in large part because the poses are ordered differently than they are in many power workouts including Bryan Kest's and Baron's mid 1990s work. Specifically, the tape moves away from using exclusively sun salutations for warming the body, instead adding in thunderbolt poses (like sitting in chair with no chair)to build up heat. For those whose arms might get tired doing the salutations, the chair poses spread the heat over the whole body and the sequence does not overload the arms right at the beginning of the session. For me the changed sequence meant that different parts of the body were being challenged at different points, which seemed to expose some new body weaknesses and really got the heat moving. The new order also allowed me to go farther in some poses like side plank pose where the traditional order had left me a little too weak to explore the pose like I wanted to. Definitely worth having. Also included on the disc are two short sessions, a core power (abs and back) session and an athletic performance (hip, leg and back stretch and strength)session. Both of these are very good, but you want to be sure you are practicing in a well-heated room, breathing deeply and relaxing, because in a shorter session it is sometimes easy to strain a little bit before you are really heated up and loose. With that in mind, the two 30 minute short sessions are also really good. This disc is a great value, and for my money is better than Journey Into Power 2, although that is also very good.

I have been practicing Yoga for 4 years. Ever so slowly I am getting into it more and more. I purchased this DVD 2 months ago when I started a home practice--Let me tell everyone, no joke, I have lost 10 lbs and 2 sizes and I never felt so good!

I would recommend a fairly good physical fitness level and a basic knowledge of yoga for this practice, but Baron gives plenty of alternative poses for beginners and the less flexible. Buy it--it is the greatest!

I started practicing Yoga about 4 months ago. Starting with Bryan Kest's Beginner 20-minute at the suggestion of a friend, I was hooked! I started checking out Baron Baptiste when I saw his 3 DVD set at Best Buy. I liked his flow a lot. I read here how great the LIVE! DVD was and I read Baron's book.

This is a fantastic intermediate workout. All three workouts are awesome and complete. The music is by far the best music I have heard in any Yoga video.

Get this one if you want to take your practice to the next level!

If you are a TRUE BEGINNER WITH NO EXPERIENCE get Bryan Kest's Step-By-Step/20 Minute Workout DVD (or seperately on VHS).

Namaste

I really enjoy Baron Baptiste's teaching style. He has a the perfect soothing voice for putting you in the right state of mind for practice. He's good at reminding you to breathe, if you're a beginner. The two 25 minute practices are great for when you are short on time. And the hour long practice is demanding enough to keep you interested for quite a while, especially if you start out with the easier modifications. The participants do beginner and advanced movements, so you always have something to work up to.

I have all three of these practices on VHS and they are amazing!
"Unlocking Athletic Power" is about 25min. and gives you great stretch through the hips and legs. "Core Power" is a total ab and back practice that runs about 25min. It's a perfect alternate to pilates. "SOUL OF strength" runs a little under an hour and works you from head to toe. Baron as always is a great teacher and motivator. The DVD is easy to navigate, great picture and sound.

I have to admit I thought Baron Baptiste was one of those power yoga jocks/gurus riding the current wave of yoga's popularity to fame. I apologize, Baron! It was that Crow pose picture on the front of his book, "Journey Into Power" that did it. Well, now I can say I've seen the light.

Baron's DVD (and book) have really taken my practice to a new level. I have been practicing for a year, but would still call myself somewhat of a beginner. The workouts on the DVD are challenging but not overwhelming. I feel strong, healthy, and centered when I'm done.

Anything else I'd say basically mirrors the rest of the positive reviews. Bottom line -- if you are intrigued with yoga and want to intensify your experience, buy this DVD. I don't think you'll regret it!

I love this video. Its a great workout and you can see results quickly if you do it regularly. I had a baby 8 months ago and started doing this DVD when my son was 3 months old. I have lost all the baby weight (actually I'm 15 pounds thinner than pre-pregnancy weight). There are 3 workouts - 2, 1/2 hour wrokouts when you don't have a lot of time - one focuses on hip openers, they both have core strengthening and back exercises. The longer workout is about 55 minutes and focuses on all parts - balance, lengthening, core strength, back strength, relaxation and meditation, etc. He talks a little too much but does give good modifications if your a beginner.

I would recommend this DVD to everyone. It shows students pereforming Yoga on all levels in a classroom setting and gives the inspiration and instruction you need to compete a wonderful 1 hour of Yoga. The only downside to this edition is that the two additional 30 minute workout sessions are pretty much copies of the first 60 minute one.

Great instructions from the best, Baron Baptiste

I have been using this DVD for several months now and I find something new every day. It is a great workout, it flows very well. Beginner levels are introduced where needed. I have really enjoyed my workouts with Baron and this group. My wife has begun to workout with me lately. I highly recommend it. I use his book Journey into Power to explain the poses in more detail.