The Womans Yoga Book Asana and Pranayama for All Phases of the Menstrual Cycle

The Womans Yoga Book Asana and Pranayama for All Phases of the Menstrual Cycle

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Perfect for Practicing With On the Full Moon–and Rest of the Month!
My daughter and I both love The Woman’s Yoga Book! Since today is the full moon, and women’s cycles are influenced by the phases of the moon, I feel inspired to write a review of this lovely book.

Senior Iyengar Yoga teacher Bobby Clennell brings decades of yoga study and teaching experience to The Woman’s Yoga Book. As other reviewers have noted, her writing style is clear, friendly, deep and nurturing. This book reflects her personal practice and many trips to India to study directly with the Iyengars. She is a core faculty member of the Iyengar Yoga Institute of New York and teaches yoga workshops and retreats throughout the United States and abroad.

The beginning of the book presents an overview of the history of menstrual beliefs and practices, examining how modern concepts developed and how ancient traditions from pro-feminine cultures can help us regain a healthy perspective of our body rhythms.

Clennell points out that because today’s woman starts her period earlier and has fewer babies (or none at all) she can have between 350 and 400 menstrual periods throughout her lifetime, as opposed to the 100 periods that most women experienced two hundred years ago.

I was delighted with Clennell’s emphasis on honoring the menstrual cycle. In an era where women are encouraged to medicate themselves and suppress the cycle, a book like this is sorely needed.

Clennell rightly emphasizes that we are living in a culture that encourages women to ignore the very thing that makes us different from men: cyclical hormonal rhythms. For all our advances in social equality, attitudes toward menstruation are only slightly more enlightened than in the past. The media encourages us to suppress symptoms with drugs, keep up outer appearances and get over it as quickly as possible.

Yoga teachers need to be aware that the young women students in their classes may already be taking one of the new experimental pills that promises a “lifestyle revolution” by eliminating periods and putting an end to premenstrual syndrome.

Bobby Clennell gives sequences for each phase of the menstrual cycle, from the premenstrual phase (supported bridge pose stabilizes mood swings), menstruation (restorative poses allow the body to rest), and the post-menstrual phase (inversions allow the body to cleanse and recover). By ovulation, when a woman is at her peak, her yoga practice has built back up to its full strength and variety. In addition, The Woman’s Yoga Book offers solutions for a variety of menstrual and premenstrual problems, including amenorrhea (failure to menstruate), menorrahgia (excessively heavy periods) and dysmenorrhea (painful periods).

A former professional animator, Bobby Clennell has used her skill in creating over 735 illustrations. Two photographers took hundreds of photographs of the author on which she based the illustrations. The illustrations show variations of poses and, when necessary, how to come in and out of each pose. Clennell makes even the most complicated poses simple to comprehend.

This book is useful to a wide range of practitioners. Women new to yoga can practice with this book, and teachers will have a vast storehouse of information at their fingertips. I urge any teacher offering workshops on yoga and the menstrual cycle to recommend this book to their students.

This is a book for any women’s health practitioner who is curious about how yoga works. It is a book that could lead doctors and other health professionals to refer more women to yoga classes.

The publishers, Linda Cogozzo and Donald Moyer are themselves longtime Iyengar Yoga practitioners and the clarity of writing I have found in all their books is unsurpassed!

–Suza Francina is a certified Iyengar yoga teacher and author of Yoga and the Wisdom of Menopause, and other books for people at midlife and older.

4 Stars The woman’s yoga book
I find this book very easy to follow, written in language I understand from taking classes in Iyenga yoga. The illustrations are clear and accurate. Each pose includes information on its benefits, and also information on when to avoid the pose. Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to improve their understanding of yoga poses and wishes to start or expand their yoga practice at home.

5 Stars Must have for women
This has become my ‘go to’ yoga book. After using this book for only a month, I was cramp free for the first time in years. The illustrations are so detailed, it is easier to use than practicing with a DVD. Can’t recommend it enough!

