Rating: 
Summary: Good Intro to Yoga, but Boring
Review: Although I found this video to be just about the most boring excercise video I've ever used, I think it is actually very good for beginners. All of the poses are explained clearly and slowly, with suggestions for adaptations due to weak knees, etc. If you can manage to get through a long boring hour, and stick with it, this video will really help you learn some basic yoga. Not to mention that you'll feel great.
Rating:
Summary: Yoga Zone: Introduction to yoga
Review: GREAT! I had bought the introduction to yoga book, but was not sure if I was doing the postures correctly. The video helped me to understand correct Yoga breathing, and gave me confidence that I was doing Yoga correctly. While the tape does not have a lot of postures, it taught me enough that I can now do all the postures in my book with confidence. I have already recommended this tape and the intro to Yoga book by Yoga Zone to family and friends. It is relaxing and I can see an improvement in my upper body strength.
Rating: 
Summary: Perfect beginner's video
Review: I developed an interest in trying yoga about a month ago and decided to pick up this video. I'm so glad I did, because it's been such a great video that I now do yoga every single day, doing this video specifically at least 4 or 5 times a week. The instructor's voice is very soothing and relaxing, and the poses are challenging but definitely not unattainable for the beginner. What's more, there's always room to grow. When I started to feel like I really had a pose down and might feel bored by that section of the video, instead I started really examining the pose to see how I felt, or noticing that I could be relaxing a particular part of my body more, or breathing better. Someone else in these reviews mentioned that they felt bored during the explanations if they'd done the video a while -- what I've begun to do is simply start doing the pose while he's explaining. I get more workout that way and I'm growing in my ability to do it. I highly recommend this video for any beginner interested in yoga.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent introduction to yoga
Review: I first discovered yoga in the late 70's when I had the good fortune to learn from a teacher who had studied with a bona fide yoga master from India. That was long ago and far away and soon afterwards I moved to New York City. Due to the hurly burly of trying to get established and live here, my yoga practice gradually slipped away. I have made several attempts to rekindle my initial enthusiam by purchasing over a dozen books and videos and taking numerous classes. Up until I saw this video, I had failed to find anything that replicated the quality of the instruction I first experienced. It is unfortunate that two prior reviewers of this tape called it "boring" and one went over the top and panned everything about it, ending the review by citing preferred videos made by people in the fitness industry. First of all, if anyone finds this video boring, I suggest the problem may not be with the video but rather the person. Even though now there are many styles of yoga to choose from (Bikram, Kundalini, Ashtanga, Kripalu, Iyengar, and so forth)--and I have tried several of these--the fact remains that classical hatha yoga is supposed to be slow, deliberate, precise, meditative and mindful. Anything that deviates from that is usually some bastardization of it. I once took a yoga class from a local high-quality health club and the instructor never once even went over the proper way to breathe, never made reference to the mind-body discipline of it and the hour passed as nothing more than a stretching class. Now that yoga has gone mainstream in these intervening 20 or so years since I first discovered it, there are a lot of people out there teaching it who obviously have no business doing so. It seems that every celebrity and fitness guru has a book or video out on it and there is nothing that authenticates these people as qualified to teach it other than their names. Don't get me wrong, I am not a yoga expert, I still consider myself a beginner, but I can recognize excellent instruction when I see it. Alan Finger is all a yoga teacher should be--he teaches the proper breath and form throughout. He is gentle, slow and tells you where every every toe, arm and vertebra should be. He is thorough, exacting and precise: since yoga is not some new phenomenon of pop culture but an ancient art and science, his manner of instruction recognizes that and dignifies it as such. I am so inspired and impressed with him that I would lay out all the extra money it would take, and schlep all the way down to the other end of this city, if I thought I could study at his studio with the man himself. Trust me, this is a quality video. All the superlatives apply.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Excellent!!
