A superb introduction to one of the most beneficial and rewarding forms of yoga
Flow yoga, also called vinyasa yoga, combines flowing movement with rhythmic breathing for a dynamic mind-body workout. Like a moving meditation, flow yoga unites mind, body, and breath. Your mind clears, your body calms, even as your pulse quickens.
Renowned and innovative flow yoga teacher Shiva Rea leads this introductory practice, filmed amid breathtaking scenery on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. She begins with a seated mediation that teaches you how to link breath with movement. Three more segments introduce her flowing approach to classic poses. Transitions from pose to pose are graceful and easy. You may not have Shiva’s flexibility (yet), but you can follow her lead in ways that work for you. Feel yourself becoming stronger and more supple. Sense your new energy and find the fluidity that has always been yours.The title, Flow Yoga for Beginners, is slightly oxymoronic, as “flow” yoga, at least as practiced by many yogis and yoginis, is by its very nature more aerobic, vigorous, and difficult than the yoga undertaken by most beginning students. But leave it to Shiva Rea, whose growing series of home videos is arguably the best on the market, to reconcile those two disparate factors–for the most part, anyway. Rea defines the flow concept as “the ability to move freely in an unbroken string of awareness”; in more pedestrian terms, it’s a continuous sequence of poses, one moving freely and naturally to the next, which tends to generate heat and deepen control of the breath. The breath, specifically ujjayi pranayama, is the centerpiece of Rea’s introduction to this 70-minute program; her instructions in the use of this basic but hard-to-explain technique are excellent. Thereafter, she spends about 20 minutes on backbends (from simple standing and lunging backbends to poses like cobra, bow, locust, and camel, which can be very challenging for inexperienced students); this segment also includes a few twists. Next, the “Relaxing Flexibility Flow” sequence consists mostly of counterposes such as the “happy baby” and badakonasana (cobbler’s pose), while the “Standing Pose Flow,” the longest and best of the lot, focuses on poses including and derived from virabadrasana II (aka warrior II), one of the common standing positions. It’s all good, but while Rea provides detailed instruction and simpler variations for many poses, genuine beginners would do well to study the program closely before attempting it; and even then, poses like chaturanga dandasana (a lowered pushup) are rarely taught in beginners classes, even in their easier versions. As for the lush Hawaiian scenery, well, great, but the practice of hatha yoga ultimately depends on going inside, even to the point of doing it with eyes closed. Still and all, while it’s not quite up to the standards of Shiva Rea’s other videos, Flow Yoga for Beginners is a winner. –Sam Graham
Buy “Shiva Rea – Flow Yoga for Beginners” For Only $7.31
March 5, 2010
#1
I have done Yoga for years, and this is pretty good.
I now have osteoporosis, and cannot do allot of the poses. I cannot
twist at the waist, and do some of the moving, bending down poses.
It is good for beginners.
March 5, 2010
#2
Don’t waste your time and money on this 70 minute non-flowing “workout.”
“For Beginners,” when applied to a workout means it’s either for people with no prior experience or it’s for people with a lower level of physical ability(my category). This workout doesn’t fit either description. It moves slowly–which is often a pretense for a beginning level workout–but it goes nowhere. You’ll be saying, “Are we there yet?” but you’ll never arrive.
Because I am not physically strong but still like to work out, I buy a lot of beginner workouts. Usually there is something to enjoy in all of them, but I found this one annoying.
You must be very, very strong in your arms and legs. Shiva Rea holds plank or other strenth-based poses for a long time. She has you pulse in some poses which actually reduces flexibility rather than increasing it. She has you twist in lunge and chair pose–unsupported–in order to warm up the spine for backbends. Hello, if you want to warm up the spine with twists why not sit down? I wasn’t getting a warm-up while my thighs were burning and my balance was challenged. It would be OK as a standing pose, but don’t call it a warm-up and maybe don’t hold it quite so long.
Shiva Rea uses a lot of yoga terminology and there are no captions showing you the names or their English translations, so if you don’t already know the names of the poses, you may never figure them out.
