Yes, we have written about yoga before … here and here and maybe even here.  However, this review is about a specific yoga product: Peggy Hall’s popular second entry into the yoga DVD market entitle Yoga for Surfers II Fluid Power. Although the ‘2′ will indicate that there was a ‘1′ that came before, and indeed there are Yoga for Surfers number three (Unleashed) and four (Yoga for Boardsports), we decided to focus on this particular one for reasons you will read below … so read on!

Why pick Yoga for Surfers II (YFS II) over the other three DVDs in the series, you ask? The staffers diligently, and (ahem) masterfully, followed all four of the yoga DVD series for four weeks and afterwards uninamously voted on reviewing the YFS II DVD as the overall best fit for all levels of surfers – despite the YFS 4 DVD being titled “board sports”. (In all honesty, two of the staffers were YFS followers, one having been following the training daily for over 3 years while the other performing 2 to 3 sessions a week over the last 2 years!)

Based on the mixed levels of surfers and yoga practitioners here at iJs – ranging from newbie to obsessed surfer/yogi – the vote to review YFS II relied on the overall usability of the DVD for beginner surfers, all the way to advanced surfer … without causing injury or the dreaded “I give up” factor. Much of the resistance against buying a yoga DVD as opposed to attending an instructor-led class lay on the decreasing usability of the DVD as time wore on. Most people give up on yoga practice as their frustrations build on not being able to gauge improvements in their practice, or being able to reproduce the stances and poses properly.

This is where Peggy Hall’s surfing and yoga background merge in beautiful unison … allowing a great blend of yoga training and core strength building while illustrating where each and every pose can positively affect surfing and paddling techniques. As the DVD progresses, the home practitioner can see how each stance and pose can improve their surfing and balance, increasing the chances for continued practice for any surfer. After all, the goal is to surf longer, surf better, surf stronger … Peggy Hall delivers this nicely in this DVD.

The beauty of YFS II is that it introduces three levels of yoga for the new practitioner or the occasional practitioner, starting with pre-surf yoga exercises and stretches called ’spinal warm-up’. Here, the newbie can follow and improve stamina without overly tasking their bodies or flexibility unnecessarily. Once the body adapts and adjusts, the second portion of the practice – Vinyasa Flow – introduces the increasingly challenging asanas (poses) and core strengthening positions. At the third level are balance poses that increases overall board riding time and wave adaptability. Finally, Peggy Hall takes the practitioner through some relaxation techniques to ease the body back to a relaxed state. And a bonus part takes surfers through a sequence of breath exercises that claims to increase lung capacity … although iJs staffers probably increased lung capacity through these sequences mostly by uncontrollably laughing at each other!

In all, the staffers have tried a total of 34 Yoga and surf-related exercise DVDs, and hands down, YFS II ranks high (for some the highest) on the list of effective and easily followed home work out regimens. Ranging from 20 minutes to a full hour and a half regimen, your favorite surfer-loved-one (especially you!) will benefit!

Here is a short excerpt of the YFS II DVD:

[previously posted under ‘12 Days of Xmas’ #11: Yoga for Surfers II, Fluid Power]