5 Stars Excellent
Clearly written, concise yet with lots of depth, and helpful illustrations. A must have!

5 Stars Relief for your cycle
The Woman’s Yoga Book: Asana and Pranayama for All Phases of the Menstrual Cycle is a book that every woman will want to own. With detailed illustrations, excellent guidelines and practices for any type of reproductive issue, author Bobby Clennell has written THE book that works directly with your cycle. Clennell is a senior Iyengar instructor who has studied directly with the Iyengars, most notably, Geeta Iyengar, who writes the forward to this book. Iyengar has written her own book for women, Yoga - A Gem For Women, and although that is a very useful book, I have found Clennell’s book to be more user friendly.

There is an intro with discussion on how menstruation has been viewed over the years by each culture as well as the physical dynamics. The illustrations are really nice - there are variations of poses and in some cases, she shows how to come in and out of each pose. Every picture is clear and easy to understand. Instructions are concise - Clennell makes even the most complicated poses simple to comprehend. Any possible discomfort that you may have during your cycle is covered along with a suggested routine. There are practices for mood swings, breast tenderness, fatigue, migraines and more. And best of all, these routines do work!

Sadly, there is not a lot of information on perimenopause or menopause - but I guess since this is a book about menstruation, I shouldn’t expect it. Perhaps Clennell could address these issues in a future book? After using The Woman’s Yoga Book with great success, one can only hope!

Buy/More Info

Buff Moms to Be The Complete Guide to Fitness for Expectant Mothers

Buff Moms to Be The Complete Guide to Fitness for Expectant Mothers

In this guide for expecting mothers, Fleming (Buff Brides) presents an exercise program that should help pregnant women maintain their own health as they carry their children to term. Photographs of women in the early stages and advanced months of pregnancy accompany the instructions for stretching, weight lifting and cardiovascular exercise. Though the program Fleming outlines is really an ordinary workout for strength and flexibility, many women will appreciate the specially modified techniques and exercises, as well as the descriptions of precautionary measures, which she has developed expressly for pregnant and post-partum women.
Copyright

No More Cellulite A Proven 8 Week Program for a Firmer Fitter Body

No More Cellulite A Proven 8 Week Program for a Firmer Fitter Body

Westcott, an editorial advisor for Shape and Prevention magazines, and La Rosa Loud, the founder of Fitness Network, believe that their research-based eight-week program “might” help women replace fat with firm muscle. The dreaded “lumpy and bumpy” stuff we call cellulite isn’t a different kind of tissue, they say, but the result of “too little muscle and too much fat.” Their basic and easy-to-follow guide focuses on losing weight sensibly by adhering to a cardiovascular and strength training regimen, in addition to a healthy eating plan based on the USDA Food Guide Pyramid. The program stresses the importance of strength exercises in building muscle and raising the body’s metabolic rates to fight the decline in metabolism that comes with age. The authors, both of whom are fitness experts at a Massachusetts YMCA, take care to provide modifications for the at-home athlete as well as the gym bunny. With clear demonstrative photos and two weeks of explicit eating plans and recipes, this guide will help readers follow the plan the authors used in their study-a plan whose faithful participants experienced a 10.3-pound change in their body composition. Cellulite reduction is a subjective measurement, but the women in the study all felt that there was improvement in their appearance. 49 pages of b&w photos
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Very informative book!
Suffering from cellulite? Ah yes, cellulite…those stubborn

lumpy areas also known as dimples but not meant as a cute

description. There may be hope yet!

Wayne Wescott, Ph.D. along with Rita La Rosa Loud have to be

applauded for their well-written book entitled “No More

Cellulite”.

The book starts with two very interesting and informative

chapters on “What is Cellulite” and “What Causes Cellulite”. The

first step is to understand what you have and how it happened to

apply itself to your thighs! The writers go into explanations of

what aging does to our bodies; and muscle and metabolism - how

loss of muscle lowers our metabolic rate.

