Customer Reviews

Power Flexibility Yoga for Beginners with Rodney Yee (Living Yoga) [VHS]

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This is a great tape if you are somewhat flexible already and want to prepare yourself for the more challenging poses. Make sure you have done some beginners workouts so you know some of the poses already. This definitely should not be you're first workout tape. This is a well paced workout that not only works on you're flexability but your'e strength and concentration too.This has alot of downward facing dog poses in it. This seemed to help prepare me for the headstands and handstands in the Yoga Journal's Yoga for intermediates by getting me used to having my head down and blood flowing to it. Rodney Yee is a great instructor. I love how he incorporates small meditations at the end of each of his videos. I am glad I purchased this tape. It brings me 20 min. of peace and serenity and leaves me feeling focused, energised and peaceful throughout the day.

This is a beginner's POWER YOGA video. If you are a complete beginner, please keep in mind that Power yoga (ashtanga) is the most vigorous and dynamic type of yoga, emphasizing continuous flow of movement. And this means that to be able to do this video, you need to be fit and flexible enough to link poses in rapid succession! If you can't do this, don't buy it. If you can - even if you have never tried yoga before - this video is for you!

Rodney Yee will lead you through a variety of postures (mostly back bends, no balance poses) interspersed with "sun salutations" (set sequence of poses executed rapidly). The whole video is about 30 minutes long. Production and music are very nice, not too distracting and not too new-agy. There's a short meditation/relaxation at the end.

In short, if you are somewhat fit and flexible, you'll probably enjoy this video.

This is the third in the Power Yoga series. I bought this video for more variety to go with the first two videos, Power Yoga for Stamina (vol 1), and Strength (vol 2).

After practicing this video I would have to say that it's the least physically intense of the three videos, but your flexibility will be tested the most. You'll do upward facing dog poses with one leg lifted up to your stomach to put more weight on your other foot. You'll also lift that leg up in the air behind you to stretch your muscles in ways you've never imagined!! The video ends with a lengthy cooldown session.

For a more intense workout in order of difficulty, try either the "Stamina" or the "Strength" videos as well. You could even practice all three videos in series!

If you're new to yoga, I'd try the AM/PM yoga series first and then try the Power Yoga for Stamina or this video once you feel confortable with the basic poses. These Power Yoga series videos are more intense and require more advanced flexibility and upper body strength. Overall, I enjoyed this video tremendously and highly recommended for those Power Yoga enthusiasts!! (along with the other two videos)

The first time I did this tape, I felt the same as several of the other reviewers...this is not for beginners! I am not at all flexible and have never done yoga before but I have stuck with this and another of Rodney Yee's tapes for 4 weeks now and they are now a joy to do. I still cannot mold myself into the poses as beautifully as he has, but my flexibility has increased tremendously and the workout becomes easier and easier each time I do it. I no longer am watching the video out of the corner of my eye, but am concentrating on each move and my breathing. The result is increased flexibility and a more relaxed me. My advice is to stick with the program a few weeks and you will be very pleased. If he made the routine any simpler the video would not be useful to you after only a week or two. Instead you have a program that will challenge you for several months.

Originally Rodney Yee made one Power Yoga video. Due to the success of that video they changed the packaging and labeled it the Stamina Version and added a Strength and this Flexibility version.

The problem with this tape is he tried to stick all the flexibility in without warming up the beginner. As you'll learn about Power Yoga (a.k.a. Vinyasa, Flow, or Ashtanga) you will find out that repeated Sun Salutations are required before you are warmed up enough to enter into deeper poses.

On the other hand, the original tape - the Stamina version tape, is a great 20-minute tape. If you like short tapes, Stamina is unbeatable. If what you want is Flexibility then you need to get one of the Total Yoga Flow Series tapes. They are safe complete tapes, but they do take 45 minutes.

Whatever you do, be smart when you practice without a teacher. Don't push it too far until you know your yoga and your body.

I was very disappointed with this video. The title may say this video is for beginners but it really isn't. Rodney Yee races through all of the poses never stopping to allow one to feel the stretch or breathe through any of the poses. If you are not familiar with the poses you will find it very hard to keep up much less be able to reap the intended benefits of yoga. For a beginner level video, I was expecting him to show me how to hold each pose but Rodney moves from pose to pose as if his audience is familiar with the terminology. Do not buy this video if you are a beginner like myself.

Thankfully I had taken a yoga class led by an instructor prior to using this tape. During some of the 'salutation' poses, the pace is too fast for a beginner. Also, Rodney does this movement when he is transitioning from a standing postion to a face-down position on the ground where he puts all of his weight on his hands, lifts his legs off the ground, then extends them out in a push-up like position. Definately not a beginner stance. I think this tape would make most beginners frustrated. I would suggest only doing every-other pose/position during the fast pace movements, and then just modifying his movements as needed.

I found Rodney Yee's Power Yoga for Beginners frustrating the first time through, however, once I learned the routine I found it challenging, relaxing, and perfect for those mornings when I don't have a lot of time. The routine is only 25 minutes long and packed with all the right yoga moves.

One word of caution...beginner. It really is best if you get the series (strength or stamina) and become really good at one of those first. This one is a little challenging if you are not in good shape already or if you unfamiliar with yoga poses.
Otherwise, the tape is a solid workout and not too long. Before this workout I had a relatively weak upper body, but this has made me much stronger. I can now do several pushups, impossible five weeks ago.
I have done tapes by three different people and I find Rodney Yee the best at explaining.
It's true that he goes pretty quickly. MAny people who do yoga want a slow pace and more meditation. If that's you then this tape is not for you. But is you want to get stronger, more flexible and work up a ligh sweat, then this is the perfect tape.

First of all, like all of the videos in the Living Arts "for Beginners" series, this tape assumes some prior familiarity with basic yoga poses, so "Yoga Practice for Beginners" is recommended as a first step. Secondly, because this is a "power" yoga workout, it moves along at a fairly quick pace, so some baseline staminia and strength is also a necessary prerequisite to this practice.

That being said, Rodney Yee has done a nice job of putting together a flowing, energizing 25-minute workout on this video. I particularly like how he gradually increases the difficulty level over the course of the practice. For example, when you first begin the sun salutations, you will step back to a lunge and put your knees on the floor before coming into cobra; on subsequent repetitions, you jump back instead and then move into a low push-up position before doing a full upward dog. Yee gradually adds on to the sun salutations with powerful pose, warrior poses, triangle, three-legged dog, and one of my favorite poses, pigeon--this is an especially nice hip opener. Following the standing poses, Yee comes to a seated position for simple seated forward bends: head to knee, wide-legged forward bend, and cobbler. Finally, Yee moves to reclined poses and offers a nice guided meditation in relaxation pose which is less rushed than in his other videos.

This is my favorite video in Yee's Power Yoga series. The practice flows at a nice, steady pace without feeling rushed, and the poses included provide excellent stretches, particularly for the hip area. This is a good video for anyone who wants a shorter yoga practice which is invigorating without being exhausting.