Yin Yoga: The Foundations of a Quiet Practice

A few days ago, I decided to start a 40 day yoga discipline of an hour a day. Days 1-5 I was using, let's say, more vigorous forms of yoga; by the morning of day 5 my body was whingeing so I selected my own more gentle postures rather than doing a class or DVD. By then it was apparent to me that if I was ever going to complete the 40 days, I needed a slower calmer form of yoga to counterbalance what I had been doing so far.At first I baulked at the idea of spending nearly thirty pounds on a yoga DVD but reading the reviews and watching the clips on youtube convinced me to buy it. I can honestly say this is excellent value for money and one of the best yoga DVDs I have. Some of the things I like about it:- the instructor, Paul Grilley, is clearly very passionate about yoga and has a calm and unassuming energy about him. He reminds you to just do what you can do and listen to your own body's wisdom- Yin yoga is slow and you hold the poses for a long time. This is not for everyone, it is simply a different kind of practice. When you are in a posture you can take the opportunity to use it as a mediation - observing your thoughts and letting them pass through. It is interesting what goes through your head when you are in the same position for four minutes. I also made a point of looking for areas of tension in my body and allowing them to relax which sometimes I do not remember to do with other faster forms of yoga. In this way, it becomes not just body movement but a spiritual practice for your whole being.- the poses are doable and there are sufficient variations for the less flexible. I am as stiff as a board but I can still do the postures or some variation thereof. There are variations of the postures for all levels from the most flexible to those like me.- it is great value for money; there is a lot of content. The first disc contains a lecture by Paul G on the Theory of Yin Yoga which is nearly 2 hours long but by no means boring. I learned a lot by listening to it. The second disc contains 3 hour-long sequences of Yin yoga plus customisable yan yoga sequences and bonus yin practices. In total over 6 hours of practice material on disc 2.I recommend this DVD very highly. If you are not sure if it is for you, take a look at the clips on youtube and the websites yinyoga.com and paulgrilley.com.

Until about 8 weeks ago, I had never heard of yin yoga. I stumbled across it at my local Bhuddist centre, while looking for some different, more gentle yoga types. After one class I was hooked. Unfortunately the local Bhuddist centre only has the class during work hours on weekdays - meaning I'm unlikely to get to the class again. So, I bought this DVD instead and have done one of the yin yoga series every week now.Yin yoga is a completely different form of yoga and is the opposite of the more common forms of yoga known as yang yoga (i.e. hatha etc). In yin yoga you are strengthening and stretching your connective tissue. You hold the poses for about 5 minutes each - which can be a challenge in itself - and is the time that it takes to stretch the connective tissues. To stretch the connective tissue you have to relax your muscles in the poses. And as you hold the poses for a long time, you also end up in a meditative state, which is also great to help de-stress.This DVD has 2 options for each yin yoga series - either with Paul talking you through every pose. Which is good so that you know what you are doing. But boy does he talk. He does not leave 1 second unfilled. Luckily, there is another option on the DVD, where you can choose to not hear the explanations and just hear the audible cue to change positions - much better - and it lets me get into a nice relaxed, meditative state. Just watch out, as on one of the series (the hip opener, I think), you don't get the cue to come out of the pose - you just get the cue to change poses after everyone else has had a chance to have a relax - this means that you end up stretching one side for longer than the other side.I've been doing yoga for over 10 years, but I think that this DVD should be fine for the novice yogi. Just be warned that as you hold the poses for a long time, it can be challenging and a bit painful - but in a good way. I am fairly flexible, but I find the hip opening series a challenge as the poses can hurt after a while. I also find the penultimate backbend in both the spine and the hip series a challenge. To do the back bend safely - especially if you are not very flexible in your back or are a novice, then I recommend that you buy a yoga bolster and lie on it while doing the pose - I do, if my back/knees need help on the day.

Excellent DVD. There is much content on here. I am lucky enough to have brought this 2nd hand at a fraction of the cost and the DVD is in perfect condition. The first DVD is a lecture by Paul explaining the concepts of Yin Yoga. The second DVD has 3 hours of Yin Yoga instruction by Paul and 3 beautiful flows which you can play on a loop. Very impressed with all the content. I am a yoga instructor myself and find all yoga disciplines interesting.

