Living Yoga - Back Care Yoga for Beginners

I believe my aversion to Yee’s tape is due in part to his reliance on props such as chairs and straps to round out his exercise routines. I practice Yoga in a small, converted bedroom that does double duty as a storage and exercise facility. There’s just enough remaining space for me. When I try introducing a chair, strap, and pillow into this limited area, the only safe place to exercise is in the hallway.

I also find Yee’s coaching style less thorough than some of his contemporaries. He often forgets to provide his students with simple, but necessary reminders to inhale and exhale at the proper times (which I’m quickly learning is key to reaping the benefits of Yoga), raise their heads slowly to avoid rapid changes in blood pressure, or relax their shoulders. At first glance, these may appear to be minor grievances, but once I’d worked out using a tape that included steady, consistent coaching I couldn’t help noticing the lack of it in Yee’s tape.

“Back Care Yoga for Beginners” isn’t without value. It is fashionably brief and professionally produced. Once my breath control becomes second nature, I may begin using it again. Until then, Yee’s “Back Care…” tape will continue to collect dust.


Life changing!!   May 24, 2002
Katt (Tucson, AZ United States)
91 out of 92 found this review helpful

For the past 2 months, I've been experiencing terrible back pain due to muscle spasms. I wasn't offered much help by any of the doctors that I saw, other to be put on muscle relaxers and pain killers, which made me feel even worse. I came across this tape by sheer accident while browsing at my local library. I decided to try it because I was in so much pain, I was willing to try anything!

I got home and did the 20 minutes of tape and was SHOCKED by the results! I literally felt better after 20 minutes of Yoga, than I had in months! I couldn't believe the difference in how I felt, I felt like my old self again.

I'm not much a Yoga person and I don't consider myself very flexible, but this tape WORKS! It's perfect for beginners who haven't done any kind of Yoga before, it's gentle enough to use if you are injured, and best of all, it's effective. I think one of the best parts of this video is that Rodney Yee focuses on strengthening your back and your spine, so that your back problems will go away naturally and you'll be less likely have them again over time.

I would highly recommend this video to anyone that is experiencing any type of lower back pain. I know I will be using this video for years to come!


You will be so relaxed after this one...   November 20, 2002
C. Estelle (Mesa, Arizona United States)
61 out of 64 found this review helpful

People often suffer additional back pain when they are tense do to increased muscle tightness. Yoga is very beneficial for those who suffer from back pain because it helps increase your level of relaxation as well as lengthen, short, tight muscles.

This Session is done using a chair so that those who lack flexibility, are overweight, or are limited in movement because they suffer back or neck pain can do the same yoga positions you find on other tapes but which may have been to difficult due to physical limitations.

This tape is nothing short of an astounding miracle. It helped me tremendously with my back pain. It also helped me to be able to sleep through the night better when I couldn't previously sleep because of pain and discomfort. I twice a day, once to get my day started off on the right foot and a second time before bed. After all the money and effort I've spent with Doctors to help the pain, the money spent for this tape was well worth it.

I would highly recommend "Yoga Conditioning for Weight Loss" with Suzanne Deason, "Yoga Conditioning for Athletes" with Rodney Yee, "A.M Yoga for Beginners" with Rodney Yee, P.M. Yoga for Beginners" with Suzanne Deason, "Stress Relief Yoga for Beginners" with Patricia Walden & "Yoga Journal's Yoga for Meditation" with Rodney Yee which has 5 beautiful sessions with him all one tape which are filmed at the foot of a snow peaked mountain top.


My favorite exercise video!   September 8, 1999
44 out of 44 found this review helpful

I have been prone to back spasms on and off for a number of years. Back Care Yoga is a wonderful tape that helps me anytime I feel my back muscles start to tighten up (usually a precursor to spasms if I don't catch it early). The fact that it is only 20 minutes long makes it easy to fit into even a busy day, and the poses make my back feel wonderful! I have a number of exercise tapes, including several yoga tapes, but this one is my absolute favorite.


Very helpful   September 29, 2002
M. Dillon (Massachusetts)
41 out of 42 found this review helpful

Recently my back went out, it felt like a pinched nerve, and I was hardly able to walk for 4 days. I have had back issues most of my life. I decided that I needed to do something and having had some exposure to yoga I thought I'd give this video a try.

This short video with its 20-minute yoga workout felt pretty good. The tape is laid out with 8 minutes of stretches and hip openers, 8 minutes of active workout to build abs and back muscles, and 4 minutes of guided relaxation to heal the mind and body. During the video I was surprised to see the poses done so quickly and so many of them. In other yoga videos that I have seen, the pace appears to be a little slower. This being said, I did enjoy it.

I borrowed this tape from the library so I could save a couple of $$$. I now see that the small investment in the purchase price will be needed to remember all the poses. The guiding that Rodney Yee offers is very helpful. He has an ability to speak in such clarity that you don't need to twist even more to look at the TV as the poses are occurring. While it is helpful to see the poses, once you have done them a few times I'm sure you'll find his guiding to be enough.

I feel this is a good addition to any back care routine. Good luck with your back!