The Best 5 Yoga DVDS for Beginners Over 40

Activity is an important part of the Weight Watchers Plan. It’s an important part of living a healthy life.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t born loving to exercise. Enjoying exercise is something I’ve had to work to cultivate.

With practice and determination, I’ve learned to look forward to my daily walks and time on the yoga mat. They’ve become an integral part of my life.

Heck, I enjoyed the benefits of yoga so much, I even became certified to teach it. (Who ever would have thought?)

Many beginners ask for yoga DVD recommendations. This can be tricky, since there are so many different styles of yoga and yoga DVDs for a wide range of purposes and audiences.

There are all kinds of beginning yoga DVDs out there. Some are perfect for the young and athletic, while others are better suited for more mature audiences!

If you came to yoga late in life as a way of coping with severe back pain and sciatica, you would prefer your yoga on the gentle, slow and safe side. (At this point in your life, you don’t need to try to twist yourself into a pretzel or risk injuring your neck doing headstands.)

You want your yoga to help keep you strong, flexible, balanced, energized, and relaxed so you're ready to get the most out of life.

If you’re an older beginning yoga student looking for a yoga DVD to help get you started, here are 5 of the best:

1. Larry Payne’s Prime of Life Yoga- Immune Booster and General Conditioning – Level One

DVD by Larry Payne, PhD, provides safe, user-friendly yoga routines, perfect for older beginners, those not currently exercising, or anyone recovering from illness and/or injury. Based on the book, Yoga Rx: A step-by-step program to promote health, wellness, and healing from common ailments, these yoga routines can help increase strength, flexibility, and vitality while reducing stress.

The Yoga Rx: Immune Booster and General Conditioning Level One DVD, was filmed on the grounds of the beautiful Rancho La Puerta Spa in Baja, California. Yoga expert, Larry Payne, instructs you through the routines, which are taught in the TKV Desikachar style of yoga, a safe, user-friendly style of yoga commonly associated with yoga therapy.

Level One is an excellent gentle yoga practice that can slowly build strength and flexibility. It includes 20-minute and 40 minute options that are demonstrated by a fit 40-year-old female yoga student. It is accessible for inexperienced beginners, providing detailed instructions for breathing and moving. The 20-minute routine is a series of standing poses that ends with relaxation. You can choose to stop or continue with the second 20-minute routine that includes a variety of poses performed lying on your back and your stomach and concludes with more relaxation and a breathing exercise.

I get excited when I discover yoga DVDs that are accessible and user-friendly for people in their 40s and beyond. After suggesting several yoga DVDs to my 39-year-old brother who wanted to try yoga and was intimidated with the idea of going to class, this is the DVD that resonated with him. He found it challenging without being overwhelming to somebody with no previous yoga experience.

The DVD moves at a slow controlled pace, with expert instruction and soothing background music. Poses are performed in a flowing manner encouraging you to coordinate your movement and your breath into a relaxing rhythm, which is very soothing for your nervous system. Periods of rest are sprinkled throughout the routine and counter poses are provided to compensate for challenging poses as appropriate.

If you are looking for accessible, user-friendly yoga routines for your 40s and beyond you may want to give this DVD a spin.