Rating: 
Summary: Good introduction to yoga actually intended for beginners
Review: I give this book 4 stars for its organization, simplicity, and attention to the needs of true beginners; I give it 3 stars for its yoga program.
This book's strength is that it is really intended for beginners. The layout of the book is easy to follow, and the focus is on the exercises, which are divided into two routines of different levels and which are actually doable. (No twisting legs behind heads here.) These routines take about 45 minutes from warm ups to relaxation if done at a brisk pace or about 1 hour if done with more resting in between asanas. The authors also give a basic and brief introduction to other aspects of the yogi life.
I am using this book as a complement to my introductory yoga class to improve my flexibility and strength to a point where I can begin a more intermediate level of yoga. The book works fairly well for that purpose, allowing me to focus on developing strength and improving flexibility in key areas for key poses. I would definitely recommend either taking a yoga class for a couple of weeks or working with someone who is more advanced in their yoga practice to see the poses in action, get feedback on posture, and hear other interpretations of the poses.
This leads me to what I feel are the book's weaknesses. The poses are adequately, even well, explained and photographed, but I find that the authors do not do as good of a job explaining how to come out of the asanas the safest way possible. (They do hint at this, but here a more experienced yoga person could help.) I find that my lower back is often stiff following workouts unless I switch the order of the last few poses, and I have to expand the warm ups and bring in cool down stretches from my class in order to prevent injury better.
Nevertheless, I would recommend this book to someone looking to get into yoga. I think that seniors especially may find this approach to yoga helpful, particularly with the recommended modifications. (Even less intimidating than this book is Yoga for Wimps, which modifies most, if not all, of the asanas; however, that book does not intend to prepare its followers to pursue more advanced levels of yoga. In contrast, Yoga for Beginners allows users to keep to its program or work towards a more difficult method.)
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful beginner's book
Review: I have attempted yoga poses with other books that have snapped shut while I was in transition. The fact that this is spiral bound has helped me tremendously. The book includes breathing techniques and relaxation poses. It details exactly how to go through all of the poses, it also includes modifications. Its a great book!
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful beginner's book
Review: I have attempted yoga poses with other books that have snapped shut while I was in transition. The fact that this is spiral bound has helped me tremendously. The book includes breathing techniques and relaxation poses. It details exactly how to go through all of the poses, it also includes modifications. Its a great book!
Rating:
Summary: The Best Beginners Book
Review: I have bought several yoga tapes marked as "Beginner" only to get frustrated by how quickly they go from one pose/position to another without regard for the real beginners. I thought I would never learn the terms and poses - and would have to ditch my tapes. This book saved me!!! It provided step by step guides to each pose - visually so that you can walk yourself through the steps to acheive the position. It's a great first step to learning the basics. With this foundation I am now ready to tune into the tapes I have purchased and truly experience yoga!!!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book for Anyone
Review: I love this book! I am just now getting into yoga after hearing for many years about its benefits.This book is very easy to follow and straight forward.It has tons of pictures that one can easliy see and understand. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is just beggining(like me) or who wants to reinforce the basics of yoga.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book for Anyone
Review: I've read at least 15 books (as of 9.2004) on Yoga and this one is one of the most informative and easy to use. It also has advanced moves for when you progress. I use Yoga to compliment my long-distance running and weight lifting. I broke my back (L5-S1) about 5 years ago and needed surgery. I vowed to never let myself suffer again. With a combination of weight lifting and Yoga, I think you can almost guarantee success. You will not feel intimidated using this book. The moves are adequately explained and most importantly details what areas of the body are stretched/enhanced with each move.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Useful Book For Beginners
Review: If you have no prior experience and want to jump right into a routine, this is the book for you. In fact, it serves that purpose better than any other yoga book I've seen so far. It's design is simple yet clever, and allows the user to study the instructions and accompanying photos of the various poses while simultaneously attempting them. The descriptions and illustrations are understandable and well-organized. This is strictly a beginner's book, and that point is clearly stated in the title, but for that reason it is fairly limited in scope. The authors cover several important poses in great detail, but you may want to explore further and cross-reference with other books. Another that I'd recommend highly is called Hatha Yoga Illustrated, which I've also reviewed. Overall, Yoga For Beginners is a great starting place for those looking to dive in head first. It will give you a good sense of the time needed to learn and perform a full routine. You'll be attempting your first poses literally within minutes of cracking the book open!
Rating:
Summary: Very Useful Book For Beginners
Review: If you have no prior experience and want to jump right into a routine, this is the book for you. In fact, it serves that purpose better than any other yoga book I've seen so far. It's design is simple yet clever, and allows the user to study the instructions and accompanying photos of the various poses while simultaneously attempting them. The descriptions and illustrations are understandable and well-organized. This is strictly a beginner's book, and that point is clearly stated in the title, but for that reason it is fairly limited in scope. The authors cover several important poses in great detail, but you may want to explore further and cross-reference with other books. Another that I'd recommend highly is called Hatha Yoga Illustrated, which I've also reviewed. Overall, Yoga For Beginners is a great starting place for those looking to dive in head first. It will give you a good sense of the time needed to learn and perform a full routine. You'll be attempting your first poses literally within minutes of cracking the book open!
Rating:
Summary: On the Way to the New Me
Review: The illustrations are clear, the instructions are concise. This book makes it easy to begin your journey to toning and finding your personal body beautiful!
Rating:
Summary: Perfect!
Review: The perfect book for a beginner like me. Not full of backbends and headstands like some of the other books I've looked through. I bought it to go along with a yoga video that I've been doing. Even though the video is great (PM Yoga) its sometimes difficult to figure out exactly how your foot should be angled, arms extended, etc. This book breaks down each pose into steps so you know exactly how your body should be positioned. Plus there are two complete routines for beginners and intermediates so the book should be useful for a while.
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