Customer Reviews

Sacred Yoga Practice with Rainbeau Mars - Vinyasa Flow: Beginners

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the first video of Rainbeau Mars' Sacred Yoga Practice: Vinyasa Flow series. Although it is labelled as a "Beginners" workout, I would not recommend it for those totally new to yoga, as 1) the instruction is not overly detailed, and 2) some of the poses present a bit of a challenge and require some strength. Beginners might also find more helpful to start with Mars' "Pure Tranquility" video prior to using this one.

Rainbeau begins the practice lying on the floor in relaxation pose--a nice change--and slowly leads you through some basic breathing and warm up stretches. She then moves to an all-fours position (table pose) for some nice back stretches: there are several different sequences involving cat pose plus a few downward dogs, some of which are held for a fairly lengthy period of time. From here, Rainbeau guides you into a standing forward bend with bent legs, gently encouraging you to open up further into this pose with several repetitions. She also spends a bit of time in a mountain pose variation before moving on to a single sun salutation. This series is done at very slow pace: Rainbeau goes through lunges on both sides and then lowers to the floor in push-up pose, which brings the practice to an end at 28 total minutes.

Rainbeau comes across as sort of a young, hippy chick. She is obviously very knowledgable about yoga--she sometimes uses the Sanskrit names for the postures and provides detailed anatomical information--and she is gently encouraging throughout the practice. Although she cues well, at times her voiceover cuing was slightly out-of-sync with her on-screen movements.

Overall, I enjoyed this practice, which I would describe as gently challenging rather than gentle per se. This is not the video I would choose for pure relaxation, but I definitely will reach for it again when I want a moderate-length, not-too-difficult practice.

This tape by Rainbeau Mars, the first in a 4 tape set is really wonderful!

It moves thru a gentle sequence of poses, with emphasis on breathing, that will open your body, mind and spirit in a gentle way.

Rainbeau is a gifted teacher who comes across very naturally and openly. She radiates sincerity and grace.

The scenery is beautiful which is always a nice addition and is nice to wake up to (especially in the middle of January:) )and the music is a perfect compliment to it.

I would highly recommend this to those new to yoga or those (like me) who have been doing it for years but want to have a gentle routine for those days when you want to do some yoga but don't want to push too hard. I felt amazing after doing this tape (and I've got over 50 Yoga videos) and will use this regularly on those more "Gentle" days.

Namaste.

i absolutely love this dvd. rainbeau mars is a wonderful guide on the journey to inner and outer peace. this is the first dvd or class to really get me into yoga, and it has honestly made a huge impact on my daily life. the reason for this is that it's primarily (for me, anyway) a spiritual, meditative practice - not just stretching. for a beginner with little to no experience with yoga, i would highly recommend this dvd. it will help you relax and "let go" of day-to-day struggles and just appreciate BEING. other reviewers have mentioned the lack of real physical challenge in this practice, but i've found it challenging because i was very inflexible when i started using it. again, for a complete beginner with an inflexible, stress-ravaged body and mind, this practice can work wonders.

This is a fabulous yoga practice! Rainbeau, the instructor, is clearly a beautiful person from the inside out. Her beauty just shines through while she instructs with a picturesque and serene view of the ocean as her backdrop. The exercises flow nicely as she directs you to either challenge yourself, or to take it easy on yourself by showing you alternative postures. The thing I love the most are the lovely and beautiful mantras she interjects throughout the video, reminding us of what is truly important in this life, in this body. Which is without a doubt, the challenge of life itself now days. If I couldn't do the exercises, I'd play it just to listen to her lovely and beautiful messages. Enjoy your breath!!!

This is my second review of this tape and after using it for about a year or so I must express again how wonderful it is. These days I have over 60 yoga videos and have been doing yoga daily for over six years (I study with a wonderful teacher as well) so I've got a fair bit of experience with both yoga and yoga videos.

This tape is Pure Bliss. An excellent tape for anytime you want to completely let go of the tension in your body, mind and soul.

