Yoga for Round Bodies, Volume 2

To read about the making of this video, go to:

http://www.radiancemagazine.com/issues/1995/winter95_ghaddon.html

I previewed this video tonight. Unfortunately, I bought this tape used, and this copy is defective, so the sound is very bad, with an annoying static crackling throughout. But I watched and listened to enough, to get a general impression.

On the cover it states: “For your safety please become comfortable with the Introduction to Kripalu Yoga on Volume I before beginning this program. So if you are a round or out-of-shape person who has not done yoga before, its probably best to start with that one first.

The format is 3 separate 30 minute lessons, each starting and ending with a seated meditation, and gentle warm-up stretches before the poses. They are increasingly challenging. Some of the poses are:

1. Spinal twist, yoga mudra, half moon.

2. Forward bend, Stance of Courage 1 & 2 (Warrior)

3. Bridge, Tent (downward facing dog), Kneedown twist

Being an Iyengar yoga student, I am biased here, but I think they could have used more props, to make some of the poses more do-able, example sitting on a blanket for forward bend, a block under the sacrum for bridge, a chair for the downward facing dog. But I think it’s a gentle and safe workout, with good form pointers, and is an good alternative if you don’t have access to a live class.