Saundra

Jessica Smith Stretch & Relax contains five 15 to 20 minute stretch flexibility workouts.   Rise clocks in at over 18 minutes.  In Rise, Jessica moves you methodically through the body, stretching and moving the limbs for 4 to 6 reps before moving on. There is a slow flow to the workout and a bit of range of motion. A chair is optional and Jessica shows the chair modification as a PIP inset.   Release clocks in at 15:40. It uses a towel to stretch the whole body. Jessica starts out standing stretching the neck and then she moves to the mat to stretch the lower body namely the hamstrings, hips and ankles. Relax starts in the lying position and using a pillow is optional.  You are performing stretches in both the prone and supine positions.  Jessica also throws in some lying side stretches, as well as seated stretches and stretches in the table top position. Relax ends with a supine spread eagle relaxation stretch.  Relax has a running length of 19...

Gentle Yoga Plus Pilates is a Jessica Smith two in one workout. It is a core strength and stretch workout that combines exercises from both yoga and Pilates disciplines. The DVD Menu Introduction Standing Series Floor Flow Play All  The Standing Series clocks in at 31:35.  In this portion of the workout, Jessica takes you through a series of standing poses that challenge your balance and improve your flexibility. There is a bit a strength and range of motion exercises as you move throughout the session. Some of the moves in this workout are:  back expansion, mountain pose, plie series, chair flow series, leg pulls, leg circles, crescent, standing 100s, and triangle. The Floor Flow series is performed either seated, lying or kneeling.  This segment clocks in at 33:33.  Some of the moves you are doing in Floor Flow are seated twist, mermaid, side planks, roll ups, scissors, bridge over, locust, elbow plank, roll like a ball, v-sit, and kneeling crescent. In bot...

Disc 1 Foundation & Flexibility can either be your active recovery workouts or your rejuvenation workouts.  The workouts are slow moving allowing you time to focus on the movement and develop a mind body connection. The workouts are: Foundations Deep Stretch Yoga Strength & Stretch Foundations is a slow moving "introduction to the exercises" type of workout. Jessica goes over her most commonly used exercises that she uses across all the workouts  Jessica gives the cast members  form pointers.  Equipment used include a mat, chair, and towel. Deep Stretch has an outdoor setting.  A mat, towel, and pillow are used in this workout.  Jessica and cast take your through various standing and floor based stretches. Each of the stretches are held for several counts.  So you have some time to really get into the stretch.  This is  a total body stretch.  Cast members show different ways in which the stretch can be achieved. Yoga...

Disc 4 of Jessica Smith's Walk Strong 6 Week Total Transformation System contains your recovery and flexibility workouts.  The first workout is Dynamic Stretch . This workout is a slow moving total body stretch workout. I thought this workout was more of a static isolation stretch workout than a dynamic stretch workout. There are parts where Jessica includes some flow type movements but there is not a lot of it. The first 15 minutes of the workout is standing and the second half of the workout is floor based.  A mat and towel are used in this workout. The second workout is Prehab Routine .   This workout uses a chair, towel and mat.  Jessica states that this workout is focused on working the joints.  This is a total body workout that hits all the muscle groups that normally don't get worked out.  Jessica methodically moves through various rotating, stretching, and range of motion type exercises.  She starts with the neck and moves on to the...

Flex & Release is around 30 minutes and it is a full body stretch workout.  Michelle starts the workout with a series of neck and shoulder stretches.  Michelle uses a towel to increase the range of movement and/or to control the range of movement as you go through the stretches. For the most part all the stretches are static in nature so you should be warmed up before starting the workout. There are some dynamic stretches in the form of squat pulses. You are performing stretches in a variety of positions:  standing, seated, kneeling, prone, supine and from the plank and sumo positions. For most stretches, Michelle gives you the opportunity to practice the stretch twice per side.  Sometimes there are more reps but you are not staying in any stretch or posture for very long. The workout appears to be broken down into three segments: 1) First segment goes to around the 17 minute mark. 2) At the 17 minute mark, Michelle goes in to a lunge series for the se...

Sleek Essentials by Karen Voight focuses on the three essentials of fitness: cardio, strength, and flexibility to deliver a “fit, firm, and flexible” body.  Karen calls it her triple effect training system.  It is a 3 in 1 program. In this system you have three main workouts, Sweat Effect, Strength Effect, and Sleek Effect.  All workouts are around 22 minutes. Sweat Effect is the cardio workout. Karen uses a fitness roller to warm up the body. She then takes you through a series of athletic, kickboxing inspired moves. The majority of the cardio workout is low impact.  Karen does include some high impact modifications.  However you can always follow the modifier who keeps the moves low impact.  The workout contains minimum choreography and it is easy to follow. It is not drill base. Karen teaches the move on one side and then have you repeat on the other side.  This workout is about getting your heart rate up.  The music was very uninspiring...

