Practiced this morning along with Kino's Primary DVD. Exhausting as she goes at quite a pace and I was trying to do her high Jump Through throughout. My player clocks it 1 hour 15. If you take out the Intro, credits and chanting she gets through the primary series in about 70 minutes, pretty much the same as Sharath.
Here's her own promo on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciAnDkxaJE4
First thing I should say is that it arrived very quickly. I ordered it from her Miami life studio and it must have taken under a week to arrive with me here in the UK.
As you can see from the top screenshot you get the primary sequence and then an extra section on beginner options, see below.
These tend to be variations or easier ways of getting into the asanas. Very welcome to this blog is a section on the Jump Backs and Jump Through where she gives about five variations (She has another DVD of one of her workshops that goes into the Jump back and Through in even more detail).The main Primary sequence is broken down into scene selections. Where it says Advanced, this refers to a panel that pops up in the main practice with an Advanced variation or transition. EG. in Parasarita Padottanasana D she mentions the option of pressing up into handstand. She says while it's not traditional it can be fun. (YES! Thanks Kino for recognizing that the practice can be fun).
This morning was the third time I've practiced along with her Primary. First time I almost turned it off before the end of Sury B. She seemed to be talking too fast, saying too much, just sounded really busy and distracting. To be fair John Scott also talks pretty fast at times on his DVD, It's seems a bit much at first but fine once you get used to it. Sury B has a lot going on so it's bound to be an issue there.
I have DVDs by John Scott, Doug Swenson, Lino Miele, Sharath and Mark Darby. I can't say one is better than the other because they are all so different. I'm in awe of Lino's but can't imagine practicing along with it. Similarly with John Scotts though I've used his for reference quite a bit. Watching his practice made me fall in love with the Primary sequence again after a brief flirtation with The Rocket (power yoga). Doug Swanson's' is just so relaxed, something about his Texan drawl perhaps, but he is the master of the practice voice over. Mark Darby's DVD is still my top pick for a beginner DVD. Having him doing the basic practice with some advanced transitions thrown in and Nicole Bordeleau alongside him doing the beginner variations seems the best option for a beginner and it's the DVD I learnt with.
Kino's is probably the next best package for the beginner in that it has the separate section with beginner options. However these are not just for the total beginner but for the intermediate student as well. I've been practicing for a year and a half but like many practitioners have difficulty with Supta kurmasana and until recently marishyasana D as well, both are explored in the options.
I've found her comments throughout helpful in getting deeper into an asana. Kino seems to focus a lot on skeletal structure. Focus on the spine here, lifting out of the hips there. She constantly reminds your that your legs are your foundation and pressing down into your foot when you want to come up reminding you that your whole body is involved in an asana.
Pace is a little fast though that suits me. In most of the video's I have there is a full breath count. Kino doesn't count the breaths, reminding us at one point that our breathing cycles are all different, this frees her to comment and encourage you to get deeper into, or open up more in an asana.
Oh and I hope Kino has a sponsorship deal or something with Yogitoes Skidless towels. She practices her primary on a black one and on a green one in her workshop DVD. They look great and don't move or bunch up, testament indeed, I want one!
Will add anything else that comes to mind as I continue to practice along with the DVD over the next couple of weeks. Feel free to ask in the comments box if you want to know something specific about it.
9 comments:
After some passage of time, do you still think Mark Darby's DVD would be the best for a beginner?
hi Elle.
It's been a long time since I watched the Darby DVD, ( I lent it to a friend and haven't got it back yet) but i think so yes. Darby himself is excellent, very inspiring but the best thing for the beginner is Mark Darby and Nicole Bordeleau practicing alongside him on the screen doing simpler variations of the poses. This means it's excellent for every stage of your practice as you progress through the series. i want to get it back because i really want to hear again some of the things that Darby had to say. When i was using it I was listening more to Mark Darby and Nicole Bordeleau.
Kino's DVD is also excellent especially the extra section on tips hints and variations. I recommend the Darby one more just because the variations are there on the screen through out, you don't have to switch back and forth.
Of the others. Lino's is not for beginners other than as a demonstration. John Scott's too is too advanced although I love coming back to it now. I didn't like Freeman's primary as much as his intermediate. Swenson is excellent as always, he gives variations but perhaps not ideal for the complete beginner although his book is essential, several variations for every asana on the same page.
hope that helps
Thanks so much for this answer. I so admire your home practice and in fact, your recent post "How do you maintain motivation for home practice" is a terrific post. I go to a studio almost every day but would like to begin a home practice. The Darby DVD will help with that.
Hi Grimmly
What is your opinion about Sharath's Primary DVD ? Can u share ur opinion on the same .
hi Krishna. Sharath's dvd had a big impact on my practice. Until i bought it I'd been doing one of Swensons Shrot forms daily, the 40/45 minute one. When i got Sharath'e, he practices so quickly ( full series in about an hour) that I was able to practice the full series every day before work. These days I tend to feel he goes a little fast for my taste but it's still an excellent dvd. i love his economy of movement, it's not flashy at all, nice practice, all he does is the count .
There is a CD with just the audio of a Sharath led class that is slower, about 1 hour 15. I find it a better 'home led class' because of this and because the breathing count stretches evenly through the holding of the pose. In the dvd, it sometimes goes one....two....threefourfive! Probably the dvd is voice dubbed later and they were just trying to make the count fit in, rather than the cd, which is a recording of the real thing, if that makes sense. Of course, you can't see him doing the poses in the cd, so the dvd is a different animal, more for visual study, perhaps, than as a dvd to practice too (although I have done that a lot, loved the speedy aspect for a while, as did my kids who were happy for me to be done in an hour). The cd, like the dvd, doesn't talk you into the poses, just the names and the counts, plus a bit of talk and the chanting. Just another option... :)
thanks Maya, I'd forgotten about the CD i have it here somewhere, think i might play it tomorrow during practice.
Strewth maya, had forgotten HOW fast Sharath is. Was going to do VK this morning but was running late so decided to go with Sharath's primary CD after all.
I'm taking one breath and he's already on number four, had to abandon my fancy Kino floaty jump through and swicth to Sharath's more economic version and certainly no time for faffing between poses or working in deeper, got to go straight in or hel'l hit five on you'll be told to lift up again. Amazed i used to practice like that for a year or so no wonder i lost so much weight or that the long slow breathing of vinyasa Krama made such an impression on me.
Kind of fun though once I just went with it. I'm switching to a mostly VK practice again, just a Primary and Intermediate on Friday and Saturday for detox purposes so might just stick with his cd on Friday's for the detox.
BTW Sharath's CD certainly isn't for beginner's you need to know the primary series very well and be able to get in and out of postures quite quickly, same with his DVD
No kidding. I'd do a breath in on 1, breath out on 2, but then with a five count, that leaves you hanging with a breath in on 5 and no exhale, haha. The dvd is worse for this, maybe two full breaths a pose and you have to ignore the count itself or you'll be holding in the beg and hyperventilating a couple of seconds later. It does get you moving though!
I haven't done a led practice with dvd or cd in a long time. The one I have but never actually practiced to is Derek Ireland, another of the old timers. Maybe I'll try his CD today.
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.