Would recommend watching it through a couple of times first. Interesting to see the different physicalities, between the models, reenforcing the individuality of yoga practice.

Mr Grilley knows his stuff and is very easy to follow in his delivery. Recommended.

I'm a big fan of Paul Grilley and this DVD is up there with his other stuff i.e. it's fantastic.Paul's a great teacher and brings science and common sense to his explanation of the theory and practice of Yin Yoga, and why we, as westerners living chair bound working lives, need to practice it. The lecture on the first DVD is very enlightening and worth the time to sit and watch. The practices demonstrated on the second DVD are excellent, and whilst the four models he uses to demonstrate are clearly extremely experienced and competent practitioners (seriously bendy!!), you are never pushed into trying to do things that are beyond your experience (and physiology) won't allow. In fact he is at pains to point out that we're all built differently and have different limitations, even between the two halves of our bodies.In short, a well designed and executed programme delivered by an expert in his field. I would also highly recommend his DVD on anatomy and yoga.

This a replacement for the same dvd i've had for about 10 years. I used it so often, it simply got worn out.I like the option of muting all the chat and instruction, where Paul just tells you the next posture, it's very meditative. But depending on your mood/tightness, sometimes the chat is a welcome distraction because the poses can seem intense when held for so long. He's a very knowledgable Yin and offers some great yang sequences as bonus content.

Las explicaciones son detalladas e interesantes. Incluye varias prácticas posibles, con la opción de hacerlas sin los comentarios.

After coveting this DVD set for some time, I finally purchased it awhile back. As both a yoga practitioner and a teacher, Yin yoga is one of my favorite styles, and I thought that I could learn from this DVD. It has A LOT of content, and I still need to spend time watching the lectures in greater depth, as I've mostly just skimmed so far.The first DVD is Grilley's lectures, all 108 minutes of them. I will have to come back to list the chapter breakdowns. Basically, Grilley covers anatomical differences and how this impacts individual practice. He discusses what makes yin yoga unique and how it complements more yang yoga practices.The second DVD contains the yoga practices themselves. These focus on yin yoga, naturally, although a few yang routines are offered as well. I'll provide the menu listing and then describe details.Yin Practices*Hip Series, 70*Spine Series, 62*Infant Series, 63Yang Practices*Warrior 1:35 Play Lop*Flying Dragon 2:38 Play Loop*Golden Seed 1:22 Play Loop*Custom Yang SequencesSpecial Features*Bonus Yin PracticesThe heart of this DVD is the yin practices. For each, Grilley instructs a class of four students (including his wife), each of whom displays the poses showing different modifications and levels. Grilley states that the Hip Series focuses on the area above the knees to the lower spine, and it is designed to increase the range of motion in the lower pelvis and hips. The Spine Series places emphasis on the pelvis, sacrum, and spine; it includes several twists. Finally, Grilley describes the Infant Series as the "least yin" of the three. There is more work for the spine in a horizontal position, including a standing warm-up.The yang practices aren't really follow-along routines, as they feature Grilley and his wife Suzy moving through flowing postures, often facing away from the camera. The Customized Yang option does provide a bit more in the way of actual practice choices, as here the viewer can mix and match practices to create short yang flows.Finally, the Bonus Yin Practices opens a separate submenu. The routines themselves are in slideshow format, with a still photo to display the pose combined with Grilley's very brief voiceover cues naming when to come in and out of the pose. This menu is as follows:*How to Use the Bonus PracticesOpening Practices*Butterfly Opening Sequence - 28:40*Dragonfly Opening Sequence - 28:25Closing Practices*Snail and Roots Sequence - 28:35*Shoelace Sequence - 22:00*Saddle Sequence - 25:02I've owned this DVD for several months now, and I still feel like I've only scratched the surface of what it has to offer. I look forward to using and growing with Paul Grilley's Yin Yoga more over time.

