Once is Probably Enough For Me

There is a group of people at the gym where I'm currently working that are very interested in the P90X DVD workout series. This is a series of intense exercise routines designed to provide results in 90 days*. Part of this grouping is something called Yoga X. I set aside the 1 1/2 hours to do this workout recently.

My perspective is that of a Certified Yoga Instructor and I will try my best to follow the non-judgment yogic philosophy as I continue writing this post.

What I Enjoyed:

• It was an intense and challenging workout.
• Most of the poses you would see in a Power Yoga class were part of this workout.
• There was a 10 - 15 minute section of abdominal work that was very well-queued, balanced, and effective.
• The Ashtanga flows were as expected and were sequenced with increasing intensity and complexity.
• The balancing poses were also effective and included one of the rare moments when a bit of yogic philosophy was present in the class ("It's OK to be wobbly...".)
• The stretches in the final section were held for a long time and this felt very good after the intense practice.
  

Opportunities for Improvement:

• In general, this instructor does not use the mirroring style of teaching even though he is facing you. When he says "Step out with your right foot", he steps out with his right foot which causes you to be going the opposite direction than him and his class. This is confusing to many people and this is normally a characteristic of an inexperienced instructor.

• I would have preferred to have a warm-up flow that builds on dynamic movements as part of the class. What was presented at the beginning of class was a few stretches and three quick Sun Salutation flows that were ineffective for me as my muscles were not ready for Sun Salutation. I think the workout expects that you have already warmed-up with some type of cardio activity.

• I would not recommend this yoga session for someone that is new to yoga and new to exercise. There isn't much explanation about how to do the poses and would require someone to continually look at the television during the poses which could cause neck strain. Since the workout is difficult, it might be frustrating for someone new to exercise.
  

• I grew tired of the instructor pointing out the "great bodies" of his students and how "good" they were at doing the poses. This should not be part of a yoga practice. Poses are never-ending and expectations of a great body from doing yoga poses should not be encouraged. There was an occasional comment about how everyone has a different level of flexibility, though.
  

• Once we were on the mat in the final 20 minutes of class, the transition between poses was ineffective and almost non-existent. For example, while on our back, we moved to child's pose and then from child's pose back to lying on our back. This was awkward.
  

• After an hour and a half of stressing the physical practice of yoga with very little philosophy and very little focus on breathing, we sat up after Relaxation Pose and did 3 sets of "Oms". This seemed out of place.

This workout is definitely for an experienced practitioner in good physical condition who is not expecting much beyond a physical challenge.

*This a claim published on their website.