The writers give you a good starting chapter on “Understanding

Strength Training” and why strength training, along with

cardiovascular exercise, is essential for everyone. A training

program is provided along with different exercises using machines

or using free weights (dumbbells, elastic bands and body weight)

at the gym or at home (definitely my choice of exercise and could

be yours too as long as you can get yourself motivated to working

out at home). What I always found to be very helpful is when the

writers indicate the target muscles that each exercise uses;

which is what they have done for each of the exercises in this

book.

There is a wonderful chapter on stretching which enhances the

strength training program. Being a dancer, I already know the

benefits of daily stretching and how it helps your flexibility

and posture. This chapter goes into the type of stretch,

frequency, sets, posture, speed, range of motion, proper

breathing and muscle balance.

You’ll love the chapter on endurance for your cardio program

along with the writers’ balanced nutrition plan, a very healthy

plan consistent with the USDA Food Guide Pyramid, designed to

give you guidelines on how to change your eating habits, lose

weight if you need to, build muscle and is generally a very

healthy way of eating that everyone should follow. There are

sample menus to follow depending on the amount of calories you

need to support your present body weight or to lose weight and if

that’s not all, the writers have thrown in some delicious recipes

for you to test your culinary skills with! Be sure to check out

the inspiring photos at the end.

After reading this book I would recommend it to anyone with that

“orange-peel”, dimply cellulite and for anyone who wants a basic

book on weight training, cardio and healthy eating. All-in-all,

a must-have book in your diet/exercise/healthy living library.

5 Stars Great book for beginning weight lifters
This book is a great place to start for woman who want to start an effective weight lifting program. The book is full of illustrations and simple to follow instructions. For those who want to continue with their program, I would suggest moving on to one of his other books.

2 Stars Not thorough enough!
I expected more from Wayne Wescott, Ph.D., who is often quoted by fitness magazines. His name is well-known in the area of health and fitness research. The book did not address sodium intake or give any recommendations for daily fat intake. Caffeine was also not addressed. It seems like these areas would be covered to some extent, given the book is about reducing cellulite. The weight-training program did not advocate changing one’s routine every 6 or 8 weeks to avoid plateaus. I was excited to buy this book, but very disappointed at the lack of thoroughness on the part of the authors. It just didn’t seem to cover everything it should have, leaving this reader with many unanswered questions.

Buy/More Info

Bone Building Body Shaping Workout Strength Health Beauty In Just 16 Minutes A Day

Bone Building Body Shaping Workout Strength Health Beauty In Just 16 Minutes A Day

Joyce Vedral promises you can strengthen and shape your body and build bone in only 16 minutes a day with this illustrated program. This author of numerous exercise and health books (including Eating to Trim and Weight Training Made Easy) and frequent talk-show guest offers basic exercises that purport to work every major muscle group effectively. All of the exercises are compiled into handy pullout charts for quick reference, and dozens of photographs show Vedral’s sleek and sculpted 54-year-old body illustrating the maneuvers. In addition to the program, you’ll find plenty of solid information about building muscle and bone.

Vedral relies on research indicating that working out with weights aids in building bone density. However, some strength-training experts would advise women to work out with heavier weights if they are strong enough to handle them, rather than the one- to three-pound weights Vedral recommends for her beginners’ program. She does say you should raise the heft of your weights when the program becomes easy, so don’t miss this point with her emphasis on light weights.

If you’re a young woman, Bone-Building Body-Shaping Workout is not only for your mother: according to Vedral, weight training helps you put “bone in the bank” so that you have more to draw from decades from now, and it will increase your fat-burning rate. –Joan Price

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Joyce Vedral Rocks!
I was so glad to see this book available. I have used Vedral’s programs in the past and know they work. No gimmicks, no frills, etc.

The book includes the valuable wall chart of exercises. The pictures are easy to follow and simple hand weights are all you really need.

Thank you!!

