Instructor: Jenni Rawlings; produced by the company who has produced Zyrka Landwijt’s and Deb Dobbins’ dvds.

Setting: White room – you just see the instructor and mat.

Music: Subtle, fine. If you have Zyrka’s dvds, you’ll recognize some of the music.

Content: There are five different practices on this dvd, and from preview, they have some similar material, but each one seems to have unique material as well. There is a lot here! Here are the 5 practices:
37 min Short Flow
60 min Standing Balances & Hips
65 min Core & Backbends
72 min Arm Balances & Hips
77 min Creative Balance & Hips

Chaptering: Each practice has some chapter points – in “blocks” like the Zyrka dvds. See the breakdown below to get an idea. This makes it fairly easy to shorten the longer practices by skipping a block (like I did today).

Level: The dvd labels this “advanced.” I’m not good with these kinds of categorizations. If forced to choose, I consider myself more “intermediate.” I’ve done yoga daily for the last year (before that I dabbled for a couple of years), and have taken class once a week for the last 3-4 months (from Basics to “Power Flow”).

I’ve only done (most of) one practice, and previewed sections of the others. I found the practice quite “do-able.” I skipped the arm balances (which were not a large part of the segment), and was able to do the other poses. The challenges come mostly in longish balance segments, and all the vinyasas. I would say this was on a similar level as Eoin Finn’s Power Yoga for Happiness 2 and Pursuit of Happy Hips.

Impressions: I liked the practice a lot. I like vinyasa flows, and this was a challenging and strong one. The sequencing was quite different than anything else I have, with some terrific standing balance segments. The pace is not too fast, most poses are held for a decent amount of time; even the vinyasas are controlled, not super-fast. I can hit a limit with vinyasas, though, and it was easy to skip these and stay in downward dog, when I’d had enough of them.

I think the preview clip on the website is a good representation of the practice. If you like the instructor, pace, and flow, you’ll probably like the dvd. If you don’t, then you probably won’t.
Here is a breakdown of the practice I did. I may have missed some poses or mistaken some of the sequencing, but this is mostly it.

60 Minute Standing Balances & Hips
Block 1 (0 to 2:03)
Tadasana for a few breaths > Slow Sun Salutation A (with 2 cobras before upward dog)

Block 2 (2:04 to 5:29)
Sun Salutation A (5x)

Block 3 (5:30 to 12:52)
Downward dog split > bring raised leg knee into chest then back up (4x) > low lunge > high lunge with twist (hand on floor) > downward dog split > 1 leg plank > chaturanga > upward facing dog > downward dog > Repeat other leg >
Downward dog split > low lunge > high lunge twist > low lunge > downdog split > vinyasa > Repeat other leg > vinyasa > locust (2x)

Block 4 (12:53 to 21:19)
Downward dog split > low lunge > low lunge > twisting high lunge > standing splits > warrior I > clasp hands behind back and lean forward inside front knee (she called this “ostrich” pose) > warrior I > warrior II > reverse warrior > side angle (arm on leg) > reverse warrior > low lunge > twisting high lunge > vinyasa > Repeat other leg >
Jump feet between hands > uttanasana > raise up half way > tadasana > chair > revolved chair right > chair > revolved chair left > chair > Repeat revolved chair both sides > forward fold > raise up half-way > vinyasa

Block 5 (21:20 to 32:25)
Feet to front for forward fold > tadasana > [in this balance sequence you transition from one balance to the next without touching leg to floor] tree > dancer > dancing half moon > half moon > warrior II > reverse warrior > warrior II > triangle > triangle with both arms extended by ears > pyramid > revolved triangle > warrior I > warrior II > reverse warrior > dancer > tree > tadasana > Repeat other side >
1 legged chair > revolved 1 legged chair > firefly > forward fold > tadasana > Repeat other side > vinyasa
[I did not do the revolved 1 legged chair or firefly – just stayed in 1 legged chair!]

Block 6 (32:26 to 40:28)
Sun Salutation B (2x)
Sun Salutation B variation with side crow and ostrich (2x)
Sun Salutation B variation with side crow and ostrich flow (repeat ostrich bend 3x) (2x)
[I skipped this block; had a heavy workout yesterday, so had enough sun sals.]

Block 7 (40:29 to 51:44)
Janu sirsasana > revolved janu sirsasana > vinyasa > Repeat other side > one leg in hero and one leg straight, forward fold > move straight leg into lotus position over hero-leg, twist > vinyasa > Repeat other side > cobblers forward bend > wide angle seated forward bend > wide angle seated bend to left > bend to right > wide leg cobblers forward bend > vinyasa

Block 8 (51:45 to end)
Reclining leg stretches - in Jill Miller’s categorization: numbers 1, 2, 3
Savasana

LunaSea