First of all, I’d love to thank Stacy McCarthy and The Bolder Mat Company for providing this awesome Yoga DVD for my review and enjoyment, and so I could share it with all of you!

“Having a balanced approach to your health is like having a set of maps all leading to the correct destination yet with possibly different routes to choose to fit you and your life.”—Stacy McCarthy

About the DVD

I’ll be honest: It sort of scared me a little that this Yoga DVD lasts an entire hour! I’m fairly new to yoga and have only been doing 10 – 20 minute routines about 5 mornings a week. In the past,  when I’ve tried any type of exercise workout video that lasted an hour or so, I always felt overwhelmed and just turned it off and gave up. I was worried that would happen with this DVD—especially since I’m so new to yoga and have only been practicing a few minutes of the morning. I thought I may get 20 minutes in and have to pause it and come back later. Guess what? That didn’t happen at all! Eeeek!

Let me tell you, I LOVE this DVD and will cherish it and use it until it wears out and won’t turn another single time in my DVD player! Not only did I make it the entire hour, it seemed like only moments had passed and I didn’t want it to end at all!

About the Instructor

Stacy McCarthy, the Yoga Instructor, is a Raw Food enthusiast. She has even hosted several Raw Food/Yoga events!  Her voice is calming and soothing and she has such a beautiful outlook on practicing yoga. She started her own yoga journey almost 20 years ago, but has been in the health and fitness industry for over 20 years.

Stacy emphasizes numerous times for you to NOT focus on actually achieving certain poses, but to focus on staying aligned while stretching only as far as your body will go at that time. In her words: “Be slow to judge and quick to acknowledge your efforts toward a healthy life.”

We’re all at different fitness levels. Some of you are recovering from injuries; others haven’t exercised in years—or ever—so there’s no way you’ll be as flexible as a Yogi who has been practicing for years and has become flexible enough to do those amazing Yoga poses.

I love how reassuring Stacy is as she encourages you to not judge yourself based on performance. Instead, she wants you to feel good about yourself for actually trying to do something healthy for yourself!

You can visit Stacy’s website: Yoga Nama Stacy (I LOVE that clever title!) and she has a blog in the works, too!

About the Yoga Style

Stacy teaches a Yoga form she developed that is based upon the Ashtanga. At the beginning of the video, she mentions the three unseen fundamentals of yoga:. The first of the three unseen fundamentals are called Bandhas: 1) Mula Bandha, the Root Lock 2) Uddiyana Bandha, which is the Abdominal Lock and 3) Jhalandara Bandha, the Throat Lock. This one is used less frequently than the first two.

Then we learn that the second unseen fundamental is breath. The breath type Stacy uses in this video is called Ujjayi breathing (through the nose), which means victorious. As you’re breathing through your nose, your breath deepens toward the back of your throat, Stacy says.

She mentions Pranayama, which is breath control.

The example Stacy gives is to imagine yourself breathing like Darth Vader (of Star Wars) and you’ll be doing it right.

The third unseen fundamental we learn is the Gaze, the Drishti . This is your focus as you keep your eyes steady.

Overall Grade

I honestly give this Yoga DVD an A+! If I (of all people!) am able to make it through an entire hour of exercise—without it even seeming like an hour has passed!—then I know you all can. I’m still so amazed at how each  pose flows harmoniously into another pose until an hour has gone by and you’re wondering where it went!

Namaste,

Michele L. Tune

aka Raw Juice Girl

Upcoming Contests Featuring these Fabulous Companies

• 2 Food Matters DVDs (Haven’t had a chance to watch this one yet, but do check out their site–they have a RAWsome message to share!!)
• Detox 4 Women by Natalia Rose (I read this book last night and it’s awesome; it really helps you understand water retention, etc!)
• Oh Nuts! (raw macadamia nuts and pecans) <— These are seriously delicious nuts–and they’re JUMBO sized!
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• 2 books (Coconut Water for Health and Healing and Oil Pulling Therapy: Detoxifying and Healing the Body Through Oral Cleansing by Dr. Bruce Fife
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You’ll definitely want to stay tuned!

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