Product Details

• Actors: Gabriella Giubilaro
• Directors: Harlan Steinberger
• Format: NTSC
• Region: All Regions
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: G (General Audience)
• Studio: Hen House Studios
• DVD Release Date: December 1, 2003
• Run Time: 84 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000LP5CMA
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #27,521 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

118 of 121 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yoga that will make you thin, beautiful and happy in 3 hours a week., May 4, 2007

By 

Lisa M. Mims (Austin, TX United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Iyengar Yoga With Gabriella (DVD)

This looks like a basic yoga tape. It's not. What it is, is an archival DVD recording of one of the finest yoga teachers in the world, Gabriella Giubilaro. Because it was intended as a reference for her teachings, it allows each exercise to be viewed on its own, out of any sequence.

But, if you just push, "Play", it's also a series of yoga poses that can be done as a routine. Therein lies its genius: if you need guidance to get through a yoga practice, this will do it. No more looking wistfully at that yoga book.

However, in order to do these poses properly, you would have to a) study with a disciple of B.K.S. Iyengar for at least three months, or b) practice with a book by an Iyengar disciple who talks about the muscle activation that Gabriella is doing in this dvd. (You're looking for cues like, "No droopy kneecaps." "Imagine four points on the soles of the feet.) Basically, the idea is that you are using all of the muscles by forcing them to work, just by thinking about the muscles tightening while you are in the poses.

The results of the effort involved are threefold: the level of concentration required by this practice will bring up emotional issues and force you to stay with the feelings; the amount of muscle work involved will turn you into a skinny yoga person after about a year; the stress it takes away will clear up your skin.

(It is possible to do the same thing with slow, heavy weightlifting, but I've never known a weightlifter who was without injury after thirty years. I know a lot of yoga practicioners who have gone fifty years without a serious injury.)

In my twenties, I took a class a lot like this, three days a week. At the time, I lived in New Orleans, ate and drank what you would expect to eat and drink in New Orleans, was in a sedentary, stressful graduate program, and, after a year, wore a size eight.

Caveats: Not for beginners. You have to start with some instruction, either via an Iyegar book aimed at beginners or a class. This uses intermediate level timings. After a few months you will need to increase the length of time you hold the poses, and you will need a book to tell you how to progress.

This is what yoga is supposed to be. It's very basic. It's very focused. It brings with it power and grace.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Yoga with Gabriella, April 13, 2008

By 

E. Parker (California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Iyengar Yoga With Gabriella (DVD)

Although you need to have taken a few months of guided yoga, this DVD is wonderful for people who love the Iyengar style. It provides a basic guide for at home practice, focusing on proper execution of the asanas. I took a yoga elective for one semester, and this DVD's simple narration and subtle music had me remembering all the comments my instructor gave, enhancing the entire experience. However, if you like exotic locations and hi-tech interactive menus, this is not for you. If you just need a little help and guidance practicing on your own, Gabriella is an incredible person to watch and learn from.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for Iyengar students as a home practice, June 28, 2010

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autumnphoenix2 - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Iyengar Yoga With Gabriella (DVD)

Before you buy this DVD, make sure you know about Iyengar yoga, and you should probably have some background in it. If you haven't heard of the style, this probably isn't what you're looking for and instead, you may want to look into Shiva Rea's DVDs or something similar (it's probably more of the yoga you're used to/what you expect yoga to be). If you've had practice as an Iyengar student, this DVD is great as a reference for home practice.

I took Iyengar yoga for a year, and now I'm moving to a small, rural community where the only yoga is "fitness"-type yoga at a small gym...and if you've done Iyengar, you know that's not the same at all! To keep my home practice going, I use this DVD along with printable practice sequences from the Iyengar Yoga Institute of New York ([...]). I use the sheet (as well as books like Yoga: The Iyengar Way) for the order of sequences, then I play the asana (you can choose each pose separately) on this DVD as a guide for alignment and such.

You can play the asanas all in a row, but I can't see doing that- it goes too quickly, and there's a lot. I think that this DVD is best as an asana-by-asana reference when you've had background in Iyengar yoga. After all, it's hard to read in a book how to align yourself while trying to do the pose- hearing it out loud makes it tons easier!

Overall, great for the home practice of an Iyengar student. If you don't have Iyengar background, this might not be for you.