4 Stars Great routine
This is a great routine and the book is an easy-read that I found quite motivating. I was a bit discouraged, however, when I discovered how long the exercises actually take. It takes me 30 minutes to complete the “8-minute” routines. I would have actually felt more motivated had I been more adequately prepared to allow for the necessary time. That said, I commend Joyce for this book, which also includes a chapter on diet and a chapter on aerobic exercise. I am very encouraged that I may be able to prevent osteoporosis, and am recommending this book to my mom, who was recently diagnosed.

5 Stars Easy-to-read book with a good workout, and eating advice.
This workout is great, although you may want to do ALL the designated warm-up exercises at the beginning of the workout, in order to avoid wasting time picking up and putting down the dumbbells between sections. If you do this I think it would be much easier to get the workout time down to where the book claims it should be.

I own The 12-Minute Total Body Workout book, and in one respect, this book is better in that it contains a photo chart of all the exercises involved, which “12-Minute” does NOT have. I recommend that you buy a copy of this book, make a copy of the chart, then cut it up and paste each exercise onto index cards, so that you can mix up the order of the exercises every few weeks or so, as well as putting the warmups at the beginning of the workout.

Both books are great.

4 Stars Great Workout …but you need more time
I bought this book because I have the 12-minute Total Body Workout by Vedral and I wanted to see if she had updated her excercises. I was very pleased with this book, the exercises are easy to learn and they work! However, there is no way you can do it in 8 minutes a day without sacrificing proper movement and form. Plan on spending between 15 and 20 minutes per day for four days, 30-40 minutes per day for two days, or about 1 1/2 hours for one day. In the 12-Minute book, you did 2 body parts, 2 exercises each, for 3 reps. In this book, it’s 3 body parts, at least 3 exercises each, 3 reps each plus stretching. How on earth did she think you could do it in 8 minutes?

5 Stars highly recommended
I bought the hardcover edition of this book used from Amazon and am very pleased with it. This is a very readable book, with most things clearly explained. When I say ‘most’, I mean that I still have questions as to WHY the pyramid method works better than other methods, and I also think it should be explained WHY the exact order of the workout matters (by body part, not by specific individual exercises within a body-part group). I am confused too because other books say to constantly vary your routine or to even change it completely every other week, where-as this book says that you must follow this exact routine every time. Aside from those points of confusion, the explanatory material is quite good. The work-out itself is excellent, and well suited to the woman who prefers a good at-home dumb-bell workout. Joyce must have the routine memorized, and do it without any rest periods at super-speed in order to finish within the time she says it will take. I have the extra time to put into it, so that is not a problem. If your goal is to build bone to prevent osteoporosis, this is a great program, or even if you just want to have a nice dumb-bell routine to build strength and re-shape, I also recommend it.

Buy/More Info

Yoga for Women

Yoga for Women

Khalsa, an accomplished yoga practitioner and teacher, instructs the novice in dozens of basic yoga positions (asanas), breathing techniques (pranayamas) and meditations from her own “harmonious blend of Hatha and Kundalini Yoga.” Although there are over 200 postures in Hatha practice, Khalsa focuses on those benefiting women’s concerns, among them menstruation, breast care, pregnancy, birth and menopause. Step-by-step instructions accompanied by color photographs allow even confirmed klutzes to manage sun salutations, Downward Dog, Crow and the Wheel. Readers are also tempted with recipes for drinks such as Golden Milk, made with the Indian spice turmeric, and beauty treatments such as the Papaya Face Mask or a yogurt bath. For those who need more encouragement to stretch their limbs, Khalsa includes testimonials by women who cite the life-changing powers of yoga. After browsing through the pages of Khalsa’s accessible book, even the most yoga-phobic may be inspired to take a “position.”
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars A great guide for home practice!
I’ve been practicing yoga for many years and always relied on classes for inspiration. YOGA FOR WOMEN is the first book I’ve ever found that has inspired me to practice at home. The explanations are so well written and the visuals are very clear that it’s easy to design your practice to fit your specific needs rather than relying on an instructor. A wonderful guide for women of all ages!

