Shiva Rea Daily Energy

The Bottom Line

Renowned yoga instructor Shiva Rea's Daily Energy is the top pick for intermediate-level yoga practitioners who want a challenging workout to fit their lifestyle. Viewers can create a custom routine by mixing and matching any of the seven 20-minute segments. If you need a yoga video designed for beginners, reviewers recommend Tara Stiles: This is Yoga (*Est. $20) .

Trainer

Spiritual instruction isn't for everyone. Shiva Rea is one of the best-known yoga instructors in the country, and her videos consistently earn high marks from users and professionals. However, her DVDs aren't typically for yoga beginners. Designed for intermediate and advanced practitioners, the poses in Daily Energy can be challenging, and Rea's cuing is sometimes too sparse for those looking for detailed instruction. Plus, she moves quickly between poses and doesn't demonstrate easier variations. "It would've been nice to have someone in the background doing the easier poses so I didn't feel like such a failure during this DVD," complains one viewer.

Along with Rea's other offerings, Daily Energy features a good deal of the spiritual and mind commentary that can turn off some viewers; some say they find it uncomfortable and cheesy. Those who enjoy the body/mind/spirit style of yoga should like Daily Energy just fine.

Workout

Mix-and-match routines. Based on the flowing Vinyasa style, Shiva Rea's Daily Energy is one of her most popular videos. Its seven 20-minute sessions can be done in any order to create a customized yoga routine. In addition, the DVD includes two warm-up sections -- Lunar and Solar -- and five-minute core, relaxation and forward bends sessions. Reviewers say the short core routine is so effective that it alone makes the DVD worth the cost. Others say Shiva Rea Daily Energy is perfect for individuals who don't have time for an hour-long practice, and its inherent variety keeps things interesting long term.

Materials

Excellent menu, easy DVD navigation. One highlight of Shiva Rea's Daily Energy is the easy-to-use DVD menu. Participants can either select one of the 20-minute segments for a shorter session or use the menu "matrix" to create a custom routine. This option is great for when you need a time-saving workout, and keeps the DVD interesting and compelling after several uses. Daily Energy is filmed indoors in a colorful studio, and the music and voiceover are calm and soothing. Once you become familiar with the poses you can turn the voiceover off, which is particularly nice for those who aren't as fond of Rea's spiritually focused commentary.