Vorweg gesagt: Insgesamt ragt diese DVD aufgrund ihres ausgeklügelten Konzeptes und den wirklich nutzbringenden Übungen weit aus der Masse der sonstigen Programme heraus. Für jemanden, der seinem Körper etwas gutes tun möchte und sich die erforderlichen Übungen im Selbststudium aneignen möchte ist diese DVD jedenfalls zu empfehlen.Paul Grilley beschäftigt sich bereits seit mehr als 30 Jahren mit verschiedenen "Schulen" des Joga. Er ist also ein erfahrener Lehrer. Das besondere an seinem Untericht ist und das sieht man auch beim Studium dieser DVD, das er sich sehr intensiv mit den anatomischen Zusammenhängen des menschlichen Körpers und der Möglichkeit darauf mit Hilfe der Jogatechniken positivenEinfluss zu nehmen beschäftigt. Seine Herangehensweise basiert auf den Erkenntnissen von Paulie Zink und Dr. Hiroshi Motoyama. Diese kombinieren die taoistischen Lehren von den Meridianen und der Akkupunktur aus China mit denen des Joga aus Indien.Joga ist heutzutage eine Modeerscheinung geworden und oft wird dabei vergessen, das Joga, ähnlich wie auch andere Bewegungs- oder Gesundheitslehren eine profunde Anleitung und viel Praxis erfordern, ehe man ihre Vorzüge wirklich nutzen kann. Selbststudium mittels einer DVD, ist das überhaupt möglich ? Bedingt.Paul Grilley zeigt, das man mit einem wohldurchdachten Konzept auch Laien an eine solche Thematik gut heranführen kann. Man darf natürlich keine Wunder erwarten und auch hier ist viel Übung nötig. Aber, das Konzept ist wirklich gut und man merkt sofort das hier jemand wirklich viel Expertise eingebracht hat um einen echten Mehrwert zu erbringen.Die Box enthält 2 DVD die zum einen den theoretischen Hintergrund des Yin Joga auf amüsante und doch sehr anschauliche Weise darstellen, zum anderen mit gestaffelten doch nie zu schwierigen Übungen die eigentliche Praxis beschreiben. Die jeweiligen Übungen sind in Kategorien gegliedert, die jeweils bestimmte Körperbereiche wie Wirbelsäule oder Hüften besonders trainieren.Alle Übungssequenzen sind gut ausgearbeitet und werden aus verschiedenen Perspektiven detailiert gezeigt und kommentiert. FÜr den Geübteren lässt sich die Kommentarspur abschalten.Besonderen Wert legt Grilley darauf, dem Übenden nahezubringen, das man sich selbst nicht überfordern darf und das der Erfolg nur mit geduldigem Training zu erreichen ist.Zu der DVD-BoxAuf den 2 DVD sind 5 1/2 Stunden Material enhalten' 108 Minutes Theoretische Grundlagen' 2 Yin Übungssequenzen mit je 60 minuten' 1 Yin & Yang Übungssequenzen mit 60 minuten' 3 anspruchsvollere Yang Übungssequenzen' 8 Yin Übungssequenzen die nur akkustisch begleitet werden' Die Möglichkeit Yin and Yang Übungssequenzen selbst zusammenzustellen

This DVD changed my view of yoga forever. By detailing the difference between Compression and Tension, Paul demonstrates (in the actual 3, one hour Yin classes) how each pose will be executed differently from practitioner to practitioner, and that these differences are due to the differences in the skeleton they were born with. Our skeleton has a lot to do with why we can or cannot make our pose look like that of someone else. Compression cannot be changed - you are born with the bones are you are born with (his DVD: Anatomy of Yoga is EXCELLENT for learning about this in more depth and I am very glad I bought it along with this one). The 3 Yin classes on Disc 2 really bring this point home as his models depict these variations - even though they are all doing the exact same pose. While the poses are being practiced, Grillie talks about why they are being performed differently by everyone, and how these differences are absolutely OK. There is nothing wrong with you - why you may never be able to do a pose the way someone else does a pose - and if you try to, you could risk injury. I also found his 3 short Yang sequences unlike anything I have seen before. It was like watching a beautiful martial art master move gracefully through a series of forms. They are also somewhat easy to learn because of how he set up the menu. You can watch his instruction of the short forms (these are 1.5 to 2.5 minutes long in length), and then play the forms up to 5 times in a row automatically (great as an actual workout or in order to learn them). You can also combine the 3 different forms into one long flowing form in a variety of pre-set combinations. Hard to describe, but the logic of it the menu makes sense once you start to learn them and want to combine them back to back. Bottom line is this 2 disc set was well worth the money. I also highly recommend you purchase Anatomy of Yoga. The combination has made me very interested in going to yoga teacher school for my own self-study. He is a skilled teacher!