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- Verified Buyer
I'm an advanced beginner, and I've been practicing for about 4 months very actively (almost every day). I think this set was the second item I bought to get me going, and, although it was sheer luck, I don't think I could have chosen better.There are some challenging poses here, no doubt. But I like that he sprinkles them in. It gives me something to work toward. The first time I saw the Crane posture, I laughed and thought to myself, yeah, maybe I'll try that in a year or two. But, after chipping away at it steadily, I can stay up for 5 full breaths (thank you, thank you, no applause needed). "Simple arm balance" is a completely different story. I have a looonnngg way to go on that one. But, again, I'll keep at it.There are 3 DVDs here: Strength Building Yoga, Energy Balance Yoga, and Power Yoga: Strength. I have to be honest, I've gotten nothing at all out of the Energy Balance DVD, but the other two more than make up for it. (Hey, even if you take Energy Balance out, you're only paying about $14/dvd, and you get the strap - that's not a bad bargain.)And I do think these DVDs are for beginners, especially since I was a completel beginner when I started: I was totally inflexible, had a lot of lower back pain, and my endurance was tragic. The first few weeks were simply embarrassing, no doubt about it. I couldn't do a lot of the poses - my downward dog looked like a croquet hoop. But you do what you can, rest and recover, and try again. And whattaya know, you get better. And the workout gets easier. It's still not easy, but it's easier.The two "strength" dvds are excellent workouts, and they leave me wasted in a great way. I'm improved a lot over the past 4 months thanks to these workouts and the excellent instruction that voices-over through the workouts.I've actually given 3 of these boxed sets as gifts, so that should tell you something. And the feedback from those I've given them to is also excellent. So really, if you have nothing else in your arsenal and want to start practicing yoga, this is a very safe bet.The only reason I say in my title that this isn't actually Rodney's best, is that there's another of his DVDs, a bit more advanced than these, that I think is much better than the "Energy Balance" DVD included here. It's called "Power Yoga: Total Body." It's about a full hour, and an amazing workout. It's so tough that, at this stage in my development, I don't let myself do it more than twice a week or so, because I'm afraid I might push too hard and end up in traction. But, if that DVD were in this set, I definitely think we'd have his greatest hits.Also, and this is important if you're a beginner, this set comes with a strap, which is great. But, definitely get yourself a block - they only cost 10 bucks, and although you might only need it for a month or two, during that month you will be very glad you have it!Namaste!