5 Stars Outstanding Yoga for Women
I truly love this book. In fact, I ordered copies for gifts to friends. The illustrations and instructions are easy to follow. I really enjoyed the side notes

4 Stars its good for new beginers
atfirst i thought there are only less number of asanas.but later i recognized if we practice those asanas expecially women we can enjoy life

5 Stars Great gift for women friends
As a yoga instructor I’m often asked about which books would be helpful. I just gave this one to a woman friend that expressed an interest in finding out more about yoga.

5 Stars I love this book
I especially like the emphasis on accepting your body, what it can and cannot do, and also the section on breast care. The photos in this book are outstanding and the poses are carefully explained. I also appreciate the models…they look like my yoga class!! Different!!

Buy/More Info

The Fit or Fat Woman

The Fit or Fat Woman

Bailey and Bishop contend, reasonably, that being thin and being fit aren’t synonymous. Rather, the percentage of fat in one’s body is critical: the average woman’s body contains as much as 22% fat, and lower levels are considered unhealthy. The coauthors survey the similarities and differences in men’s and women’s body builds, their respective metabolic needs and the dynamics of male and female weight loss and gain. They also repeat what we already know: women have a more difficult time keeping fit and trim. The familiar health benefits and psychological boon of exercise are discussed, as well as the problems–e.g., bulimia and anorexia–of overzealous dieting. Throughout, Bailey, a fitness workshop instructor, and Bishop, his assistant, plug his program for weight control, based on the one used at Bailey’s Fit or Fat Center in Oregon. Far too much of the book is anecdotal, offering little scientific substantiation, and the authors’ tone can be irksome (to women they advise, “Most important, don’t overlook the man in your life. He is your closest ally, your best buddy”).
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Great practicle book!
This is such an easy read and so common sense. Not a quick fix, but very healthy and applicable theories.

5 Stars All diet myths shattered.
After reading this book, I know why all those diets I’ve tried failed. I was so happy to finally find someone who understands the special dietary needs of women and who could thoroughly explain away the diet myths out there. It is one of the most helpful books I’ve read in years.

4 Stars Good Book
Has good info for newbies to fitness and seasoned vetrens. Also it is an easy read. YOu can get the majority of the book read in one night. One Negative is the last few chapters are more wordy than nessasary.

5 Stars Go Girl!
I am fed up with the magazine image American women are sold. Thin is being sold as fitness. Covert’s tape helped me to affirm my belief in fitness, not just appearance. And another thing…has anyone else noticed that on the cover of most women’s magazines you are given teaser titles on how to loose 10 pounds fast, and than in the bottom corners, pictures of cookies and 19 layer chocolate cakes?

5 Stars EXCELLENT!
As a Fitness Trainer, I was amazed at the wealth of good/valuable information this book provides. I had read it originally 10 years ago, and teach many of my clients the principles Mr. Bailey describes. Use this book as your guide to weight loss!

Buy/More Info

Five Minute Face lift A Daily Program for a Beautiful Wrinkle Free Face

Five Minute Face lift A Daily Program for a Beautiful Wrinkle Free Face

Buy/More Info

Body After Baby A Simple Healthy Plan to Lose Your Baby Weight Fast

Body After Baby A Simple Healthy Plan to Lose Your Baby Weight Fast

Body after Baby is a great plan to keep you healthy for the rest of your life. — Janet P. Pregler, MD, Director of Iris Cantor-UCLA Women’s Health Center

Jackie Keller delivers a wise plan…. Her good food and exercise regimen make perfect sense. — Mehmet C. Oz, M.D. professor and vice-chairman of surgery, Columbia University and bestselling coauthor of You: The Owner’s Manual

Jackie Keller taught me that it’s not about eating less, it’s about eating right! — Susan Sarandon

Jackie proves that if you just stay the course, weight loss will follow! — Tia Carrere

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars great plan for after baby - not strange foods!
After reading many of the reviews for this book, I found lots of negativity regarding the food. Many said that the items were tough to find at your local grocery store and that they were strange foods. Well, with the exception of some of the whole grains (like whole barley, etc…) I was able to get just about everything for the first 10 days at my local grocery. The meals are creative and fun - and while things did change every day, leaving me with leftovers, it was food that I could feed to the rest of my family. Many reviewers complained that the recipes made food for more than just one person…well, if you need to cut the recipe, I found that it was fairly simple to do.

