Yoga Tune Up: Athletic Stretch Routines With Jill Miller

My only issue with the video is that she does not discuss which props you are going to need for each exercise. So while you're in the middle of a stretch the instructor will tell you to use a block or a towel and I have to pause, get up and look for one.Otherwise the stretches are effective and easy to follow.

This DVD has transformed my athletic pursuits! I'm progressing forward and not sore in my joints any more. I'm getting more flexible and better at the sports of running and cycling- but also at the routines in the DVD! They are working to open my joint range of motion and they are SO RELAXING! I do the swimming and tennis one when my shoulders are a little more stiff from, say, painting and I ALWAYS do the cycling or runnnig one after each sport as soon as I get back home. I'm taking htis on vacation with me this summer so I can "tune up" anytime I need to! You will love these routine and feel like a brand new body afterwards!

Love the videos and yoga tune up balls.Use of yoga balls and her stretching techniques have allowed me to feel better and achieve a good level of mobility and fitness.

Great routines--challenging for a 63 yr old--I use this cd after my yoga practice to keep from being sore- Great!

SO useful I love her work

According to the DVD case, these new routines from yoga instructor Jill Miller are designed to "Improve Performance - Recover Faster - Prevent Injuries - Be Your Best." Although targeted towards athletes and broken down by specific individual sports (see below), these routines are really appropriate for anyone looking for short, yoga-inspired practices which will assist in improving flexibility and preventing injury.Despite the "Athletic" part of the name, these definitely ARE yoga practices. Jill uses Sanskrit names for many of the poses (although she generally repeats the English name as well), and even the transitions between exercises are mindful--pausing in mountain pose before moving to the next standing pose, remaining briefly in dandasana, child's pose, or crocodile before coming to seated or lying, etc. Jill also includes various "mini vinis," or brief, often quickly moving vinyasa sequences. Given all of the above, I think that this DVD is best suited for those with at least some prior yoga experience.The Main Menu of the DVD offers a brief Introduction by Jill, a Play All option (which doesn't really make much sense given how the DVD is designed to be used), and then lists the five routines plus the Bonus segment individually. I have broken down each segment in some detail as described below.Running (19.5m)This routine starts with standing postures: tadasana, runner's lunge, revolved side angle, and wide-angle standing forward bend with the hands clasped. Jill then performs an asymmetrical forward bend (1 foot on a block) and down dog with the heels touching. Next, she moves to a wall for 1/2 happy babies pose and 1/2 apanasana. Jill follows with the reclined leg series, performing all three variations of reclined leg pose (a strap is optional here). She concludes the segment with a brief (1.5 minute) savasana.Cycling (20.5m)After starting in tadasana, Jill begins this practice with prasarita lunges combined with a shoulder roll. She then moves to the floor for a dynamic version of revolved stomach pose #2. This is followed by bridge pose and then leg stretch #3. Coming to a face-down position, Jill demonstrates cobra with a block between the thighs. Next is "open sesame," a nice chest opener which Jill has performed in previous DVDs, and then Jill flips back over for leg stretch #2. Coming back to standing, Jill performs "twister," a twisting version of wide angle pose. She returns to the floor for equal angle/lateral splits, wide-legged lunge, and leg stretch #3 with the buttocks on a block. A short (1.5 minutes) savasana finishes the practice.Swimming (20.5m)Jill begins here with shoulder strap opener #1 (fans of Erich Schiffmann will be familiar with this!); this is followed by an easy wide-legged forward bend and dolphin pose. Next comes an eagle squat mini vini, stepping from side-to-side in eagle, reversing the cross of the arms and the legs. Jill then performs a standing posture, twisted side angle, before moving into another mini vini, the table mini vini (moving from table pose to an abs tucked position). She then comes down to the floor for locust, face-up pigeon, side-bending head-to-knee, and finally, double pigeon. A short (1.5 minutes) savasana concludes this practice, which was one of my favorites.Tennis (20.5m)This routine begins in a lying position for the "half happy baby mini vini"--here Jill has you move between a 1/2 happy baby position, reclined leg stretch #2, and reclined leg stretch #3. This is followed by a nicely held frog pose and then upright runner's lunge with a side bend. Standing poses include triangle and eagle, and then it's back to the floor for "holy cow at the troth," a shoulder stretch performed with a block between the hands (Jill also does this move in her Yoga Link Shoulder Shape-Up DVD). She comes up to seated for a 1-legged seated twist and then returns to the floor for reverse crucifix and open sesame. For the final savasana, Jill has you touch your index finger and tune into your heart beat. This practice was another favorite!Golf (19m)Jill begins here on the floor in child's pose; this is followed by gate pose. She then instructs "bridge arms" in a standing position. Continuing with the shoulder work, she performs shoulder strap opener #1. This is followed by triangle pose, with the modification that the feet remain parallel. You'll then need two blocks, first for the moon rises mini vini, where you lift in and out of half moon (with the hip) while the hands remain on blocks, and twisting triangle. This is followed by a brief standing backbend, and then EXTREME twisting triangle, where the feet are positioned in opposite corners of the mat. The finishing seated postures include seated wide angle with a twist and full seated forward bend with the toes out. Jill concludes with a short (1.5 minutes) savasana. The pace of this practice seemed a bit quicker than the others to me, and for that reason, this one wasn't a favorite.Bonus Stretch: Pre-Athletic Warm Up (11.5m)In the DVD insert, Jill notes that dynamic stretching is the best way to warm-up prior to any type of sports or workout. Here she begins on the floor in ardha savasana (half-relaxation), coming from this position into moving bridge. Returning to standing, she performs a "pranic bath," a breathing exercise which involves the arms flowing around the head (this is another exercise that appears in her prior media). Next are "monk walks," aka walking lunges. Coming back down to the floor, Jill performs bicycles and revolved stomach pose #3. She finishes standing with a grapevine crawl, sort of a lunge side-to-side while grapevining the feet.In summary, Jill is extremely likable--warm, friendly, and down-to-earth. Her knowledge of the body in general and anatomy in particular is admirable; I would love to take a class with her! However, I wouldn't necessarily recommend this DVD to someone who is new to Jill's work, as she moves rather quickly at times in these practices, and she does not mirror cue. Otherwise, I highly recommend this DVD and all of the practices on it to use as post-workout stretches, regardless of your particular sport or fitness activity.