Review: I first discovered yoga in the late 70's when I had the good fortune to learn from a teacher who had studied with a bona fide yoga master from India. That was long ago and far away and soon afterwards I moved to New York City. Due to the hurly burly of trying to get established and live here, my yoga practice gradually slipped away. I have made several attempts to rekindle my initial enthusiam by purchasing over a dozen books and videos and taking numerous classes. Up until I saw this video, I had failed to find anything that replicated the quality of the instruction I first experienced. It is unfortunate that two prior reviewers of this tape called it "boring" and one went over the top and panned everything about it, ending the review by citing preferred videos made by people in the fitness industry. First of all, if anyone finds this video boring, I suggest the problem may not be with the video but rather the person. Even though now there are many styles of yoga to choose from (Bikram, Kundalini, Ashtanga, Kripalu, Iyengar, and so forth)--and I have tried several of these--the fact remains that classical hatha yoga is supposed to be slow, deliberate, precise, meditative and mindful. Anything that deviates from that is usually some bastardization of it. I once took a yoga class from a local high-quality health club and the instructor never once even went over the proper way to breathe, never made reference to the mind-body discipline of it and the hour passed as nothing more than a stretching class. Now that yoga has gone mainstream in these intervening 20 or so years since I first discovered it, there are a lot of people out there teaching it who obviously have no business doing so. It seems that every celebrity and fitness guru has a book or video out on it and there is nothing that authenticates these people as qualified to teach it other than their names. Don't get me wrong, I am not a yoga expert, I still consider myself a beginner, but I can recognize excellent instruction when I see it. Alan Finger is all a yoga teacher should be--he teaches the proper breath and form throughout. He is gentle, slow and tells you where every every toe, arm and vertebra should be. He is thorough, exacting and precise: since yoga is not some new phenomenon of pop culture but an ancient art and science, his manner of instruction recognizes that and dignifies it as such. I am so inspired and impressed with him that I would lay out all the extra money it would take, and schlep all the way down to the other end of this city, if I thought I could study at his studio with the man himself. Trust me, this is a quality video. All the superlatives apply.
Rating:
Summary: Good video for yoga beginner's
Review: I found this video good for a yoga beginner. There different people doing different poses for the beginner and intermediate levels of yoga. The instructor explains the movements in an easy to understand manner. He gives ideas to help your body "ease" into yoga. Good video.
Rating:
Summary: Yoga Zone is the best....
Review: I found this yoga tape to be wonderful and relaxing, I did find it to be a bit long. But I would definetely recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best Beginner's Tapes
Review: I got into yoga several months ago and immediately fell in love with it. This was the first video I bought, and it's a great introduction to yoga. The poses that you'll do are ones that you'll see coming up again and again in other videos. Some of the poses are more challenging than others, but you can get through the whole video without any problem. The meditation/relaxation at the end is a great way to end as well, and Alan Finger is one of the best instructors I've seen thus far- he guides you through everything at a perfect pace, he's very calm, and he uses 4 different partners, all at different levels of practice, to model the poses and show different variations.
Rating:
Summary: My first video - the only company I'll use!
Review: I have been doing yoga off and on for the past year. This Yoga Zone video was what made me start yoga regularly. Alan's voice is so soothing, the postures are explained fully, and you have time to feel the whole stretch. I recommend this video to anyone of any age (I'm 17), at any level.
Rating:
Summary: Best Beginner Tape I've Found
Review: I have tried several beginner's yoga tapes and have been disappointed in the lack of real instruction in them. Alan Finger gently guides you through each position and gives clear, concise instructions for everything. You are never left wondering - what should I be doing now? The pace is perfect for a beginner - he moves you along slowly, lets you get the feel of the pose and has you hold it long enough to really feel what you are supposed to be accomplishing. The atmosphere and music on the tape is very soothing and Alan Finger's beautifully accented voice is just a pleasure to listen to. The yoga workout lasts for close to an hour and when I was done with it, I felt wonderful! Alan takes you through the process of relaxation so completely. On other tapes I have felt rushed - relax your neck, now your arms, now your back ...etc. Alan eases you through it gently and completely. This is a wonderful tape for beginners - it is the first tape I have found that left me feeling like I thought I should feel after a yoga workout - stretched and relaxed. Alan also relies much less on props than other videos I have tried - all you need is a mat and a strap. Having people of various flexibilty levels demonstrating the poses in another unusual feature of this tape - you can view a modified approach to each postion, as well as the ideal. This way you can see what to do now, as well as what to aim for, at your own pace. This tape is perfect.
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