All in all, I found the food plan great! Now if I could just be self-disciplined enough to actually DO THE EXERCISES, I’m sure Keller’s plan would be absolutely fantastic!

5 Stars Body after baby
This book has been very helpful in shedding weight from my baby 1 yr ago. It teaches great habits and im still losing.

5 Stars This is the one!
My wife and I picked this book up towards the end of her pregancy when a good friend of ours reccomended it and let me tell you, it was wonderful! This was nothing short of a health and nutrition Bible for new Moms. It’s got exercises, great tips and lots of recipes that will help Mom get back in shape and feeling and looking great in no time. The best part is, Jackie’s plan is nutritionally sound and well laid out so, not only did the pounds come off of both of us but, we were also getting the right nutrition which, as our doctor reminded us, is especially important for moms who are breast feeding.

Many of the excercises can be done with Mom and baby together which is a great opportunity for them to bond, and they can be done at home. My favorite part however was the food. My wife and I had been talking about improving our nutrition and eating right for years and if we’d had this book we’d have done it sooner. I never, not in a million years, imagined eating right could be this delicious! This book is packed with recipes that are perfect for the entire family, including finnicky eaters, and we both learned how to eat healthy and maintain a healthy weight! We’ve started giving this book as a gift to friends and family when they have kids and tell them that they “just have to read it” and everyone has loved it. Thank you Jackie for this book!

3 Stars Didn’t work for me
First let me say that many of the recipes in this book are FANTASTIC! For that reason I am glad I bought the book. But as a weight-loss plan it did not work for me. (also, it was hard to do THAT MUCH cooking every day, with a brand-new baby). In the first two weeks after my baby was born, I lost 20 lbs without doing anything special. Then I started trying this weight-loss plan. I loved the recipes but it did not let me eat enough. I am 6 feet tall so I naturally need more calories than the average girl, and I was always thinking about food. To make matters worse, after 4 weeks of following this plan (with some slip-ups, I admit - I found myself craving carbs like crazy!) my weight was the same as it was at 2 weeks postpartum. Then I started my own plan: keep on exercising as I feel ready, but eat as much fruits and vegetables as I can (some of my meals still include her recipes). I made a goal to eat 10 to 15 servings of fruits and veggies each day. After 7 days of doing this, I lost 3 lbs, and I am not craving carbs. In fact, I find myself craving things like oranges and strawberries rather than chocolate and ice cream. Now I feel like I can start to continue my weight loss where I left off at 2 weeks.

4 Stars It works but it takes some effort
I followed this program after the birth of my second son with the goal of losing 25-30 pounds in a few short months (before a trip to Hawaii). It worked and I didn’t even follow the plan 100% of the time. While the shopping and meal preparations do take time, and often the quantity leaves you with leftovers that you can’t consume (because you need to follow the next day’s menu), it does work. I plan on using this plan to lose all my baby weight from my third baby. If you are willing to put in some effort with the meal preparations it does pay off, plus the recipes are really good. I would definitely recommend this book to all new moms with the above caveat.

Buy/More Info

Lean Mommy Bond with Your Baby and Get Fit with the Stroller Strides R Program

Lean Mommy Bond with Your Baby and Get Fit with the Stroller Strides R Program

Lisa Druxman, a certified personal
trainer and fitness professional,
knows one of the challenges new
moms face: How do I get back
into shape after giving birth?
After Lisa gave birth to her first
child, she developed exercises
that she could do with her baby,
using power walks, the stroller,
and exercise tubing. Now she
brings the proven techniques of
Stroller Strides to moms everywhere, with a total f tness
program for pre- and postnatal fitness and nutrition.
In addition to stroller-based workouts, Lisa outlines
front-pack carrier workouts and eating plans to combat
post-baby weight gain, energy loss, and mood swings.
LEAN MOMMY gives moms the ability to have it all:
satisfying workouts, real results, and bonding time
with baby.

