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Overview: Yoga Edge is a yoga program aimed at athletes and designed to help performance and aid in recovery. It includes two practices (Excel and Restore), a matrix of sports-specific practices, and a link to online bonus content.
Equipment needed: Yoga mat, block (optional), strap (optional)
Workout times:
Excel: 28 minutes
Restore: 29 minutes
Matrix – Road Warriors: 27 minutes
Matrix – Revolvers: 27 minutes
Matrix – Explosives: 20 minutes
Workout structure:
- Excel: Squats/upper body twists (alternating sides), lunge/airplane/figure-4 squat (both sides), chair pose/forward fold/one-legged squats/airplanes/warrior 3/warrior 1/side stretch/pyramid/revolved pyramid/forward fold (both sides), forward fold, plank, sunbird (with both knees off the ground), cobra, forearm plank, dolphin, child’s pose, deep squat, warrior 2/wrist stretches/half moon (both sides), horse, mountain pose
- Restore: Standing balance pose with strap (both sides), low lunge/backbend/modified half split (both sides), lizard/tabletop/hip flexor & quad stretch (both sides), lizard with knee pushed out (both sides), lizard with forearms on block (both sides), sphinx, child’s pose, child’s pose with side stretch (both sides), modified hero’s pose, modified cow face with strap (both sides), pigeon (both sides), reclined big toe pose (up and to the sides – both legs), butterfly
- Matrix – Road Warriors: Standing balance pose with strap (both sides), chair pose/forward fold/one-legged squats/airplanes/warrior 3/warrior 1/side stretch/pyramid/forward fold (both sides), low lunge/backbend/modified half split (both sides), lizard/tabletop/hip flexor & quad stretch (both sides), pigeon (both sides), reclined big toe pose (up and to the sides – both legs), butterfly
- Matrix – Revolvers: Squats/upper body twists (alternating sides), chair pose/warrior 1/side stretch/pyramid/revolved pyramid/forward fold (both sides), plank, sunbird (with both knees off the ground), cobra, forearm plank, dolphin, child’s pose, child’s pose with side stretch (both sides), modified hero’s pose, modified cow face with strap (both sides), deep squat, warrior 2/wrist stretches/half moon (both sides), horse, mountain pose
- Matrix – Explosives: Squats/upper body twists (alternating sides), lunge/airplane/figure-4 squat (both sides), chair pose/forward fold/plank/sunbird (with both knees off the ground)/plank/cobra, lizard with knee pushed out (both sides), lizard with forearms on block (both sides), pigeon (both sides), deep squat, warrior 2/wrist stretches (both sides), horse, mountain pose
My impressions:
If you’ve always wanted to try yoga but didn’t want any of the woo-woo commonly associated with it, you might want to give this DVD a try. Both the Excel and Restore workouts make for nice add-ons to your regular cardio and strength workouts, or are also good for rest where you just want to get a little movement in.
There are no background exercisers – the workouts feature just Dean, who introduces and explains the poses and their benefits in a calm, matter-of-fact manner that will appeal to dudes (and many ladies, as well). He uses the English names for poses rather than the Sanskrit names, which makes it a little easier to follow for those not familiar with yoga terminology.
The sport-focused workouts are a nice addition – they each are created by taking different sequences and poses from the Excel and Restore programs. Both the Road Warriors (for runners, cyclists, and endurance athletes) and Revolvers (for golfers, tennis players, and swimmers) program run close to half an hour, while the Explosives program (for weightlifters, sprinters, and team sports players) runs about 20 minutes.
Another great feature of the Yoga Edge DVD is the ability to choose your own music for each of the programs. For the Excel and Restore programs, you get your choice of Work Out (upbeat dubstep), Lounge Out (house music), or Chill Out (light FM). For the matrix programs, the options include Work Out (upbeat electronic), Lounge Out (ambient house), and Pop Out (upbeat acoustic).
The DVD also includes a link to 7 bonus workouts accessed online. You do have to register to get access to them, but they look like nice additions to the DVD workouts.
Summary: Yoga Edge is a good yoga DVD geared towards athletes, although almost anyone who wants to do yoga without all the spirituality normally associated with it will enjoy it, as well. The practices are all less than 30 minutes, so you can easily do them as an add-on after a workout, or on rest days. The musical choices, online content, and instructor’s demeanor also make Yoga Edge very appealing.