The New Method: Baby & Mom - Prenatal Yoga

Rating:
Summary: Earthy-Crunchy
Review: I bought this dvd because I had read an article about Gurmukh and some pre-natal postures she had suggested in Shape magazine. I've done yoga on and off for several years now and thought I'd really enjoy the workout. She talks during the ENTIRE dvd, there's no chance for you to just stretch and breathe by yourself b/c you can't tune out her voice. I bought both pre-and post-natal dvd's and now really wish I hadn't. I still do the workout twice a week (I'm 5 months along) and do find I enjoy the stretching, but it really is boring and for anyone who has done yoga before, you'll find there is very little actual yoga in the sequences. I take a live pre-natal yoga class once a week and we actually do more than sway and "grind".

Rating:
Summary: WAY out there!
Review: I was interested in Gurmukh and her yoga style before getting pregnant, so this seemed like the perfect video to get for my prenatal workouts. I couldn't get through it even once! I found it boring, boring, boring! I'm guessing if you're a devotee of her style of yoga, the chanting, bongos and Gurmukh's breathy whispering might be enjoyable. I preferred Crunch's Yoga Mama by far. I found having a pregnant instructor was very helpful.

Rating:
Summary: I love it !!!!!
Review: I am 5 1/2 months pregnant and have been using this for about a week! My lower back has not been hurting as it was before and I feel better! After the workout I feel so relaxed. I feel better than when I get a good nights rest (whatever that is).

Rating:
Summary: increases the bond between mommy and unborn child
Review: I didn't get this video until 2 months before my due date. Even then I didn't play it every day, but when I did I felt so much better. It helped me to forget the stress and totally relax and enjoy my pregnancy. I always felt very connected to my baby and this video gave me time to focus on just her. Everything was smooth and easy, nothing painful, but the stretches were invigorating and carefully focused on preparation for labor and delivery. I had a relatively quick and easy l&d and I believe the physical exercises combined with the encouraging messages in this video contributed to that. I enjoyed the peaceful tone of this video. The background music (played by live musicians) was soothing yet energetic enough to inspire movement. This video gave me many cherishable pregnancy memories and it also gave me the confidence I needed to remain calm and centered as the big day approached. I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Great Prenatal Routine!
Review: I really enjoy this video. The exercises are clearly geared toward pregant women, and the stretches give immediate relief to the back pain and other discomforts of pregnancy, not to mention a fantastic energy boost. Please note, however, that this is not what you might expect if you're used to hatha yoga. I was an avid practitioner of hatha yoga prior to pregancy, but these poses are much better geared toward pregnant women (especially in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters) than the traditional poses in a video like Power Yoga. Also, there is a great deal of focus on the meditative side of yoga. This focus has been a turn-off for many reviewers. I admit that the chanting may make you feel silly at first, but it is very relaxing if you give it a chance. If you don't like it, don't chant! The advantages of doing the rest of the workout far outweigh the silliness you may feel from the "new age" stuff.

Rating:
Summary: "out there", but good
Review: I definitely agree that this video is a little bit "out there". The woman leading it wears a turban, there is chanting, there is a "free form" section. However, for someone who has never done yoga before, I found it to be an easy-to-follow, enjoyable workout. I tried other videos and the aerobics got my feet all twisted and the other yoga videos were too structured for someone who didn't know any poses. If you are looking specifically for pregnancy yoga poses and already know some yoga, this might not be the video for you. If you're looking for a fun, relaxing workout, this could be it.

Rating:
Summary: I wasn't into the chanting
Review: This video has provides some good excerises, but it's a little weird. I had to fast forward through the chanting and the meditation.. it was just too much for me. The instructor is a little on the new age side (she wears a turbin). Not the video for you if you don't like the radical new age stuff...

Rating:
Summary: Not for ANY trimester!
Review: My earlier review (Maybe not for first trimesters, 9-4-03) has proven to be true fo the 2nd trimester, too. I haven't gotten nauseated at any other time (caveat: smelling weird things, but that's another story) except when I try to do this dumb video! I've tried to do this workout three or four times since I hit 4 months, and every time ends up a disaster. I had to lie down for an hour this last time before it went away! Not to mention the scary towel lady business. My advice: get out and walk instead of wasting your time or money on this dvd.

Rating:
Summary: Nothing like regular yoga
Review: This is an okay workout, and I enjoyed seeing the blissful and beatific looking pregnant women (especially since I haven't been feeling too blissful or beatific so far). But it's nothing like the hatha yoga I'm used to; hardly anything on this tape is recognizable to me as yoga, based on the yoga classes I've taken. And although I thought I'd enjoy the chanting (because I did enjoy it in a yoga class where we used to chant at the end), I actually found it silly and annoying. Plus, I found the instructor's silly-looking turban and "zoned-out" manner distracting. The ZenMama yoga workout with Rainbeau Mars is much less flaky and more like normal yoga, and is also good because it shows modifications for all three trimesters.

Rating:
Summary: The spiritual bla-bla overwhlems the exercise benefits
Review: As I get further along in my pregnancy (I'm 7 months), I wanted to do yoga more often then my weekly in person class. I bought this DVD to exercise and continue with safe, suitable Yoga exercises during pregnancy. Instead, I got a video that is 90% spiritual ho-ha. Some of the sentences include:"Imagine you are in a forest 1,000 years ago giving birth". "Your baby loves to dance" etc. I wanted to turn it on mute but unfortunately would not have been able to hear the instructions.
The other missing gap in this video are the actual exercises, there is an overemphasis on doing squats (this was a problem for me as I have a bad knee). The instructor (women with a turban talking continously) is so busy talking about her view of the world that she misses the exercise descriptions. Unlike my in person classes where the instructor says "inhale and exhale" and explains how you can get the most benefit, the guru talks and talks.
I got nothing from this video. I tried to keep an open mind and just exercise but she was very annoying and the exercises are not well thought out. It's funny since the video is so spiritually based I really think they ought to put the guru's photo on the front rather than a normal pregnant woman.
I would request a refund on this product if it were possible. I'm going to buy something else.