Customer Reviews

Yoga Over 50

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

 

 

This book is filled with pretty pictures of seniors doing easy to difficult postures. No attempt is made to discuss the precautions anyone, but especially older people should take in practicing yoga, and I would definately not recommend it for an older beginner, especially anyone with injuries. A far better book is The New Yoga for People Over 50, Suza Francina, which discusses the changes that take place as we age, and shows many asanas with appropriate use of props and modifizations for safety, and which are suitable/unsuitable for injuries, high blood pressure -- a much, much better book.

I had done yoga seriously for 10 years in my 30's, but when I took it up again, to attempt to alleviate increasing 'aches and pains', I thought I was becoming 'too old' at age 53, because I couldn't do it as well as when I was younger. This book showed me that people older than I am were continuing to practice yoga. Now, at 57, I'm enjoying yoga more than I ever did when I was younger; I'm appreciating it on many more levels than simply the physical; AND my back pain is gone, my shoulder tension and sciatica are reduced to mild discomfort when tired, my ankles and wrists are more flexible than they've ever been. All this, thanks to the encouragement of a picture book, (as well as an excellent teacher who trained with the author) to reinforce the previous experience I've had with yoga. Now my 59 year old husband is beginning yoga, using the book. It's excellent.

One of the main reasons I bought this book after borrowing it from the public library is the very useful set of routines at the end. This allows someone to put together an effective set of exercises to meet various levels of flexibility and suit different purposes. The pictures are excellent illustrations of the different poses, and good hints are provided on working toward accomplishing them, with helps if necessary. Explanations and background of yoga are clear and concise, so you don't have to wade through reams of philosophical material.

I started using this book at age 41, and found it is extremely practical & provides easy to follow directions. The recommended programs at the back give guidance that other books don't. I have mild sciatica now rather than the crippling back pain I suffered from 2 years ago, before following the programs in this book.

Anyone over the age of 50 who is interested in trying yoga for the first time would be intimidated by this book. MANY of the poses are shown at the most advanced level. There are few examples of poses being modified for the less flexible senior and very little mention of contraindications.

Good book. I've done yoga before, so I was familiar with poses. If you haven't done yoga before, this may be hard for a first-timer.

I use this book allot in teaching and showing my older students that no matter what age, yoga is for everyone.

As the baby boomers age group becomes a significant portion of the population, it is necessary to inspire more people to keeping the body and the mind healthy and active. Whilst the models in this book are for the most part very adept in their asana practice, some of the asanas translate very well for the over 50 year old that has not had much exposure to yoga. The triangle is a nice example of this and the standing twist with one foot on the chair.
I think the book is an inspiration for student who is open minded. Many of my senior students laughed when I showed them some of the poses in the book saying "I can't do that". Yet in that same class they did do some of the asanas,and with integrity too.This was a great psychological boost for them. We are never too old to learn new things, only too old in the habits we have cultivated. An added bonus was seeing British actor Terence Stamp in some of the photos. Camella Nair - Author of "Aqua Kriya Yoga".

I really think this is a great book for all of us over 50 gals. The photos are helpful and the description of the moves thorough. I also like the fact that the photos are of rather average women with a few grey hairs and wrinkles! Enjoy!

At first I was a bit mystified by the reviews here. This is a excellent book. It has clear instructions and nice big sharp photos that are professionally done. The book has a nice mix of gentle and challenging poses--from chair poses to challenging positions (such as Crane Bakasana, pg 37). It even includes some inspiration, showing an 80 year old gal with impressive flexibility for any age. Since I've done yoga before, this all works for me. But I could see if you're a total beginner, as many starting yoga after middle age are, this will be a bit intimidating. For those folks, you may want to consider or supplement with some other titles such as Yoga for Arthritis and/or Get Fit in Bed, which includes a lot of gentle yoga positions.