I love the Yoga Tune Up Balls so thought I'd branch out and get one of the DVD's. When this one came I was so excited - but that grew to disappointment quickly as I went through the routines. I'm a runner who is getting into triathlon's so the thought of having a SBR (Swim-Bike-Run) post workout routine tailored to each activity was heaven. I am not very flexible - that may be the biggest issue for me. What I look for in a workout DVD is the instructor's ability to help me work at my level and reach for "more" by gradual progression. This prevents injury and makes a person feel good about his/her workout.There were several issues with this DVD. Chiefly the problem, for me (and I'm writing this review from my perspective so if anyone else shares it then perhaps it helps explain) is this video really requires that you are at a very advanced or expert level of yoga type fitness. That means you have to be super flexible or you will get far (FAR!) less out of this DVD than you would like. I admire people who have this level of flexibility - and certainly one day might aspire to be even 1/2 this flexible (I'm not) but what happens is the instructor goes into these stretches that I cannot even get 1/2 way to accomplishing. I don't get a good stretch because I cannot do them. Before everyone jumps and says "that's just your fitness level - don't blame it on the DVD!" you are right but with a huge caveat - I expect a DVD on athletic stretch (note: NOT advanced Yoga practice for experts!) to demonstrate how stretches can be done starting from a basic level. Here, in nearly all cases, the instructor goes into the stretch all the way without thought to how someone who doesn't have expert/master level yoga experience might be able to accomplish the stretch and obtain the goal for that muscle group/area. I found myself continually not able to do the stretch to the point that clearly the instructor was indicating - and as a result I didn't get much of a stretch. The huge issue with this is that I was just never sure if I was even doing it right at all (for my level) because there is no demonstration of what it would look like on someone who was NOT uber flexible. What I'm used to seeing is that the instructor slows goes through the stretch and shows how it is done at all levels - here it felt far too much like it was "all the way to the expert level" with nothing in between. Perhaps that's not the DVD's fault - but this is my experience.The other thing that just did not work for me (and it is a by product of the above) is that the stretches are delivered very quickly. I far prefer, in post workout routines, to hold a stretch for at least 30 seconds and to move from one to the other at a measured pace. This is the time my muscles are warmed up and pliable and so I consider this phase to be critical to really get the most out of. The pace on these, which included that they went right into some of the most contortionist poses I've ever seen, was just too fast for someone like me. While there were poses that were held for 30 seconds in many cases it wasn't nearly that long and then you were up and on to the next.I'm glad some of the other reviewers felt relaxed after this DVD/stretch. That is the opposite of what I felt. The stress and fast pace of this DVD left me incredibly frustrated. I was so tense after some of these routines (as I was doing them over a period of time to give it a fair shot) that I eventually ended up going and doing another post stretch routine which was done at a far more relaxed level with some good stretches I could accomplish.In sum - I found I did not get good stretches. I ended up not relaxed but frustrated (immensely so - imagine running for 10 miles which is a long distance for me and coming home only to end up frustrated!). My muscles did not feel like they were "released" nor stretched in many cases. In some cases I felt like there was no balance as well - where the focus was largely on the same group for a while it seemed to trigger almost cramping in another complimentary group that never got worked on. This may be due to my inability to even get a good stretch in some of the poses. This almost seemed to create a situation where I ached far more after than before. That may be what some people want but I got this DVD to help me with fitness and to try and assure I was doing all I could to stretch to prevent injury and compliment my workouts. I run about 10 miles, Bike about 15, and Swim around 800-1200 yards per workout (my weakest sport) so I'm not a casual exercise person who runs 3 miles a couple times a week. I work out 6 days a week and often 2 sessions. I also go to physical therapy - runners often have tightness in hip and ankle areas. I was very disappointed in this DVD and do not feel that it is going to help me at all. In particular the running and cycling routines. I've taken in person yoga and done lots of other exercise DVD's and this one just didn't work for me. The instructor seems nice and she has some great tips on her website - and, again, love the therapy balls.NOT recommended if you have not already obtained a high level of yoga type fitness and flexibility.