The Bottom Line
Pros
- A fast-paced, challenging workout that will appeal to advanced exercisers
- A variety of poses to stretch and strengthen every muscle of the body
- A classic, flowing workout that leaves you refreshed and relaxed
Cons
- Bryan Kest can be a little chatty and his strange outfit is distracting
- Some of the poses are very advanced and should be modified
Description
- 50 minutes of challenging yoga poses
- This workout video focuses on building power and strength, so the poses flow quickly and the moves tend to be more advanced
- Overall, an advanced yoga workout that will challenge strength, flexibility and stamina
Guide Review - Bryan Kest's Power Yoga Volume 3 - Sweat
This video is an old one (filmed back in 1995), but it still stands the test of time as a solid power yoga workout that offers just the right amount of challenge along with the three things I find most important in the yoga videos I do: Flow, lots of stretching and relaxation.
The Basics
The workout is about an hour long and taught by Bryan Kest, well-known in the yoga world as being a tough instructor. He's a good instructor, offering some great cues on keeping proper form and alignment, but he also teaches the class while wearing faded jeans and no shirt (which I find funny every time I see it). He also talks non-stop throughout the video, which some exercisers may find distracting.
The background exercises look like they could tie themselves in knots without breaking a sweat, which can be intimidating. Certainly, this isn't a workout for beginners, but advanced exercisers familiar with yoga should be able to do most of the moves, perhaps with a few modifications for some of the harder ones.
Bryan begins the workout with some warm-up downward dogs and a vigorous section of sun salutations. The pace picks up as you go into a series of warrior poses, triangles and more advanced balance moves that will really challenge the hips, glutes and thighs. The workout follows a progressive path, with the more vigorous work in the middle and ending on a relaxed note and there are some advanced moves (the backbend and headstand poses come to mind here).
The Bottom Line
There are some drawbacks to this video: Advanced (sometimes very advanced) poses, an instructor who dresses like he's posing for an 80's magazine and chats quit a bit and a dated feel to the video. These can be distracting, especially if you're picking up this workout some 10 or 15 years later, but it's a great workout and perfect for people who want to push a little harder in their yoga practice.
