Fresh New Fit: Yoga Sculpt

By: LL
As you have seen here and here, Cool J loves her CorePower Yoga Sculpt classes. She even took me to a sunrise class when I was in town visiting earlier this year (had to give up watching the Royal Wedding in fact!) - and they are awesome. The benefits of the yoga postures mixed with strength training and moderate cardio (and the intense heat when taken at the studio) is a perfect combination. However, I am not as lucky as Cool J to have a great yoga sculpt studio close by. So, Cool J did me a huge favor and picked up the CorePower Yoga Sculpt Beginner DVD series (as she blogged about here), which have allowed me to incorporate yoga sculpt easily into my holiday fitness routine (P90X is shelved until I have 13 consecutive weeks to dedicate to the program this spring).

Since I have only attended one studio class at the CorePower Yoga studio in St. Louis Park, I have a much different review of the DVD series than Cool J. I really enjoy the accessibility of working out at home and the progression through the three different levels is perfect. Gearing myself with a yoga mat, yogi toes, 5 lbs weights, and water, I started with disc #1, which is a lighter tutorial that provides the basic moves that will be used throughout the series. It is approximately a 50 minute session, perfect as a partner to a more intense cardio activity. Disc #2 and Disc #3 each offer yet a bit more complex and intense of a workout, building off of the first session on Disc #1. I definitely worked up a sweat in both the second and third session, which I feel are both excellent stand-alone workouts. They are especially challenging with the 5 lbs weights (the instructor, Jess, recommends 3 lbs), and I have already had to substitute out the 5 lbs for cans of Campbell's Chunky soup (hey, sometimes, you have to improvise..."be kind to your body.")

So, as I stated above, these DVDs are perfect for my fresh new fit routine for the holidays, which requires 5 days per week and incorporates running and yoga sculpt. Here it is below:

Day 1: 5-8 mile run followed by Disc #1 of Yoga Sculpt
Day 2: Disc #2 of Yoga Sculpt with an extra 15-20 minutes of a core workout on an exercise ball or roller tube
Day 3: 3-6 mile run and Disc #1 or Disc #2 of Yoga Sculpt
Day 4: Disc # 3 of Yoga Sculpt
Day 5: 45-50 minutes of cardio of my choice, besides running (i.e. spin, elliptical machine)

Today, I am just over 2 weeks into my new program and am enjoying the change from my old routine. I love the flexibility of working out from home two days a week. However, since I was following a strength training program prior to this, I haven't noticed too much of a change, except for the slightly sore upper back and inner thighs after a Disc #2 or #3 with 5 lbs weights.

Thanks, Cool J, for sharing this Fresh New Fit!
For anyone interested in adding CorePower Yoga Sculpt into their routine, if you live in California, Colorado, Illionis, Minnesota, or Oregon, find a studio near you. Or, purchase the DVDs here for $48. I would definitely recommend this series for runners as it uses a lot of postures that stretch the hip flexors and hamstrings, and provides you with excellent upper body strength to assist when powering up hills!