One way in particular that I love this tape is to use it as a night time winddown. I just finished doing it a little while ago after a long and stressful day and it worked wonders.

If you are looking for a gentle tape, that is easy to follow and is also enhanced by soothing tropical ocean scenery and perfect background music, then I highly recommend this tape. Rainbeau Mars also is a wonderful teacher who leads you with grace and clarity.

Enjoy,

Namaste

This is a great workout for the beginning to the intermediate yoga practitioners. This video is very relaxing, but does give its share of challenging poses. Rainbeau is a great instructor. Her ques on this video and when she moves into the poses sometimes takes a while, but it gives you plenty of time to enjoy each pose. This video is one everyone should own.

The video is shot on a beautiful Hawaiian island and features Rainbeau Mars performing her Yoga practice on a rock bed with the ocean waters surrounding her. This setting is not only beautiful but the accompanying new age music is both tranquil and blissful.

Rainbeau has a pleasant personality, using many Sanskrit names for the poses, as she leads a series of Hatha Vinyasa style Yoga poses beginning lying down. The moves are somewhat gentle and slow-placed but require enough strength to keep a beginner feeling challenged. While the Yoga practice of this video will certainly leave you feeling very relaxed, it is not exactly "Yoga for relaxation" per se, as the poses do engage the muscles some. Rainbeau's "Pure Tranquility" DVD would be a better choice for that.

Overall this is a great DVD for Yoga beginners. The only slight drawback for me is that I prefer an all-relaxing Yoga DVD for when I want to relax, and a more challenging Yoga DVD for when I want to really sweat. The Yoga practice of this DVD however, falls somewhere inbetween, and therefore slightly short of either. However, everything else about this video - the set, the instructor and the music - is wonderful, and I'd eagerly recommend this to beginners.

Rating: Good

I LOVE RAINBEAU MARS BEGINNER YOGA DVD. I purchased this after using Simply Yoga by Yolanda Pettinato. It was an awesome transition for me as I am in my upper 50's. This tape is about 40 minutes. Since I like Rainbeau Mars so much I purchased the set of Beginner, Power, Sweat & Tranquility. The Power and Sweat were too strenuous for me to advance to after her beginner DVD so I purchased her Dawn & Dusk. The Dawn is too advanced for me and the Dusk is too slow and definitely for dusk only. I love her style and am still looking for a DVD to move into after her beginner tape with not such fast movement from one pose to another as I found on her Power, Sweat & Dawn DVD's. I definitely recommend this tape as a good starter for a young person or as a great intermediate for an older person. I took yoga classes when I was in my 30's so yoga is not totally new to me. I feel like the classes help one position oneself correctly and get the breathing right which is hard to get on a DVD. I hope this helps!

This tape by Rainbeau Mars, the first in a 4 tape set is really wonderful!

It moves thru a gentle sequence of poses, with emphasis on breathing, that will open your body, mind and spirit in a gentle way. It's particularly excellent if you are having stiffness or pain in your lower back.

Rainbeau is a gifted teacher who comes across very naturally and openly. She radiates sincerity and grace.

The scenery is beautiful which is always a nice addition and is nice to wake up to (especially in the middle of January:) )and the music is a perfect compliment to it.

I would highly recommend this to those new to yoga or those (like me) who have been doing it for years but want to have a gentle routine for those days when you want to do some yoga but don't want to push too hard. I felt amazing after doing this tape (and I've got over 80 Yoga videos) and will use this regularly on those more "Gentle" days.
Namaste.

Rainbeau Mars warm personality infuses this yoga practice with a subtle energy. The poses are perfect for beginners or relaxing for intermediates. As Rainbeau leads you through a flowing set of asanas the pleasant narrations is subtly calming. This is perfect for the end of the day when you want to nourish the body with breath. During the first 30 minutes you will be doing Cat/Cow, Downward Facing Dog, Child's Pose, Table, Moving Cat, Forward Bends, Low Lunges and Cobra. The session ends with a final relaxation pose or you can choose to do five additional poses shown from the front or side view.

~The Rebecca Review