Instructor Kristin McGee continually emphasizes the crucial element of the breath, and the routine has a well-rounded practice.

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Product Description

MTV POWER YOGA works for everyone --whether green newcomer or seasoned fitness pro. Incorporating beginner-to-advanced versions in one routine, the workout is all-inclusive. Shot outdoors at the beautiful Point Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix, Arizona, the serene surroundings perfectly complement the great routine. Kristin takes the class and viewers through a fast-paced workout, beginning with breathing instructions and stretches. It builds briskly and skillfully into more strenuous positions, working each individual section of the body, subtly enhancing flexibility and strength.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14685 in DVD
• Brand: Paramount
• Released on: 2003-08-26
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 52 minutes

Amazon.com
MTV and yoga? The two concepts don’t go together as naturally as, say, Siegfried and Roy. Still, this 40-minute program (plus a brief Pilates-based routine for the abs) has more to offer than the chance to gaze at buff young bodies in leotards. Instructor Kristin McGee (who also appears on MTV Yoga, the channel's 2002 yoga program) continually emphasizes the crucial element of the breath, and the routine includes sun salutations, backbends, balances, twists, and other aspects of a well-rounded practice. But not enough time is allotted for warm-up, and the pace is very brisk; any practice that uses the downward dog pose primarily for resting is not for the faint of heart. That’s fine for the short-attention-span generation spawned by MTV, but not great when it comes to a discipline that cultivates endurance, will, patience, and introspection by way of the depth and deliberateness of the movements. It’s yoga all right, but this is definitely not recommended for the inexperienced. --Sam Graham

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Customer Reviews

Invigorating Yoga Workout
Kristin McGee is an instructor at "Crunch." I love her yoga workouts because she is serious about yoga and makes each workout enjoyable while still challenging you to your limit! This is a fast-paced Ashtanga-style workout.

An Ashtanga-style workout presents a series of postures that produce intense internal heat and purifying sweat to detoxify the organs and muscles. You will feel the improved circulation and no one will have to tell you to "breathe deeply" You will breathe deeply because you need to.

This is definitely an advanced workout because it moves so fast, there is really no time to actually learn the moves. You have to know what the poses are and move very quickly from one to the other. This is an outdoor workout in Phoenix, Arizona. This is quite the colorful workout. Not only are you outdoors with greenery in the background, there are red flowers, large red mats and blue/purple yoga mats.

Some of the exercises you will be doing include:

Sun Salutations
Downward Facing Dog
Awkward Chair (chair pose)
Rotating Triangle
Plank Push-Up
Forward Bend
Warrior Stretches
Standing Stretches
On all Fours Series
Seated Stretches & Forward Bends
Backward Bend
Twists - Enter new levels of making yourself into a pretzel.
Final Relaxation
Pilates for Abs

There were quite a few poses that were highly creative and that I've never seen in any yoga video before.

The Special Features Section includes:

1. Position Breakdowns for half moon, eagle pose, dancing shiva, half wheel, full wheel.

2. Instructor Biographies - Nice to see Jess is now certified as a yoga instructor. I was very inspired by his level of practice in the first MTV Yoga workout.

3. Instructor Only Audio - this seems to be a unique feature on MTV yoga workouts.. You can then play your own music for variety.

4. Blue Six Music Video - Nice to play while you are flat on your back after this workout. Maybe you could say: "Ahhhhh" a few times and get in a few minutes of meditation. That is what I ended up doing. This workout is pretty strenuous and therefore the word: power.

The only problem with the special features and bio section was the back tracking you have to do to get back to the main menu. They should have had "main menu" on all those other pages. It wasn't that difficult to back track, but requires an added level of patience. Maybe that is part of this routine. ;)

If you are new to Yoga and Pilates, I can highly recommend the first MTV Yoga DVD to learn the poses. Then, try the Winsor Pilates videos. If you can make it through Accelerated Body Sculpting then the Pilates section at the end of this workout will not be that much of a challenge. It is a short section to tone and tighten, but the instructor expects you to know how to do all the Pilates moves and fairly quickly.

