Customer Reviews

The Perfect Pregnancy Workout vol. 2: Yoga

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

First, a little background of who I am. I am a fairly athletic woman at the end of my second trimester. I was totally unable to workout during my first trimester because I was so very sick. When my second trimester started I felt much better and started looking for some good pregnancy workout DVDs.

I bought four pregnancy yoga DVDs: "The Perfect Pregnancy Workout, vol. 2:Yoga" with Sarah Steben, "Prenatal Yoga Complete" with Mary Pappas-Sandonas, "Prenatal Yoga" with Shiva Rea, and "Prenatal Vinyasa Yoga" with Jennifer Wolfe. Here's my comparison:

The Perfect Pregnancy Workout, vol. 2:Yoga:
Great workout! The one negative I found is also it's positive: it was *a bit* challenging to follow the first time through and I had to do it a few times before I really got it down, but I call this a positive because it has much more interesting moves and poses than the other DVDs. Even though I had to take some time to learn something new, I found it to be really worth it. After doing a few times I was finally able to let go of the pregnancy tension I've been holding in my calves, hamstrings and lower back! It's a very energizing take on yoga and when I was done I felt extremely relaxed and tingly.

Prenatal Yoga Complete:
How can I say this kindly? This was definitely NOT the DVD for me. I purchased it because it seemed like it was giving a lot of value for the money, with "over 8 routines for each trimester", but they didn't mention how boring those routines were. I know that Iyengar yoga is supposed to be slower-paced, but I literally fast-forwarded through long sections of the workouts without missing anything. My husband walked through while I was doing this and scoffed, "is that supposed to be a workout?"

Prenatal Yoga:
This DVD is so popular and I can see some really great things about it: the set is beautiful, there's high production value and she gives a solid, beginner's workout. It is not my cup of tea because although there's a meditative feel to the DVD she NEVER STOPS TALKING. EVER. I also found it to be too gentle, but that's just my opinion.

Prenatal Vinyasa Yoga:
A pretty good, fast-paced workout. I enjoyed the moves, but I think that newbies would have a very hard time getting into some of the positions. For example, she does full sun salutations without accounting for the fact that many people lack the mobility to move their feet from downward dog to warrior without modification. She was also pretty chatty and the set was also uninspired, in a small room which reminded me of Jack LaLane circa 1976. I think I'm revealing my age here... Hmm.. I was very, very young then!

I hope this helps save you some money!

I really don't want to give a bad review, but unfortunately have to.

I am now 20 weeks into my pregnancy, and still work out regularly (jogging, swimming, pilates, yoga, dance...all of which I did previously). I bought this DVD in conjunction with The Perfect Pregnancy Workout 1. Considering the fitness experience of the instructor (former acrobat for Cirque) I hoped that it would be a challenging workout that adhered to the safety needs of a pregnant woman. I was disappointed.

While safety is definitely addressed (in the intro), the workout is lacking. Instruction during the workout is poor and the yoga moves lack flow and organization. Beginners would have trouble following the workout, while advanced exercises will fail to find this much of a workout.

Unfortunately, I would not recommend this dvd. If you are wanting to try out one of the Perfect Pregnancy series, Volume 1 is a better purchase.

After falling in love with "The Perfect Pregnancy Workout, Vol. 1", I had to try volume 2. Again, the Steben sisters have brought a thoughtful, helpful, and much needed exercise video to expecting mothers.

I am currently 19 weeks pregnant and have been traveling cross-country for work. I find that, while I love the toning exercises of Vol 1, the Yoga of Vol 2 really helps to relax my spine. It also helps draw my focus into my body which goes a long way to relieve the stress of work and travel.

I've been doing yoga for 10 years, and during my first pregnancy I bought 6 different prenantal yoga dvds. I didn't like any of them, for various reasons, some to easy, some to difficult, some not enjoyable, one was 25 minutes of mediatation, and ten minutes of actual yoga. I love the Perfect pregnancy workout #1, and was so excited to try this dvd, perhaps I'm a little biased and that's why I think this dvd is so great. I look forward to it- I was having trouble getting out of bed some mornings, now I'm excited b/c I have something fun to do first thing! The modified poses are great, and advanced poses are just difficult enough. I also love the Steben sisters accents, seems to add to the dvd somehow.

