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!

Fresh New Fit:Corepower DVD's!

By: Cool J

After a long weekend with my family celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday, we returned yesterday after a full day of driving. This morning I was ready to get back to my regular workout regime.  It wasn't that we were completely lazy over the holidays. The D-man and I did do a 10 mile run (7 miles before the infamous Family Turkey Trot and a 5 miler the next day, as well as plenty of time running around at the dog park and playing on the trampoline.) But we definitely ate a bit more than we should have. 

So I was ready to get back into it, and decided to run an easy 8 miler this morning, and came home looking for a bit more. 

I decided to try out one of my new Corepower Yoga DVD's. 

One of my sisters recently asked me if I could recommend a good yoga DVD for runners. She was concerned about preventing injury, as well as increasing her toning and strength. Though I have tried a lot of different yoga studios in the area, I hadn't previously tried any at-home versions. I decided to purchase a few options from Corepower Yoga- A 3-disc vinyasa series and a 3-disc yoga sculpt series. 

I started with the Intermediate Yoga Sculpt, since I figured the Level 1 might have been a little too easy, as I was already familiar with the basic moves.

Level 2/Intermediate did move a bit slower than a regular yoga sculpt class moves. However, I did think that it gave me a decent workout for an at-home option. The moves were similar. There was a short cardio segment, as well as a sculpt series on both sides with weights. 

Normally, I would do any at-home working out in our basement, but our TV down there recently decided it had had enough, and stopped working on us. So I had to set up my studio upstairs. 

I only had these large 5 pound weights- not ideal, but they did the job.

I mentioned on an earlier post what yoga sculpt entails (here)

Their website describes it as follows: 

CorePower Yoga Sculpt is a total body workout designed to tone and sculpt every major muscle group. Dumbbells, body bars and free weights serve as your own personal adjuster as you move through sun salutations and other yoga postures, enabling extra length and depth in each pose. This intense, but easy to follow program compliments your regular yoga practice while pushing your strength and flexibility to new heights."

Basically, you do a lot of the vinyasa moves while incorporating weights, push-ups, and some cardio. 

A few side planks to work on core strength.

Downward dog...

(yes, there is a sleeping cat next to me- apparently, he didn't find the class very entertaining)

Utkatasana- chair pose

Overall, I thought Level 2/Intermediate yoga sculpt was okay- I would give it a 6 whereas I would give the in-studio classes a 10. I do prefer the shared experience of an in-studio class, the better tunes, the heated classroom (the D-man does NOT keep our house at a balmy 98 degrees in the winter!) I would recommend the class to someone on the road or in a city without a nearby studio, or I would recommend it to someone who has a challenging schedule for making it to an actual studio class. This would be perfect for someone like my sister, who has a young baby at home. She can do the hour long class while her baby naps. Functional Fit!