AM/PM Yoga for Beginners

First, yoga is a blending of physical activity with a reduction in extraneous thoughts. These tapes start with some very good "conscious relaxation" techniques that are about as effective as anything you are likely to get in a class at getting you into the right mental state for yoga. Second, they are about as physically challenging as an average neophyte is likely to be able to do. Third, they are short enough (17 and 23 minutes) to fit into almost anyone's schedule. Fourth, they really do a good job of exercising the entire body, and the routines they use are very balanced and well thought-out.

The AM tape by Rodney Yee is a little shorter and easier than the PM tape by Patricia Weldon, but both are very good. Each starts with some mental relaxation exercises, does some flowing pose sequences, then concludes with a meditation session.

After a couple of months of practice I found that I had gotten much stronger and flexible, and started doing them back to back, starting with the AM tape and finishing with the PM tape, for a total workout of about 40 minutes that can get the sweat flowing. While I'm now at the point where I wouldn't feel challenged at all physically in doing these tapes, I still use the conscious relaxation techniques I learned from them, and have given them to a friend who is just starting out.


Good production values, not very deep   December 21, 1999
36 out of 38 found this review helpful

Although these tapes look beautiful and are relaxing, they are somewhat superficial. I watched them again after about a year of practicing on my own and in classes, and I found the pace to be distractingly fast. Sure, we're all busy etc. but yoga requires time and dedication. People who give fifteen minutes to their practice are only scratching the surface and would be astonished at what a difference holding and breathing into the poses would make in their daily lives. These tapes are pretty to look at, but they are very limited.


Perfect for Beginners!   March 14, 2001
DJ Fox (Worcester, MA United States)
34 out of 34 found this review helpful

This tape is exactly what it said it would be, and more. I'm overweight and didn't expect to do very well with yoga, but these videos are easy and helped me to regain lost flexibility. 3 days into the tapes and I'm already feeling the results. Wonderful!


A wonderful way to start and end your day   June 3, 1999
31 out of 31 found this review helpful

I have been doing these tapes for about a month now and they are wonderful. Starting my day with Rodney Yee has been wonderful. His voice is very soothing and AM Yoga is a very gentle introduction into the day. PM Yoga is a little bit more difficult, and it took me a while to get used to it, but now I find myself looking forward to the wonderful stretches throughout the day. This may sound hokey, but these tapes have made a difference in my life. I am more relaxed (I have two young children and work at a high pressure job, so I need it) and I find that I think more clearly. I've even lost a little weight and my legs are more toned. The tapes aren't very long, which I find encourages me to do them more often than an hour long tape would. I see that some viewers have complained about the ads on the tape. My solution to that is to simply pay attention to the tape counter and rewind to the part of the tape where the yoga session begins. I would consider myself a yoga novice (I have done some yoga, but it was 10-plus years ago) and I have always been fairly flexible, which makes doing yoga a little easier. Still, I would recommend these tapes to anyone looking for an exercise change. These tapes don't involve a huge time commitment and as Rodney says "the benefits are truly great".