Get Bent is advertised as "circus style flexibility training" and there is a bit of that but overall I thought this was a solid stretching and flexibility workout especially for the hips and shoulder. The workout clocks in a around 55 minutes.  The DVD menu contains the following: Play Fit & Bendy Splits Tutorial Intro Warmup Splits Prep Splits Shoulders Backbends Cool Down Kristina uses yoga blocks to help with modifying the stretch and she used a wall for increase or deeper stretching.  There is some tough stretching going on here.   The back bend section was particularly tough for me.  As were the splits.  I particularly like the deep stretching for the shoulder which uses a wall to increase the stretch. The split prep section is a series of hamstring, inner thigh and hip stretches. Most stretches you are doing at least twice.  Kristina will have you do a particular stretch, come out of it and go back and repeat the sequence. The set...

Tangoflex Method is a workout method designed to increase flexibility. The Tangoflex system consist of four workouts across two DVDs and has been created by Victoria Sarquisse.  DVD one contains the following : Introduction 50 Minute Full Body Workout Play All The workout starts lying down and finishes standing up.  You are taken through a series of exercises.  Victoria works the body in a variety of positions and levels.  Multiple levels are demonstrated. Victoria will show the advance version and at the same time and picture in picture (PIP) box will pop up that will show how the move can be modified. I like this feature. By the end of the workout, I did feel as if I stretch the whole body. The pace of the workout is slow. The music is methodical and a bit melancholy.  Parts of it made me want to go to sleep.  I like the full body workout but did feel it was about 10 minutes to long. DVD Two contains: Introduction 5 Minute Lower Back Stretc...

Yoga Max is a workout that is part of Cathe's Low Impact Series. It clocks in at 48 minutes. Cathe states that this is a "more invigorating workout that builds heat and power in the muscles".  I am assuming she is comparing it to Yoga Relax. There are definitely a lot more strength postures in this workout than in Yoga Relax.  And Cathe has you hold these poses for quite some time.  As you go through the poses, you will do a pose on one side and then repeat on the other.  I did think as I did the workout that Cathe had us hold the postures longer on the first side than we were holding on the second side. I also thought there were way too many downward facing dogs.  Cathe did tell us that if we needed a break to go into child pose. She would return to this pose from time to time. I was expecting that with Yoga Max the pace would be quicker than with Yoga Relax but really the tempo was about the same.  The DVD Menu offers the following options: I...

Yoga Relax is part of Cathe's Low Impact Series.  It is a 52 minute Yoga workout that concentrates on stretching and flexibility. Cathe calls it a soothing workout.  It does move quite slow and you are holding poses or positions longer. Yoga Relax comes with the following Menu Options: Introduction Play Chapters Premixes Credits Audio Settings The Chapter Points on the DVD are: Warm Up Series Standing Torso Stretches Deep Stretches on Mat Balance Poses Standing Straddle Stretches Seated Upright Stretches Lying Supine (Facing Up Stretches) Final Resting Poses There are two premixes: YogaRelax Express #1 28:42 YogaRelax Express #2 32:41 Audio Option are: Normal Mix - contains Cathe voice and music Vocals Only Mix - Cathe voice only. This was a nice stretch but long workout. I did do the whole workout.  Next time I do the workout I will probably choose to do just a premix. 3 stars

Inner Warrior Stretch & Strength is lead by Rachael.  It is a workout designed to work on your flexibility and features tai chi and kata martial arts  stretching.  There is a definite flow to this workout.  Rachael is very methodical and precise as she takes you through the various mini combos or katas. The workout clocks in at 18:05.  It is broken down into the following tracks: Track 1 - 6:09 (Kata) Track 2 - 6:24 (Chi Ball Kata) Track 3 -5:31 (Floor Based) As you move through the katas, you are developing strength in your legs and you are stretching your hamstrings and abductors.  You also get to work on your mid, low, and high blocks.  The last track is floor based and contains traditional stretching and yoga poses. Great soundtrack, the set looks like a modified warehouse. I like this one.  3 & 3/4 stars

Dynamic Flexibility is the Peak Fit Challenge Systems active recovery workout. There are 5 segments and the segments are anywhere from 4 to 8 minutes. The whole workout is about 29 minutes. The first three segments are standing and done without the band. The last two segments are floor based and use the band. The workout can be done with shoes or without. I like all the segments with segment 3 being my least favorite but it was still okay. Segment three is Yoga based. You are doing a series of sun breaths, planks into downward dogs etc. Segment two and four are probably my favorite. I just love the dynamic stretching and fluid movements in two and I love the leg stretches using the band in four. Also, both segments has good tunes. Only complaint and I stated it before is that fact there is no menu breakdown of the segments. I can definitely see me using some segments more than others. 3 1/2 stars