Yoga in Bed

I previously have owned the book by this name and really enjoyed it (flimsy binding notwithstanding). So I was happy to see this on dvd. Most yoga videos are much too hard for me as I have very poor flexibility, and I was looking for a short routine that would be gentle enough for me. I figured that even I could manage a routine designed to be done in pyjamas!

The dvd has three sections: a morning routine, an evening routine, and some 'bonus features' where you can review each pose one by one and watch some video clips of the program's creator (and author of the book) Edward Vilga answer some yoga questions. Both of the routines are about 15 minutes. The evening one is a little sorter.

I liked the morning routine a lot. Cristy zips (at times a little too speedily) through a comprehensive set of gentle twists and stretches. The first half is done lying down, and stretches the legs and hips. Then you sit up and there are some spinal stretches, back stretches and the like. It was quite a nice routine, and not just for first thing in the morning. Cristy does talk a little fast, but I felt like most of the poses were held for just the right length of time for my ability level and attention span. My one quibble was with some of the ones where you do each side separately. I felt that she cued better for the first side, and did not hold the second side for quite as long or cue it with the same level of detail. It seemed like the second side did not always get the same work. Overall though, I was happy with the routine and felt very relaxed when it was done.

The evening routine was, to me, a lot less satisfying. There were not nearly as many poses, but even so, it felt a little rushed. The opening had a head massage section that was quite nice, but after that, I found it hard to get into any of the poses. They were all poses I am used to finding at the end of other yoga workouts. I kept expecting her to tell me to stop and just stay there while she led a meditation or something. In one case, we had to laboriously set up the pose with half a dozen pillows and get all comfortable, and then, just as we were all set up, it was over and we had to move on to another pose---which was also a relaxation pose. So again, I felt like it should be over and we were having a little relaxing time, but no, it continued :)

Cristy leads the workout alone, with voice-over narration while she does the poses. The cueing in both sections is detailed and sufficiently comprehensive, but be aware that Cristy is actually IN a bed. If you are a living room exerciser and do not have a TV you can see from your actual bed, you may find this workout's gimmick (i.e. the 'in bed' aspect) a bit annoying. Cristy at times makes liberal use of her bed pillows, so if you are doing this from a mat, you'll need to bring such supplies with you from wherever you keep them.

If you are very experienced with yoga and have great flexibility, you will almost certainly find this routine much too easy. You may find it relaxing, depending on whether you click with the instructor or not, I suppose. But it will not be a workout for you. If, on the other hand, you have looked at other 'for absolute yoga beginner inflexible people' workouts and found them too challenging, you will be pleased to find, at last, a whole workout that you can do in its entirely without modifications. I am fortunate to have a TV that I can see from bed, and I really did do the workout on my actual bed. It was nice to be up on all those pillows and I felt relaxed and supported during my little yoga break.

I see myself doing the morning section more than the evening one though. If they had structured it a little differently, with a longer section of more stretchy stretches, and then only one or two relaxation poses you could really get into, I think that would have been a better way to do it. As it was, the evening section was little more than a tutorial of relaxation pose demonstrations. You could watch them all, pick your favourite, and just do that one on your own once the silly little overly rushed evening workout is finished.