yoga buffs, i need advice
Posted by Sariea on Aug 21, 2007 · Member since Feb 2007 · 845 posts
i have been looking at yoga dvds on amazon because i need something new.
i was wondering if anyone on here was familiar with the Ana Brett and Ravi Signh dvds. in particular i can't decide which one i'd like to try first. i mean they're $18 each so i wanna make sure i get a good one. but i've been looking at "Fat Free Yoga", "Yoga Beauty Body", "Dance the Chakras Workout" or "Yoga Bliss Hips"
i'm really hoping atleast one person on here is familiar with these, because i really would like to get one but they all look and sound good!! :)
nobody? :(
I don't know those DVDs but I do recommend Rodney Yee's stuff. I have Power Yoga Total Body and Yoga Burn, and both are great.
Yeah I also don't know the dvds you ask about, but I also like Rodney Yee's stuff allright. I prefer Nicki Doane's beginner astanga dvd, and David Swenson's (somewhat more advanced) astanga primary series dvd.
could you find them at a local library and test them out? that might be a good solution...
Sorry I don't know those. I highly recommend anything that Shiva Rea has done. I have quite a few yoga DVDs and she's the only one I use still.I love the fact that her DVDs give you freedom to express yourself in movement not always just following a perfectly choreographed set of movements. Here are some links. Check out what they say about the yoga 'matrix' It's an awesome feature on her DVDs.
In order of preference and use:
http://www.amazon.com/Shiva-Rea-Shakti-Jean-Michel-Jarre/dp/B0001611DS/ref=pd_sim_m_img/104-3159039-1439921
http://www.amazon.com/Shiva-Rea-Creative-Core-Abs/dp/B000H5U5N0/ref=pd_sim_d_title/104-3159039-1439921
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000KGH03E/ref=pd_cp_d_3/104-3159039-1439921?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_r=05BZH5KZ2WRBGZA11VK3&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=252362301&pf_rd_i=B000H5U5N0
Yeah I also don't know the dvds you ask about, but I also like Rodney Yee's stuff allright. I prefer Nicki Doane's beginner astanga dvd, and David Swenson's (somewhat more advanced) astanga primary series dvd.
I also love Nicki Doane's beginner ashtanga. After a few year's practice I still stay with beginner. But it is a good and hard work out! BTW It incoporate the breathing which I love about it.
thanks everyone.. i don't think they have them at a library or anyplace else, because the only place i can seem to find them is online (Borders, Barnes n Noble don't carry them, sadly)
i have shiva rea's Core Abs dvd and i like it, it makes me feel "free" kinda, thats why i was considering the Dance The Chakras dvd and Body Beautiful ones. i didn't like the Shakti one, though. BF's mom is big into yoga so i'm gonna ask if he can check to see if she has any of the dvds i'm looking at, because she let me borrow that Shiva Rea Shakti dvd before i spent $30 on it, thankfully. She gave me another dvd but it's not Rodney Yee, i can't remember his name but i couldn't get through even the first 2 minutes because he just would not stop talking. i was fast forwarding for so long, trying to get to the yoga part, that i just gave up.
i just wish SOMEONE around here carried these dvds. i don't want to wait to use them
If you're a Netflix member, see if they have any yoga videos you can try before you buy. I did this with a few regular aerobics videos and it really helped weed out the annoying/crappy ones!
(DO NOT, under any circumstances, get Carmen Electra's Aerobic Strip Tease) ;D ;D
well, netflix had the Fat Free Yoga dvds but i don't want to get a membership with them just for that i guess...
why not carmen electra? what was so bad about those lol not that i would ever get a strip tease workout video anyway lol...
Sariea, I'm a big Ravi and Ana buff! I have all of the DVDs that you mentioned and most of the rest of theirs. Of the ones you mentioned, I'd probably go with Fat Free Yoga Lose Weight & Feel Great (I hate that title, but don't let that bug you; this is a really good DVD, nonetheless.). There are 4 segments plus opening and closing material; this one is good for breaking into parts when you don't have a lot of time. Another good one for those new to Ravi and Ana is Kundalini Yoga for Beginners & Beyond. Yoga Beauty Body is probably most similar to regular hatha yoga that you're likely familiar with. Dance the Chakras is unique in that the first half is a kundalini set dealing with the chakras, and the second half are some dancey segments. I also really like their 2 latest DVDs, Yoga Quick Fixes and Yoga House Call; these have lots of short segments for various ailments/conditions that you can mix and match. You should know that kundalini yoga is quite a bit different than any of the yoga from the other yogis mentioned in this thread. Kundalini yoga deals with energy and chakras. Some of the exercise will be familiar from regular hatha yoga, but many will be totally different. If you do a search on www.videofitness.com , you'll see that there are many people on this forum who love Ravi and Ana's kundalini yoga. Good luck with your yoga endeavors.
P.S.--If you buy from the amazon seller "chakra44," this is actually Ravi and Ana's warehouse, so you'd be buying from Ravi and Ana directly, plus it's a little cheaper.
oh yay i'm glad someone on here has experience with these!!
