Prenatal Yoga

a comparison of 3 prenatal fitness videos, including Prenatal Yoga
I purchased and tried 3 prenatal fitness DVDs around the same time:

* Perfect Pregnancy Workout

* Prenatal Yoga

* Leisa Hart's Fit Mama Prenatal Workout

Here's how I thought they compared. (Note that I do yoga and walk regularly; while I enjoy dancing, I do not dance regularly. I'm not overweight.)

* Perfect Pregnancy Workout - 5 stars. Designed and narrated by a Cirque du Soleil acrobat (faint French accent), this video is my favorite of the three. The woman demonstrating the workout is about 8 months pregnant and in amazing athletic shape (visible muscle definition). The theme of this video seems to be preparing for birth and staying strong and fit. It has two sections: (a) workout and (b) instructions.

(a) After a mercifully brief cheesy earth-mother introduction, the yoga-based workout is vigorous yet flowing and straightforward, building incredible muscle strength, flexibility, and stamina. It includes...

Prenatal Yoga
I would definitely recommend Prenatal Yoga with Shiva Rea. She breaks up the workout into 3 sections approximately 15 minutes each, so you can do what you have time for. I feel great after doing the stretches. There are 3 woman who do the routine on tape, one for each trimester of pregnancy, so you always have someone to follow. The tape has gentle music in the background and a visually appealing backdrop for the class. While this may not sound important, it makes a huge difference when you are watching it 3 or more times a week.

The tape is run like a class, so you can just put it in and go. You don't have to wait while someone explains the pose and then forms the pose.

My only criticism is that some poses are not explained that well. So if you are a beginner or have never done a pose, you may need some additional explanation that is not available on the tape.

Buy Crunch Yoga Mama instead...
I am 20 weeks pregnant and have been doing yoga for about 3 years, although I haven't been doing it since about week 9 of my pregnancy. I wanted to find a good video that would help me get back into my practice, stretch me out, and strengthen my muscles.
I bought Shiva Rea's Prenatal Yoga video and was annoyed by it. Although I am very familiar with common yoga postures, I couldn't understand what I was supposed to be doing from listening to her, and I had to keep looking at the screen to figure out what she was talking about. Then, as soon as I got into the pose, she would quickly shift to something else, so I never got to hold any pose for more than a few seconds. Annoying. She also drones on at the beginning of the video for a few minutes, which is minimally boring when you want to get started the first time, but REALLY boring when you are doing the tape on a regular basis and you have to fast forward through it every time. Lastly, I felt like I got no workout whatsoever from...

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