All Reviewed Products Contain Paid Links To Amazon.com
Looking For The Best Yoga DVD For Flexibility and Toning?
Here’s a look at our favorites, including our top pick – the Yoga for Beginners.
#1 Best Yoga DVD For Flexibility and Toning
Yoga is a unique form of exercise that’s designed to stretch your body for maximum flexibility and fluidity while also strengthening your core and toning your muscles. When done correctly, yoga can also be incredibly calming and relaxing, so it’s a wonderful way to strengthen your body, mind, and soul.
What to look for in a yoga DVD for flexibility and toning
If you’re not too thrilled about signing up for those expensive yoga sessions at the gym around the corner, don’t worry—you can do yoga in the comfort of your own home with the help of DVD-based routines. Before we jump into the top 5 yoga DVDs for flexibility and toning, here are a few tips on what to look for in a good instructional DVD:
- Routine length – some DVDs only offer full-length classes that run anywhere from 45 – 80 minutes, while others offer short mini-routines that you can squeeze into a busy schedule. If you’re generally a busy person, look for a DVD that has a few quick 10 – 20-minute yoga routines in addition to the full-length exercises.
- Posture difficulty – if you’re new to yoga, you should definitely start with routines that are designed for beginners. Biting off more than you can chew with intermediate and advanced yoga sessions is a sure way to push you away from practicing yoga, as it takes practice, flexibility, and a strong core to handle the more challenging yoga postures.
Yoga for Beginners
Read customer reviews
Yoga for Beginners provides a great introduction to yoga as it helps you to explore and experience the variety of benefits that yoga offers. The DVD contains 8 routines ranging from 10 to 90 minutes to help you build strength, increase your flexibility, improve your health and vitality, and transform the way you look and feel. As an added bonus, all of the instructional videos were filmed on the beach in Half-Moon Bay, Antigua, for an even more tranquil experience.
All 8 routines are led by renowned yoga instructor Barbara Benagh, who has been teaching yoga for over 35 years. She opened The Yoga Studio on Beacon Hill in Boston in 1980 and teaches yoga seminars throughout the world in addition to her local classes. Barbara is a regular contributor to Yoga Journal Magazine and has released a number of audio CDs and DVDs on the subjects of yoga and meditation.
Highlights:
- Includes 8 routines that are designed for beginners
- Routines range from 10 – 90 minutes
- Filmed at Half Moon Cay in Antigua
- Led by renowned yoga instructor Barbara Benagh
- Includes a bonus discussion with the Dali Llama about mediation through yoga
AM/PM Yoga for Beginners
Read customer reviews
If you like to follow yoga routines by Barbara Benagh, this is another good DVD to purchase. The AM/PM Yoga for Beginners DVD offers 10 routines ranging from 15 to 60 minutes that are ideal flows to start and end your day. The AM routines are designed to help wake up your mind and body with balanced, energetic, and serene flows.
The PM routines are designed to help you shed mental and physical stress and prepare for a deep, relaxing sleep. With the varying routine lengths, there’s always time to squeeze in an exercise, even if you only have 15 minutes. Like Benagh’s other DVD that we discussed (Yoga for Beginners), this one was also filmed at Half Moon Bay in Antigua for the ultimate calming, tranquil experience.
Highlights:
- 10 routines ranging from 15 – 60 minutes
- AM routines designed to wake up your mind and body
- PM routines to de-stress and prepare you for a deep sleep
Yoga Stretch for Beginners and Beyond
Read customer reviews
Yoga Stretch for Beginners and Beyond is intended to stretch and strengthen your body, mind, and soul with yoga-inspired stretch routines. The DVD is perfect for those who are new to yoga and offers options for progression to ease into daily stretching and yoga. You don’t need any previous experience, and don’t worry, there won’t be any chanting or confusing Sanskrit terminology.
The DVD contains two routines to develop a strong foundation of total body strength, stamina, and flexibility—an AM Energizing Flow for mornings, and a PM Relaxing Flow for evenings. Both routines are 30 minutes long. The AM Energizing Flow routine offers a fun way to start each day and to boost your energy anytime throughout the day.
The routine focuses on strength and functional flexibility from head to toe with stamina-building poses and exercises. The PM Relaxing Flow routine helps you wind down after a hectic day and stretch-out stress and soreness with calming yoga postures that incorporate a pillow and a beach towel (or yoga strap). This routine is designed to gently assist your body into deeper stretches to help improve your range of motion and overall flexibility.
Highlights:
- Designed to develop a strong foundation of total body strength, stamina, and flexibility
- Includes 2 yoga-inspired stretch routines for beginners
- AM Energizing Flow is great for mornings or quick re-energizing sessions during the day
- PM Relaxing Flow helps you destress your body after a long day
Gentle Yoga for Balance, Flexibility and Mobility, Relaxation, Stretching for All Levels
Read customer reviews
This Gentle Yoga DVD contains four 20-minutes yoga routines that can be used individually, or in succession for up to a full 80-minute yoga session (each routine naturally flows into the next). Flow One focuses on your neck and shoulders to release stress and tensions. Flow Two works on your back and chest to relax the spine and open your heart for improved posture and pain relief.
Flow Three focuses on the hips and knees to unlock joints and free your hips with a series of balance and mobility movements that work all the way down to your ankles and feet. Finally, Flow Four finishes with a total body routine for a soothing, full-body stretch. While the routines are easy enough that anyone can do them without any prior experience, they’re effective enough to be included in any regular exercise program to improve flexibility, mobility, and balance.
Highlights:
- DVD includes four 20-minute routines for beginners
- Flow One targets the neck and shoulders
- Flow Two opens up your back and chest
- Flow Three focuses on the hips and knees
- Flow Four finishes with a total-body routine
Karen Voight – YogaSculpt
Read customer reviews
Last but not least is YogaSculpt by Karen Voight. This DVD is intended to develop flexible strength by combining popular yoga postures with the best of Body Sculpting. The 45-minute routine starts with 25 minutes of yoga postures to stretch and sculpt your entire body, followed by 20 minutes of mat-work to create a stronger core with firm abs and a healthy back. Overall, the routine is an ideal choice for both flexibility and toning.
Highlights:
- Combination of yoga postures and Body Sculpting
- DVD includes one 45-minute routine with two parts
- Part One of the routine includes 25 minutes of yoga stretches
- Part Two of the routine contains 20 minutes of mat-work
Takeaways
Each of the 5 DVDs that we’ve discussed offer professional routines and guidance, so the only differentiators here are your personal preferences. If you need short yoga sessions, I’d go with the two DVDs by Barbara Benagh—Yoga for Beginners, and AM/PM Yoga for Beginners.
If you’re not in a hurry, then the Gentle Yoga and Yoga Stretch DVDs are great options, too. If you’d like a routine that adds mat-work for greater toning, then you should definitely get the YogaSculpt DVD from Karen Voight.
I created ‘Yoga With Laura’ a few years back for one simple reason.. I wanted to help people find the best yoga mats, yoga pants, accessories, you name it. There’s so much yoga gear to compare when you’re first starting out, so I like to help people save a few bucks. Do Yoga With Laura is the resource I wish I had when I began!