what i'm looking for is something fun, thats why i was more apt to go for the Yoga Beauty Body or Dance the Chakras, but i want something cardio too like the Fat Free Yoga... ooh i just can't make up my mind!! lol
of those 3 dvds, how do you feel after you do each of them? cuz thats what i'm looking for. i want something that makes me feel happy and like i have an awesome body afterward. i'm sure all of them make you feel that way, but which one the most? fat free yoga? :)
If you're looking for fun, I'd go with Dance the Chakras. Keep in mind the "dancey" part isn't really what I'd call dancing, but more moving energy through your body. In this part, you follow Ana's movements for the most part, but there are a couple spots where you're doing your own thing. This DVD also has some shorter presets for when you don't have an hour to do the whole thing. You can do just the whole dancey section, or just the chakra section, or a bit of each. Here's a link to a big thread on Videofitness regarding DTC: http://forum.videofitness.com/showthread.php?t=93513&highlight=dance+chakras Really, all of Ravi and Ana's DVDs make me feel awesome afterward. Right now, I find myself doing mostly the 2 newest ones, but that's because they're new. You know the feeling when you were younger and got a brand new shiny toy! ;) Again, there's a ton of info on all of Ravi and Ana's work on the fitness forum that I mentioned before. Not to complicate your choice further, but Yoga Quick Fixes has some really great segments specifically dealing with things like stress, addiction, depression, etc. Here's a short breakdown of the various quick fix segments that someone posted on Videofitness:
YOGA QUICK FIXES
Power Surge Warm Ups 14 min.
Positive PMS 10 min.
So Long Sciatica 7 min.
Delete Depression 16 min.
Digestible You 9 min.
Asthma No More 5 min.
Soothe Stress Free Fatigue 8 min.
Maximize Memory 6 min.
Headache Helper 6 min.
Anxiety Antidote 10 min.
On The Spot Addiction Alternative 16 min
That site is great for finding info on all sorts of yoga, as well as various other forms of fitness.
jeez that one sounds good too....
now it's probably best they don't sell these dvds around here, otherwise i'd go out right now and buy them all!!
thanks for your help :)
You're welcome, Sariea! I hope that you find something that you like. Kundalini yoga looks and feels odd at first, I think, but it makes me feel so fabulous. For me, the positive mental effects I get from doing this type of yoga are what make me love doing it. I still do other types of yoga, but the effects I get from kundalini are unique. I hear you about having the temptation of buying them all! If you like the first one, you'll likely want more of their work!
well i ordered 3. Yoga Bliss Hips, Yoga Beauty Body, and Fat Free Yoga. and i did order from their amazon account. since they ship from NY and i live in NY hopefully i'll get them soon
I don't know too much about kundalini but I remember walking past a young woman at The Yoga Show 2005, London, who had the most amazing aura about her, she had a book out on kundalini at that time ... she writes for my yoga mag sometimes ... I think her name is Sri Data, I'll check up, anyways if you can capture an essence of that "something" she had, I'd say go for it
I really hope that you like them, Sariea. I'd feel bad if you didn't. Really, I like all of their DVDs, so I don't think you can go wrong with any of them. I didn't talk about Yoga Bliss Hips in my earlier posts, but I really like this one, too. You may not think there are a lot of hip openers at first, but the exercises also work on other areas of the body which can keep the hips from opening up. There's also a great mood uplifting section. There are some great shorter preset mixes, too. FYI, here's a bit that Ana & Ravi wrote about this video in response to a question that someone from the Videofitness Forum had regarding the hip opening:
"Thanks for writing. You are absolutely correct that there is more to the hips than the hips. As you know, Kundalini Yoga views us humans multi-dimensionally.
We feel that hip opening is important. We have seen that many people are locked in this area because of unresolved emotional issues manifesting as an inability to move forward towards fulfillment.
On the physical level the pelvic area is the framework for the psoas muscle which is essentially our core. When the solar plexus is tight from stress and emotional duress, the psoas muscle is forced to compensate and the hips become tighter.
On the metaphysical level the hip area relates to the second chakra, our water element, creativity and uniqueness. When people graduate from a first to a second center orientation, a 'same old same old' world view becomes one filled with new and exciting possibilities.
We did, in fact, design Yoga Bliss Hips with the concept of less is more. When someone works the hips but doesn't address the underlying issues (with regard to why the hips were tight in the first place) then they will tend to further the imbalance. In other words, overworking an area often yields the opposite of what was intended.
The subtitle for Yoga Bliss Hips is Kundalini Yoga for Hip Opening and Mood Mastery. We used hip work as an inroad to the emotional level and emotional work to facilitate hip opening.
The meditation at the end, So Darshan Chakra Kriya is the most powerful technique we know of to help people address the core issues of their lives.
Thanks again for writing and for your insights. It is rewarding to hear from people who are benefiting from their Kundalini Yoga practice and gaining insight into its workings!"
All Best,
Ana Brett & Ravi Singh
www.raviana.com
Sariea, please post back on how you like them. Again, keep in mind that certain things will feel/look strange, but keep at it and hopefully you'll receive lots of positive benefits. Also, many of the movements are done quickly while doing breath of fire. Ana moves and breathes much faster than you probably should when starting out. Keep that in mind, and go at your own pace until you feel you can safely move faster and do breath of fire along with her. I wish you the best!
yay i finally got my dvds in the mail today! i put in Fat Free Yoga for about a minute and then switched to Yoga Beauty Body. i only had enough time to do 10 minutes because i was baking the cakes for my BF's sister's rehearsal dinner tomorrow night and the timer went off, and then when i went to go back to the dvd, my BF came home. it makes me mad i had all this free time this past week cuz i was on vacation from work and now i finally have them but i have no time :(
running around at work today, went to the gym. exhausted! i did 10 minutes of that thing and the whole time i was thinking "why am i doing this? my legs and ass are going to kill me tomorrow!" lol but its a good burn ;)
I'm glad you received your DVDs! Hopefully, you'll find some time to fit some more bits in soon. It just figures that they would arrive now that you're back at work. Yoga Bliss Hips and Fat Free Yoga are really easy to divide up into shorter sections. YBH even has some shorter preset mixes. When you're really stressed, short on time, or tired from a long day at work, it feels nice to just do the ending meditation. I hope that your cake baking went well. Take care and namaste!