Easy Yoga for Flexibility and Strength
DJ | USA | 07/19/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is an excellent workout with basic yoga poses geared mainly for those with little to no yoga experience, especially athletes who need to stretch more to prevent injuries. There are 4 basic sections: Foundation, Lower Back, Hamstrings, and Hip Openers. The Foundation section (10 minutes long) covers proper breathing, basic standing poses (i.e., mountain), sitting poses (i.e., hero), and some wall poses that were new to me. Exercises in the Lower Back section (11 minutes) include cat & cow stretches (done on hands and knees), spiral twists, and full body stretches (including downward facing dog.) The stretches in the Hamstring section (11 minutes) included seated staff pose, seated forward bend, reclining hamstring stretch, standing forward bend, and wide leg forward bend. The Hip Opener section (18 minutes) has some great lunge poses (warrior 1, warrior 2, pigeon pose, and side angle pose.) The workout concludes with some relaxing reclining poses (goddess pose, "corpse" pose, etc.)
Christine gives clear and easy-to-follow instructions, and she explains the benefits of each of the poses as well ("this will help you with your balance", "this helps you maintain proper alignment", "this pose helps improve your posture", etc.) I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in basic stretch routines ... it's "yoga made easy" for strength and flexibility!"
From A Teacher's Point of View
Yoga Addict | 04/09/2010
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I have been teaching yoga for a few years and recently started to teach at a running club. I decided to purchase a few dvds tailored to runners to expand my knowledge in this area. The students in my class have none or little yoga experience and are very stiff. This dvd is perfect and I learned a great deal from it. First I appreciate that it is organized into 4 segments and each one is so targeted to the needs of runners. The instruction, both visual and oral, is very clear and even the stiffest person can get in and out of the poses, practice safely and gain benefit. Also helpful is that the DVD illustrates modifications in poses , for those very stiff and those with more flexibility. It is obvious that Christine understands the needs of tight runners and has crafted a yoga program that gets to the heart of the most common runners' issues. I have used this dvd as a valuable reference and have integrated many valuable aspects from it in my own teaching. My only suggestion for improvement is that the participants should smile more!"
Just what I needed!
John Valentine | 01/05/2010
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As a 60+ runner carrying a few extra pounds I was often stiff and prone to injury. My yoga experience is pretty limited but I found it relativley easy to follow the instucter's poses in the video. I am definitely more flexible now and am enjoying my running more, with fewer aches and pains. Even if I may not have time to fit my run in every day, I make time to do the yoga workout just to make sure I stay limber. I would recommend this to any runner, especially those who hope to keep running well into the future. Also, the soothing voice of the instucter and the yoga itself helps to keep me generally more relaxed."