Total Yoga - The Flow Series, Complete Set

Also, it would be nice to have something like this on DVD.

As a beginnner at yoga, but somebody in good physical condition with respect to strength and endurance, I found this to be a good entry to practicing yoga. It communicates well, provides some insight into yoga practice and the three levels provide not only more poses but a way to increase the quality and intensity of your practice. And it provides enough challenge and developing routine that you can continue to use it for a reasonable period without it becoming boring or outgrowing it.

There are the usual disclaimers at the beginning about injury and working within your abilities, as well as a couple general recommendations on moving between poses. I think they should be taken seriously for beginners, even those who are quite fit, since the practice can put strain on muscles and joints not otherwise tested.

With that said, some of the highlights are:
-Each tape is about 45 minutes of work out, but there is some repetition so that your practice evolves by adding new poses as well as bringing greater challenges to earlier ones.
-Each tape begins with an excellent description of complete yoga breathing. While it might suffice to do this once, it allows you a couple minutes to settle into the beginning of a routine.
-There are two practitioners in the tape, a man and woman. While doing the same poses, there are some variations in style and apparent flexibility. It is instructive to watch both of them.
-The descriptions of the poses and moving through them are very clear, although there are some of the standard yoga phrases that are not patently clear to a beginner. However, working through the series a number of times, the benefits and familiarity of the practice will make them intuitively clear.
-The practioners are not examples of people who appear to do other exercises, i.e. they are not bulked up from weight training, Pilates, etc. They just appear fit and very healthy advertisements for what yoga might be able to provide.
-The audience for this seems to be quite broad and both men and women. (The other video I have, Yoga Fusion, seemed slanted toward younger woman.)
-There is an emphasis of coupling the breathing with the physical movement, i.e. flow. The relaxation portion at the end is done seriously and well.
-The accompanying music is New Age influenced Indian music which is well done, soothing and consistent with the goals of the series, as is the narrator's voice.

I don't have any desire to search out additional yoga videos. Having a good video is a big step to trying to begin a yoga practice that, in hindsight, is very difficult to do from a text alone. After I have felt that I have a sufficient command of these practices, and understanding of the value of the practice, my next step would be to seek out an instructor and take some classes.


The best Yoga tapes you can buy!   December 31, 2002
11 out of 11 found this review helpful

I started out with Total Yoga (their first tape) a fell in love with Yoga. Tracy and Ganga are great at explaining how you should breath and how you should hold the poses. I was very excited when they came out with the flow series. I have been trying other Yoga tapes and was just not satisfied with the lack of explaination and breathing technique. With the flow series there is no guess work and I feel confident I am doing the salutations correctly and I am breathing properly. Tracy and Ganga are very spiritual and inspirational. Namaste


Three wonderful workouts for any level   October 21, 2002
artemis
14 out of 14 found this review helpful

I own nearly 20 yoga videos, and recently added this to my collection. I love all three, but especially Water and Earth, and they are now the tapes I use most often. The best word I can use to describe them is "pure". This is simple yoga, no music, no seaside scenery, no "get some rapport with the floor" annoying rhyming. They are the perfect length for a squeezed-in yoga session (35-40 minutes), and revitalize and re-centre me even when I am very tired at the end of the day. A good investment.