While the cover says: "We incorporate beginner, intermediate and advanced versions in one routine," the problem for beginners is going to be the frustration they feel at trying to not only learn the correct position, but keep balance and follow the "poses" in a fast sequence. Speed is going to be the problem. Yes, there are instructors for each level, but the speed is all the same for every level. I think it would have been amazing if they had taken this routine and made it more accessible to all levels. Say, have three different speeds, beginner, intermediate and advanced speed.

Also, you don't hold poses like "warrior" for longer than a second. I would have liked to have spent more time on each pose, but if that is also your preference, then you will love the first MTV Yoga workout. This workout seems to be more about stamina and getting the body warmed up and burning calories.

There are also some pretty intense balancing poses (dancing shiva) and strength poses (half and full wheel, imagine being on all fours upside down) that will give intermediate and advanced students some great challenges.

For those who are advanced, this will be yoga heaven. I'm probably less than intermediate and I made it all the way to the end. I just was not doing all the poses to their full extent and many of the poses might take a year to learn properly. Yoga requires a lot of flexibility and this takes time.

What I did notice was that I was stretching further than I've ever stretched before and this might have been due to the excellent warm-up sun salutation routine at the start.

I look forward to future MTV workouts because I like the music they choose and the instruction is inspirational and the workout really gives you the results you are looking for. I'd love to see Kristin make a MTV Pilates workout and maybe even a stretching DVD.

For this workout, you will need:

Yoga Mat (no other yoga tools/blocks, etc. are needed)

Comfortable tight fitting yoga outfit that sticks to you like glue, otherwise any loose clothing will get in the way of your speed. Jockey Activewear has some silky soft outfits that are perfect for this type of workout.

Enjoy! This is a great challenge and the results are a calm mind, strong body and a powerful sense of accomplishment.

You might also enjoy:

Yoga Zone Flexibility & Stress Release
Crunch Pick Your Spot Pilates
The Method Dynamic Toning
The Method Dynamic Firming & Flexing
Ali MacGraw Yoga Mind & Body
Living Arts Yoga Conditioning for Weight Loss
Pilates Conditioning for Weight Loss

~The Rebecca Review

Challenge for newbies
Looking for a way to be able to break into Yoga at home I picked up the MTV Power Yoga video. The other yoga video I have was very difficult to follow as it jumped between segement and did not establish a routine. This DVD was very smooth to watch, however it was very fast paced and sometimes I felt that I didn't have enough instruction on some of the poses. However most routines were repeated so after a couple of times I could get the swing of things and expect to be able to really excel when I go back again. The workout length is perfect and I definitely worked up a sweat. I think this is more of an aerobics video using yoga positions. As I would expect from MTV, the music did enhance the video and was not the cheesy music most workout tapes/dvds have.

Not Yoga - don't waste your money
I pre-ordered this DVD with the hopes that it would be as great as MTV Yoga, Kristin McGee's 1st yoga DVD. Boy, was I wrong. There is virtually NO warm-up, and at the beginning, she goes through an unusual sun-salutation so fast it's hard to know to keep up. I am a dedicated yoga student, and have been practicing ashtanga yoga every day for several years. This is not power yoga. None of the stretches are held for any length of time - not until halfway through the dvd is downward facing dog held for 3 breaths! Prior to that it isn't even held for one. Her cueing is not great, and everything moves too fast. Typically, power yoga moves through a vinyasa flow at a quick pace, and then a downward facing dog or similar pose would be held for 5 breaths or so to strengthen and stretch the body. Anyone looking for yoga won't get it here - it is an exercise video, not a power yoga video. The second half is dedicated to some more typical yoga poses, but again, they aren't held very long. Even the final relaxation stinks. Each pose seems rushed - her first video was far superior & is a favorite. This one is a dud!