Yoga Live

It's official: entrepreneur Russell Simmons is taking over the universe. Just when you think he's cornered every market from music producing to a clothing line to magazine publishing, the man steps out of the box to attach his name to a yoga workout series--Yoga Live, a four-part set featuring Sara Ivanhoe, Jeffrey Cohen, and Elena Brower. I watched Beginner Basics, hosted by Ivanhoe and including Cohen and Brower, who walk viewers (and a backup group) through sections on breathing, the top 12 basic postures, a vinyasa flow sequence, and relaxation techniques. Featuring a varied hip-hoppish world music soundtrack set in a studio decorated with lanterns and colorful drapes, the program covers the usual yoga movements (also using the Sanskrit names for postures--or asanas--such as triangle pose, tree pose, downward facing dog, cobra, mountain, plank, etc.), but also features Brower performing an easier modified version with a block, finishing up with three vinyasa sun salutation segments and restorative cool-down poses. The empty suggestions to, for instance, “really claim your space,” don't add much, but the routine is solid, and Ivanhoe's easygoing attitude (“you may not be able to press your heels down…no one cares”; “sometimes a little smile helps”) should offer encouragement to even the greenest of beginners. The other titles in the series (which is only sold as a set) are: Core Strength for Abs, Power Flow for Accelerated Weight Loss, and Total Body Toning & Flexibility. A fine, value-priced, yoga workout series, Yoga Live is recommended. Aud: P. (J. Williams-Wood)