Autonomy: Stretch

Keri Tombazian
Year Released: 1996

Categories: Athletic Stretch


This is a 35-minute stretch tape with some unusual features. A male and female exerciser perform the stretches to a voice-over. The tape is split into sections for standing upper, standing lower, floor upper, floor lower and a short cool-down. This allows for easy splitting of the tape if desired. I generally dislike tapes that shift back and forth between the floor and standing, because I get annoyed when I have to pause to unroll my mat, so this separation was good for me.

The stretches are thorough, but in some parts seem a bit rushed, and the voice-over is occasionally a few seconds ahead. I appreciated how comprehensive this tape was: even wrists and ankles get stretched! There is also a decent assortment of dynamic stretches, such as arm circles and spinal twists. None of the stretches were complicated, and all of them could be done by people with varying degrees of flexibility.

Overall, I felt the tape was just the right length and had just the right mix of exercises. My only complaint is that they the exercisers do not mirror our left and right, and for a few of the stretches, this made things confusing. Overall though, excellent stretch routine with structure that makes it easy to modify this to your liking.

Joanna

08/21/2001