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Very Informative…
This book has a ton of ideas and things for you as you try to get back in shape after the arrival of your “little one”. The only problem as a mom was finding enough time to read through it…hahaha I highly recommend this book!

5 Stars Perfect companion to Stroller Strides classes
Thought this book was great in conjunction with the stroller strides classes that I was taking. I had no idea that this was a national brand, but after reading the book I searched on the web and found that there are classes all over the US. Great way to reach your goals with the support of moms who are in the same place in life as you are.

3 Stars If you’re just looking for exercises, look somewhere else
I bought this book because I thought it would be full of cool exercises and ideas of how to work out with my baby and his stroller. I was looking for unique information and advice specific to the experience of being a mom trying to loose weight. Some of that is true with this book. Unfortunately it really is full of mostly the same old diet/nutrition information that most people know, with a small part with the actual exercises. I kind of feel like I wasted my money buying the book since the health and diet info is stuff I already have access to. I’ve page marked the exercises and will incorporate those into my workout, but I can’t help feeling that I could have done a Google search and found the same information online.

3 Stars good book
love that it understand me as a parent . gives helpful ideas to eat healthy and wonderful exercises to do with your stroller.

5 Stars Not your typical exercise book!
This was an excellent book for moms trying to lose the baby weight. Ms. Druxman offers not just excellent exercise and nutrition advice, but also inspiring health advice as well. Lots of great tools and ideas on how to get on track with exercise and nutrition and for living a healthy lifestyle as well. As a fitness professional specializing in prental and postpartum exercise I was impressed with both the practicality and knowledge. I would definitely recommend to my clients and any other mom striving to live a healthy lifestyle for themselves and their families!

Buy/More Info

Beyond Power Yoga 8 Levels of Practice for Body and Soul

Beyond Power Yoga 8 Levels of Practice for Body and Soul

Yoga poses, or asanas, are just part of a traditional yoga practice, although this fact has largely been overlooked by the masses who’ve taken up yoga in the past several years. In astanga yoga, for example, there are eight branches, or “limbs,” of yoga that each correspond to a body chakra, or energy center, which combine physical and spiritual activities to balance the energy of the body and mind. (The third limb encompasses the asanas familiar to most yoga students; the other limbs include pranayama, or mindful breathing; dharana, or concentration; dhyana, meditation; and samadhi, living joyfully.)

Learning about the eight limbs in Beyond Power Yoga, Beryl Bender Birch’s follow-up to her 1995 bestseller, Power Yoga, could have been a dry and almost scholarly project, but rather is thankfully as rejuvenating as a Hawaiian yoga retreat. Birch’s writing style is at once confident and soothing, and often humorous. A prime example is her explanation of the yoga concept of dharma (if you follow your dharma, you’re following your universal path, or calling). Birch was newly married and mourning the passing of her dog. She was “just looking” at the pound for a Siberian husky and saw “in the flesh, the very dog I had been ’seeing’ and searching for–thoroughly gorgeous, completely show quality, perfect markings, fit, strong, outgoing and very friendly, but totally wild. The dog came bounding over to me and jumped into my arms, all fifty pounds of him. There was no question God wanted me to have this dog.” There was also an older, matted, underweight, crabby husky there too, which she couldn’t bear to leave. So she bought both of them from the pound for $17.43, but then spent $400 at the veterinarian to have them dewormed and immunized. She and her husband needed that money for rent, and he lambasted her for her irresponsibility. The day their rent was due, they received a $400 gift from a former student, thanking the Birches for ridding him of his back pain. Birch says that the thought never occurred to her that the rent money would be a problem: “If I had been plugged into the perception that it was going to take a long time to get that $400 back, then it would have taken a long time to get the $400 back, and I could never have had those dogs.”

