In Power Beauty Sweat, instructor Sara Ivanhoe does not rely on a traditional series of sun salutations to build heat in the body; rather, she adds movement to standing postures to intensify. She begins in a seated position with a simple side stretch and twist, then moves to kneeling for a kneeling side stretch (gate pose) and side plank. From here, the practice evolves to standing postures, including fan pose, a standing twist, and chair--each pose is repeated with movement and then a twist to both sides. Balance work comes in the form of eagle pose, and then there is a series consisting of dog pose, lunge, runner's stretch, and cow (or bull) performed to both sides. Dolphin pose further strengthens the arm muscles, and finally, there is a lying hamstring stretch. As with all the practices in this series, Ivanhoe ends with a mudra--or yogic hand gesture--using a detoxification mudra here.

Despite the title, I felt only minimal sweat as a result of this practice; it definitely did not build as much heat as a power yoga routine. However, the large number of included twists felt wonderful for my spine, and the excellent hip openers felt great as well. Overall, this is a nice, short yoga routine for focusing on standing postures and streching the spine and hips.

Instructor Comments:
Instructor Sara Ivanhoe's personality in this practice is similar to her prior Crunch and Dummies videos: she is very down-to-earth, although some may find her language a bit patronizing at times.

Beth C (aka toaster)