When I was in college, I had a bunch of fitness DVDs. I had everything from yoga (taught by Lori from The Real World: Back to New York, no less) to Pilates to Tae Bo with Billy Blanks. I actually still have these DVDs, but I no longer have any way to play them (nor would I want to – MTV-branded yoga isn’t the most spiritually uplifting experience, as you might imagine) – my DVD player broke long ago and my laptop doesn’t have a disc drive.
While I was living in New York, this wasn’t much of a problem for me: anytime that I wanted to follow along with a fitness instructor, I would have to a class at my yoga studio or my gym. When I’m on the road, however, I start to feel a little nostalgic for those fitness DVDs. Although I would love to think that I’m motivated and self-disclipined enough to practice or exercise all on my own, the reality is that sometimes I need someone – even if it’s someone on the screen – urging me along.
I have one Kathryn Budig video downloaded on my computer, but, if my viewings are too close together, I’m reminded of the other problem with fitness videos: the routine is always the same. Back in college, when my sorority sisters and I would gather in the hallway to use my Pilates DVD, we would all burst into laughter right before the instructor suggested that we “make your body like a spoon, if you can imagine such a thing.” While it was comical to us to hear that absurd statement (of course we could imagine a spoon!) over and over again, right on cue, it took us out of the mindset of exercise. Aside from the concern that using the same routine will fail to yield results, it can be really boring.
Which brings me to why I now love a yoga streaming service. I use YogaGlo, but YogaWorks offers a similar product. The gist is this: you pay a monthly subscription and are able to stream yoga classes wherever you have an internet connection. (The YogaGlo app even allows you to save up to ten classes for offline viewing!) Because there are so many classes to choose from, you can select a class to suit your particular mood and time availability that day.
As an example, I was traveling for work last year and wanted to get in a quick yoga session before my day began. It was going to be a long, busy day of some importance, and I really wanted to sweat out some of my nervous energy and gain some focus. I just rolled out a towel on my hotel room floor, fired up YogaGlo on my computer, and chose a short, energizing practice that helped me get in the right mindset for my day.
The obvious disadvantage to yoga streaming services is the price. YogaGlo costs $18 per month, and MyYogaWorks costs $15 per month – whereas one fitness DVD might cost around the same, but you would own it into perpetuity. That said, the streaming services provide so many more options (more different classes than I could ever hope to watch, and more are always being added) and eliminate the need to own a DVD player or keep track of DVDs. In this way, they’re ideal for traveling yogis. As long as I have my streaming subscription, I may never need my old fitness DVDs – although I occasionally may want to pop in the Pilates DVD for a few laughs and to see if I can still imagine such a thing as a spoon.