Product Description
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The Godmother of Yoga Hybrids Kimberly Fowler released
her third yoga-with-a-twist DVD and this one has a little muscle.
YOGA + WEIGHTS combines moves from Fowler s signature YOGA for
ATHLETES® class with 3-pound handheld weights so students get
more than strong, they Get RIPPED! Yoga elongates your body, and
paired with weights, the result is long, lean muscles, says
Fowler, founder and CEO of YAS Fitness Centers. YOGA + WEIGHTS
takes the strength training of yoga to the next level. The
30-minute YOGA + WEIGHTS takes students through a series of
weight-bearing poses including Chair and Warrior poses paired
with a shoulder press and Side-Angle Pose matched with a lateral
row all with Fowler s signature Sanskrit-free, easy-to-follow
instructions. Many doctors recommend weight training as the best
way to prevent loss. As women near 40, we start to lose
muscle mass, which can cause loss, says Fowler. YOGA +
WEIGHTS let s you build muscle mass without bulking up, and the
more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn. A former
elite triathlete, Fowler is known for designing yoga classes with
athletes in mind. Many of my students were taking yoga classes
and then rushing off to the gym to lift weights, Fowler says, so
I created an all-inclusive class.
About the Actor
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Kimberly Fowler isn't your typical yogi: Irreverent is
how CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta described her approach to yoga,
declaring her fun and unpretentious classes the new face of yoga.
Innovative may be a better description. Since the opening her
first YAS Fitness Center in Venice, Calif., in 2001, Fowler has
regularly shaken up the yoga and fitness worlds with fresh,
no-nonsense workouts for everyone from elite athletes to, well,
everyone... Before the original YAS, no one had combined yoga
with indoor cycling before, let alone dedicated a studio to the
combo. Mixing cardio with yoga was frowned upon by some yoga
purists. Meanwhile, imitators around the globe were jumping on
the bandwagon. The copycats didn't surprise Fowler. A former pro
triathlete, she knew well the value of yoga to her training, as
demonstrated by her next creation, Yoga for Athletes®. Yoga for
Athletes® jump-started the yoga-as-cross-training craze that has
swept the planet. The Yoga for Athletes® DVD is so popular that
students post photos on Facebook of themselves holding it at
locales around the world. They also win titles with its help: The
Santa Monica Rugby Club won the 2006 national championship a
first and procled the workout the athlete s secret weapon.
British track star Tasha Danvers won the 2008 Beijing Olympics
400m Hurdles bronze with its help, overcoming personal and
professional hurdles along the way. Fowler, too, knows a thing or
two about hurdles: As a 20-something triathlete, she was
diagnosed with brain cancer. Like Lance Armstrong a decade later,
Fowler battled back from her death sentence to return to
competition as an elite athlete. She credits yoga as central to
her recovery and comeback. Going stronger than ever three decades
later, she s spoken repeatedly on behalf of Livestrong, Armstrong
s cancer foundation. She's also spoken much on behalf of Nike, as
the sportswear company s longtime Yoga Athlete/Spokesperson.
Given her yoga-related accomplishments, it s tempting to think of
Fowler as the ultimate power yogi if such talk didn't make her
cringe. I m not your guru, you are, is a common Fowlerism. Open
and accessible, Fowler means no disrespect for yoga traditions or
spiritual aspects. She s just not the preachy type. And while
happily forgoing Sanskrit and chanting hasn't always endeared her
to the yoga establishment, that s never been her goal. Fowler
wants to make yoga accessible to the masses, not just the chosen
few. And she s getting there...If you've cracked a magazine or
newspaper in the last decade; you've likely read about Fowler or
her YAS Fitness Centers. Locations now operate across California
and are opening across the country. I want to get people off the
couch and onto the mat, Fowler says, of her ongoing agenda and
her first book The No OM Zone: No Chanting, No Granola, No
Sanskrit. Published by Rodale Books, it's a no-nonsense guide to
yoga that continues Fowler's mission to take the mystery and
intimidation out of yoga while introducing newcomers to a fun and
fulfilling practice.