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WRITTEN BY RICHARD SEVEN VIDEOS ON REVIEW
Yes, it's outdoor season, but for those times that you're stuck inside, here's a brief roundup of low-impact videos that promise a stealth cardio workout.
Title: "Fat Free Yoga"
This Kundalini Yoga workout video is one of a three-part series that claims to help you look younger and live longer. It features a warm-up set and two 25-minute workouts with titles like "Love Your Liver" and "Tear Out the Toxins" and "Your Life Is In Your Glands." What sets this video apart is its approach. While lithe Ana Brett performs the poses and movements in most of the videos, her husband, Ravi Singh, sits to the side and describes the therapeutic and psychological benefits. Between his soft, melodic voice and Brett's near-perfect style, it struck me as a bit hypnotic. I found the video quite challenging. The couple has just come out with a new series called the "Yoga Super Set," again featuring Brett. 
Title: "Budokon"
Martial artist Cameron Shayne has fused elements of yoga and meditation with taekwondo and karate. He employs a body-mind philosophy and no-nonsense approach. The workout is low-impact but high-intensity, and combines the focus needed for proper form with the cardio effect of repeated air punches and kicks. Shayne, a black belt, developed the system because it emphasizes body mechanics and attention to detail. The DVD is broken down into a pose guide, a short workout and the full workout. 
Title: "Total Yoga/ Fire"
This is the last of a three-part series, the others being Earth (for beginners) and Water (for intermediates). Husband-and-wife team Ganga White and Tracey Rich, founders of the White Lotus Foundation, are all business, moving and instructing with precision against a bland background and without the aid of any noticeable music. They demonstrate more than 30 poses, including sun salutations, backbends, forward bends, twists and tonic inversions. The workout is geared for students who seek endurance, strength and flexibility. 
Title: "Rael Pilates System 7"
This is a short but sweet Pilates instruction by master teacher Rael Isacowitz. The DVD employs fitness instructor Kristi Cooper-White performing moves on a table while Isacowitz breaks down every movement, discussing form and purpose. The beauty of the tape is its simplicity. It is very clear and Isacowitz's style gives the impression that you're getting a one-on-one lesson. His system teaches seven positions he believes are essential to benefit from Pilates. The DVD features an interview with the teacher and 17 poses; it, too, is part of a series. 
Title: "Sara Ivanhoe's 20-Minute Yoga Makeover"
It's easy to see why Ivanhoe is a best-selling instructor. She's upbeat but in a soothing way. She explains well but without belaboring. And in her "20-minute" series, she shows practicality. In her "Yoga Makeover: Total Body Tone with Weights," she incorporates light resistance with classic poses — on a sunny shoreline. She has an inviting style, which makes the fusion of toning and weight loss feel compatible with yoga's more usual benefits of balance and peace of mind. Her 20-minute series is comprehensive, including some segments that target specific body parts.
Yoga Festival Is Coming Soon
 COURTESY OF ART PERRY Art Perry, author of "The Tibetans," will show his photographs and talk about Tibet at the Northwest Yoga & Meditation Festival, April 28- May 1, at the Seattle Center. The festival will also feature films of the Himalayas and Mandala sand paintings crafted by Tibetan monks. See www.nwyogafest.com for details. Richard Seven is a Pacific Northwest magazine staff writer. He can be reached at rseven@seattletimes.com. |
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