The Yoga Deck

Yesterday I went to Borders and purchased The Yoga Deck, which is 50 cards of different Yoga exercises, complete with illustrations, instructions and a mantra to repeat as you practice them. The idea is, most people who do Yoga have very little time and don't know what poses or exercises to do. With the Yoga Deck, one could feasibly draw several cards - or even just one card - from random and take ten minutes to however long they want, making it easier to fit Yoga into a busy schedule.

The deck itself is seperated into four basic catagories: breathing exercises, warm-ups, Yoga poses and meditation exercises. It's incredibly easy to sift through them and put together a sequential Yoga session, since most of your basic bases are covered.


I tried it last night, and loved it. A couple months ago, Dantzel and I purchased a Yoga and Pilates book. It was well done, full of information, with precise instructions and plenty of visual photos. We ran into two problems, however. The book form made it difficult to put together a routine, especially as novices. Unfamiliar with the poses to know what to do with each one, we were constantly flipping through the book from one pose to the next, an inconvenience I didn't foresee. The second problem was it put so much emphasis on doing the pose exactly right and took the time to show you exactly, that Dantzel and I were so self conscious of the fact that we could be doing it wrong that we eventually gave up, promising ourselves that someday we'll go to a Yoga class with an instructor who will make sure we perform the poses exactly the way they're supposed to.

The Yoga Deck solves these two major problems. In card form, I was able to spread out five or six cards in front of me, and as I moved from one exercise or pose to the next, I would simply flip the card up, read the brief instructions, look at the simply drawn illustration, and then attempt to imitate. This made putting together a routine easy without the hassle of flipping through pages every three to five minutes. Second, the fact that the instructions are brief and the pictures simple puts less pressure on doing it right, and allows you to do what you feel comfortable with. This do-it-yourself, it's-okay-if-you're-not-perfect attitude also carries over to the meditation and breathing exercises, as the instructions tell you that when other thoughts creep in, it's okay to acknowledge them, and then to move back to focus on your breathing or mantra, a much more friendly way to provide instruction, rather than berating yourself for failing to meditate or breathe properly.

Almost every card has a positive mantra to repeat to yourself. This helps in pulling a focus into your exercise. The card doesn't specify when exactly to repeat the mantra in the exercise, leaving it up to your discretion. It also helps in providing you with something else to think of besides, "I hope my roommates don't walk in. I look so stupid doing this." The mantras themselves are empowering, as after my Yoga session I felt so rejuvinated that I sat down with a pot of tea and reorganized all the priorities in my life and drew out a new daily schedule for myself.

As far as the physical properties, the cards are printed on sturdy material, and they are thick enough that I won't worry about them bending unless I sit or step on them. The pictures themselves are simple and elegant. The box is also sturdy, with a neat, clean look. It's small enough to slip into a backpack or purse and carry on the go - I plan on bringing it wherever I go, so that should I have ten to fifteen minutes of downtime, I could, if possible, scurry into a quiet, secluded corner and practice my breathing or meditation.

This deck has made me excited and look forward to practicing Yoga every day. It's helped bring Yoga to an accessible level for anyone with a busy schedule who wants to practice Yoga but has no idea where to even start. Highly recommended.