Beyond Power Yoga includes dozens of photographs of Birch demonstrating basic asanas, including the Sun Salutation series, but for the reader looking for a full “power yoga” workout to get you good and sweaty, her first book will still be a necessity. But beginning- through advanced-yoga practitioners serious about using yoga as a path to self-fulfillment should find the information in Beyond Power Yoga to be positively life altering. –Erica Jorgensen

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars This has been a great resource as a yoga student/teacher
I bought this book at a discount sale before I really knew that much about yoga. Later I became so intrigued with the healing power of yoga that I studied to be a yoga teacher. During the course of my study I had to write research papers, study asana, learn about body structure, healing, and the spiritual journey. This book was not a book that was required reading but it was one of my most used resources. It helped me to see an American Yogis journey and relate it to my own life. Although some people might criticize the occasional personal story in the book, I enjoyed every personal moment that was written about. The stories made the book an easy read as well as made the possibility of becoming a good yogi seem accessible to me, not just something that “other people” can accomplish.

This book went very well with the Light on Life book by BKS Iyengar. The asana information has been of great benefit too, I like to have many different descriptions about the particulars of a pose. I’m a healthier person because of this book. Thank you Beryl Binder Birch, because of this book you’ve been one of my gurus.

2 Stars no more stories! please!
Birch once again gives us more information about herself than is needed. Check out Donna Farhi’s “Yoga: Mind, Body and Spirit” for a more thorough examination of the subject matter without all of the self-important jibber-jabber.

5 Stars A clear intro to the 8 limbs of Astanga Yoga
Power Yoga, Beryl Bender Birch’s first book, is a great introduction to developing a strong asana practice. In Beyond Power Yoga, Beryl reminds us that true astanga yoga is about more than physical health; rather it includes ethical living, a disciplined mind and body, and openness to that which is larger than ourselves. Beryl presents this information in a conversational, friendly manner, similar to how she spoke at a workshop I recently attended. Asanas, of course, are at the core of this work, and BPY gives us a good overview of a mixed primary and secondary series of practice. However, BPY goes beyond the asanas by linking the chakras to the 8 limbs of astanga yoga practice as detailed in the Yoga Sutras. The section on pranayama is exceptional–she brings a relatively obscure practice down to earth in a way that reveals not only how to do it, but *why* it’s important to practice in our lives. This is a book for those interested in the larger picture of yoga and how it fits into a spiritual/philosophical worldview of how to live rightly on this earth. Highly recommended for those who like to sweat but are ready for even more from their practice, as well as those from other hatha yoga traditions, if just to prove that astanga yoga is rooted in spirit as well as matter.

5 Stars Thank you, BBB, for this powerful book!
First there was Power Yoga. I remember buying the book in 1996, intrigued by the cover. Once I started reading it, I could not put it down! A few months later, I went to a workshop Beryl, and her husband, Thom, gave in Chicago. What an incredible experience. What inspiring and open teachers! The sun and moon interchanging and shining brightly between them. When “Beyond Power Yoga” came out, I was one of the first in line to get it at the bookstore. I love it! It is quiet personal, heart-warming, and educational as well. Each book stands as a strong foundation on its own. Thank you, Beryl, for sharing so much joy, knowledge, and personal experience in yoga. Your tapes are wonderful too!

5 Stars Beyond Power Yoga
I am greatly impressed by Birch’s new book, “Beyond Power Yoga.” I feel that she has managed to distill all of her experience and teaching skills into an incredibly well written text that is both very enjoyable to read and also very inspiring and personally challenging. Usually sequels are not as good as the original, but “Beyond Power Yoga” is an outstanding exception. I feel that it is truly an uncompromisingly honest piece of work.

Buy/More Info

Next Page »