Shiva Rea talks very slowly; it’s hard to keep paying attention to her and keep focused. The workout goes slowly. I couldn’t stay interested or enjoy it.
And for those who care about such things, could she have worn modest shirts? They were fine while she was standing up, but we spend forever doing plank pose or forward bending poses and the shots were often focused head-on. Puh-lease, that’s NOT what I want to be looking at when I do yoga; shots like that don’t show me what the pose looks like. I have a number of yoga videos that are much less offensive, so I know you don’t have to wear stuff like that.
March 5, 2010
#3
Shiva Rea offers a relaxing, gentle yoga workout. which is perfect for starting your day or for refreshing your mind during a stressful day.
The fit and flexible Rea offers a series of segments in various lovely natural settings, with unobtrusive music and clear explanation. The entire sequence can be done at once, or it can be enjoyed one segment at a time.
This is a not a heart-pumping workout, but it provides stretching, balance, and strength work. Rhea gives suggestions for adapting the workout to different levels of skill and flexibility. She provides an inspiring example of a fit older person, and this would be a good workout for older and sedentary people. However, it can also offer a very good workout for rest days, and the entire sequence done at once is an invigorating challenge.
March 5, 2010
#4
This version is not very different from the current 2003 Outlook that I use. It’s better to think of it more as an upgrade. The new features include:
1) Business Contact Manager
2) RSS Feeds
Also, this version is compatible with my older version of MS word so no problems there.
March 5, 2010
#5
This review is truly ONLY about this product as I have no prior knowledge or experience with yoga in any form or fashion, thus I make no comparison to any other yoga program.
The surroundings are beautiful. Having personal knowledge of the beauty of most of the Hawaiian Islands I can attest this is a very good representation of the true beauty and serenity of the setting. However, in the lush dusk of the islands, I am generally not trying to learn or mimic anything, while with this DVD I am. The ‘darkness’ of the DVD in some places was quite an annoyance to me because it is so important for beginners to be able to ‘see’ what they are supposed to be doing.
The music, for the most part, is soothing, so I assume proper and good music for yoga. A little bit of it seems frenetic and perhaps out of place, but I can’t say that is absolutely the case basing the statement solely on my perception that yoga is all about meditation and inner calmness.
The look and sound of the DVD are calming in the same manner as the sleep-inducing sounds available on my clock radio. However, even I know that there is more to yoga than that.
The descriptions, such as flow yoga, vinyasa yoga, badhakonasana, and savasana have no meaning to me ywt.
Other reviewers mention Shiva ‘mislabels’ or changes the names of certain universal yoga movements. This was not a distraction, since I didn’t know the correct titles. Will it be a hindrance when branching out to other Yoga programs? Perhaps. If the position names are usually set in stone, I would assume when I see them again, I will recognize them regardless of their name.
Regarding the divisions of the different types of yoga and their placement on the DVD; again, I have no idea of the pros and cons. I just try to do what I am told when I am told. I would guess this really doesn’t matter for any beginner since at this point we are just trying to become familiar with yoga in general.
As an individual who had done very little physical exercise or training since ceasing ballroom dancing fifteen years ago, I can really be called a beginner in ‘exercise’ of any style. My age isn’t young. My job, my hobbies, and my overall lifestyle are very physically sedentary. Therefore, some of the positions and stretches on this DVD are very literally quite a stretch for me. The program definitely gives me goals and the absolute opportunity to ‘grow into it’ in a manner many beginner programs do not allow, those being entirely too simple at the outset.
My idea when ordering this beginning-yoga DVD was to expose myself to the world of yoga, what it is about and what it has to offer. This program does that and does it well. Will it lead a beginner further down the road to loving yoga? That of course will be an individual decision for each purchaser, but at least they will have a very good idea of where the yoga path leads should they decide to continue.
Speaking solely for myself, my biggest hurdle has been the calm speaking voice of the instructor. While physically sedentary, the mental and intellectual part of my job is rather frantic and very fast paced and this style of speaking is as far out of my natural environment as physical exercise itself. Can I adjust? Only time will tell.