No worries there are no handstands or acrobatics in this video! Just a workout centered on stretching and Yogic moves. I did workout before pregnancy. This is my second pregnancy, during my first I did water aerobics and walked. This is not an option with a toddler at home in the winter. I have other prenatal yoga dvds and workout videos. Most of the Yoga dvds for pregnancy are to melodic and I feel like falling asleep half way through by the fourth time I do it. I read a lot of negative reviews about this video and almost didn't buy it. But I noticed that even in the critical reviews they said they would keep on doing the workout. This is the most controversial DVD I have ever bought, and I am glad I did get it. If you are doing your workouts using instructional videos you know that no matter how hard or fast it is by the 5th time you do it you will have it practically memorized, so I find her quickness in routine a plus. Once I have done this workout a few times I won't be board or fast forwarding through long pauses or explanations. Also there is an instructional section that goes over most of the sections people complained about in slow motion. I am not athletic, flexible, or even in shape, just healthy and I was able to do the advanced moves 80% of the time. Also I have done or seen a version of 2 out of 3 of the exercises on this video. The new exercises where great and I am glad I did them. This is different from traditional Yoga videos so it is a good by to mix it up a little. The only exercise I will not do is the back bend but I just do the set up for it. The only people who might not want to try this video are those with some kind of chronic health problem, the obese, anyone with a truly at risk pregnancy, the lazy and unmotivated or those who are easily frustrated. However I am only giving this video 4 stars because The Perfect Pregnancy Workout vol. 1 by her sister is a better workout video in my opinion and it sets the bar really high. However some one who is more in to flexibility and movement oriented workouts would like this one better.

I bought this DVD because I wanted a prenatal yoga workout that was more challenging that the Shiva Rea prenatal yoga workout, which felt too gentle. I also bought it because I love "The Perfect Pregnancy Workout Vol. 1" by Sarah's sister Karyne.

It's not bad. It certainly is more active than Shiva Rea's, as I hoped. But I tend to compare both the yoga DVDs to classes I've taken in the past that were led by good instructors, and I just don't feel as stretched out and relaxed with these DVDs as I did with the yoga classes. But the instruction is pretty good and I would probably buy it again anyway.

On the other hand, I would highly recommend the Vol. 1 workout. I owe the shape I'm in and my energy level to that DVD. I even regained definition in my arms and legs that I had lost.

I have tried quite a few exercise routines during this, and my last pregnancy. I have always been disappointed by either the lack of pregnancy in the demonstrators, and therefore lack of understanding, or the lack of exercise.
The presenter, Sarah Steben, is definitely pregnant, and it shows not only on her body, but in the exercises she is proposing for you. Some of them are a little advanced, but all of them have beginner stances, so no matter what phase you're in, you can modify the workout for yourself.
The exercises help stretch muscles you never knew you had and I found that the next day, I was a little sore. Most of the exercises feel more like stretches than strength training, but it really gives you that boost, and you don't even know it! Plus, it makes back pain DISAPPEAR!!!

I tried Perfect Pregnancy Volume 1 which is great for strength training. I wanted to add a Pilates or Yoga routine to my regimen. I tried another Yoga for pregnancy DVD and was less than thrilled. It really wasn't challenging and I needed way too many props to do everything effectively. Not to mention it didn't flow at all! (And by the way, I've been doing Yoga off and on for a few years, but I'm far away from being advanced!)
Perfect Pregnancy Volume 2 is great because it's only about a half hour long, the exercises are challenging yet do-able, flowed nicely from positions, and best of all...very little props! :) You only need a strap (which can be substituted for a belt or tie) and a couple of pillows. The strap is used twice and one small pillow is used for floor exercises. The two pillows together are used at the very end for a relaxing stretch.
I really like how both of these workouts give different versions for beginner/advanced, and the instruction is very easy to follow. And best of all, I feel great after doing them!

I bought this workout because of the great reviews for Vol. 1, but I was very disappointed. The actual workout is only 17 minutes long. The yoga poses are rushed. There is no time to breath into the stretches. There are many modified poses so that you can choose your level. It is amazing what this woman can do with her pregnant body. There are some unique poses that I haven't seen in other pregnancy yoga workouts. But, I was disappointed with this purchase. I do not want to have to pause every pose so that I can get a good stretch, and at least 30 minutes of a workout. I don't recommend this yoga workout to anyone. Save you money.

Pre-natal yoga on steroids!!! This chick does not mess around. The vid starts with the hardest sun salutation I have ever seen. There is none of the slow and gentle, peace and love inducing ethos of other pre natal yoga tapes in this one. It is fast-flow movement the whole way through...nearly more dance than yoga. If you are going for this work out it is most likely a good idea to all ready be in great shape and very flexible. I thought that I was pretty healthy until I popped in this DVD. I had to modify some of the poses, even at 15 weeks, because they just didn't seem safe (one-arm back bends). The upside is that I was so sore afterward that my hubby took pity on me and booked me in for a fantastic pre-natal massage. I am still doing the work out, but only after a warm up from another tape...this one is zero to sixty in about 2 seconds (no warm up), and I have to take it slow and substitute some of the moves. It is a great work out, but probably should come packaged in yellow caution tape.