Element: Yoga for Weight Loss

Yoga for Weight Loss is another excellent yoga workout from Ashley Turner and Element. Don’t let the term “weight loss” in the title scare you away–it’s an overall great yoga workout. I guess they titled it “weight loss” because it is one of her more strenuous yoga workouts. I broke a sweat during it but it didn’t make me breath hard or anything. However, it did work my muscles. I definitely felt some muscle burn at times. It is a very good yoga workout that will test (and improve) your strength and flexibility. I would say this is an intermediate yoga workout. None of the poses are difficult to do, but that doesn’t mean they won’t challenge you and do the job. Ashley also shows beginner as well as more advanced versions of some of the poses, but in this workout there is nothing that becomes so advanced that I couldn’t do it at the most advanced level she demonstrated. So definitely intermediate since there are many, many advanced yoga poses I am currently incapable of performing!

Ashley is my favorite yoga instructor. As I’ve mentioned in my other reviews of Ashley’s yoga practice, she is a yoga instructor and holds a masters degree in counseling. She brings her calming presence to all of her yoga workouts that I’ve done so far to make even strenuous yoga workouts enjoyable. And she always brings you down and relaxes you by the end. There is something meditative about her voice and things she says that brings balance to the workouts. In this workout she does sometimes talk about weight loss topics but in a psychological and empowering way. Like all of the Element workouts I have done, this one is set in a beautiful garden with a reflecting pond nearby, flowering bushes, green trees and the Pacific Ocean in the background. The workout is done voice-over and Ashley, as always, cues excellently.

Yoga for Weight Loss is 49:30 minutes long. Start the workout sitting cross-legged and work on breathing. Stand and forward fold. Hold elbows and hang there for a while. Interlace the fingers behind back to stretch shoulders while still in forward fold. Stand and do neck/head rolls. Swan dive to forward fold, to plank, to cobra, to down dog. Step feet to hands into forward fold then stand. Go through this basic sun salutation series 2 more times. 3 tricep push ups. Down dog. Chair pose. After holding chair pose with arms raised overhead for several breaths, alternate lowering chest to thighs while bringing straight arms down to side, hands to back of room, then returning to chair w/ arms overhead. Forward fold. Do runners lunges on both sides, moving hips while in this position to warm the hips up. Return to plank, then cobra, down dog, then to all 4s. Bird dog each side. Do bird dog again but this time reach back and grab ankle. Child’s pose. Down dog. Raise left leg then bring between hands into side angle pose then rise to warrior 2. While in warrior 2, raise arms overhead while slightly straightening left leg, then return arms to side back to deep warrior 2. Do this warrior 2 series on the right side. Stand with legs wide, feet facing forward, hands clasped together behind back; fold forward, extending arms to stretch shoulders. Next is dancing warrior series. For this series you will do reverse warrior to warrior 2 to side angle. Swan dive to forward fold to plank to cobra to down dog. Sit on bottom with hands on floor behind you, finger facing bottom and feet flat on floor, shoulder width apart; in this position, raise hips into table pose. Boat pose. Return to table pose but this time raise one leg to sky. Boat pose. Table pose again, raising other leg to sky. Sit cross-legged and take several relaxing breaths w/ eyes closed. Lay on back and raise straight legs to sky; scissor the legs. Bring knees to chest then rock yourself several times then rock/roll forward and come to hands and knees. Cat & cow. Warrior 2. Plies squat with arms overhead, fingers laced; raise and lower in this position. Turn feet forward so legs are still wide and forward fold. Grab your big toes and pull chest between legs for a deep stretch. Plie squat. While in plie squat reach one hand to the ground beside same side foot while raising the other arm/hand to the sky; alternate sides. Return to plank and do 3 tricep push ups. Cobra, down dog. Child’s pose. Locust pose. Repeat locust pose w/ hands clasped behind back. Bow pose. Child’s pose. Sit cross-legged with ankle above knee/knee below ankle and forward bend. Corpse pose for 3:30 minutes. End sitting cross-legged with eyes closed.