Jennifer Kries' Pilates Plus Method: The Unique Combination of Yoga, Dance, and Pilates
by Jennifer Kries

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• Tanita BC533 Glass Innerscan Body Composition Monitor

Book Reviews of Jennifer Kries' Pilates Plus Method: The Unique Combination of Yoga, Dance, and Pilates

Book Review: Very comprehensive workout
Summary: 5 Stars

Before introducing her full 68 move routine, Kries describes how she was introduced first to dance, then to Pilates and finally to yoga. In a nutshell, she has been dancing since she was 9, using Pilates since she was 13 and practicing yoga since she was recovering from an injury in her late teens. Dance provides the body with slenderness and agility as well as an outlet for artistic expression, Pilates with strength and yoga with flexibility, both for the body and the mind.

She next discusses the 9 essential elements that are essential in her workout, as well as exercises to help strengthen those elements. Emphasis in this chapter is on the breathing techniques needed for yoga and Pilates. She also has a chapter of pre-exercises for all three disciplines to help prepare for the complete workout. The first, the pre-rollup, is also used as a diagnostic to determine whether you should begin at level 1, 2 or 3.

And now the workout. Of the 68 exercises presented, a little more than half are level 1. Of the remaining, about 25 are level 2 and 8 are level 3. In other words, even an absolute beginner should be able to perform the bulk of the workout. The workout starts with yoga breathing, then moves onto a dance inspired warmup. Next, and for the majority of the workout, are the classic Pilates exercises, all in (as far as I can tell) the classic Pilates sequence. She begins with the Hundred and moves through non-stop until Criss-Cross. At this point, Kries alternates between yoga and Pilates. After the completion of the abdominal series, leg series teaser series and three variations on the Sun Salutation, she begins the Plie series (this series is very similar to her 3-D Toning tape). Next is the Pilates Standing Sculpting Series. Weights are optional, but the suggested range is 3 to 5 pounds. These exercises do work the entire upper body, but a lot of stress is put on the shoulders. Therefore, I don't recommend going beyond 5 pounds for this series. Finally, she begins the relaxation series, consisting of alternate nostril breathing, meditation and the corpse pose.

The last two sections of the book have routines designed to improve the performance in eight popular sports as well as two abbreviated versions of the workout, one for Beginners and one for Intermediate/Advanced.

Throughout her book, Kries intersperses inspirational quotes (the bulk seem to be from William James). Clearly, a lot to think about when you're exercising, but they definitely put you in the right mind-set. Every exercise includes photographs as well as (for almost all of the exercises) an "InSight" to help you refine your technique and a listing of the muscles used in the exercise.

I really enjoy this workout and this is a keeper in my weekly (or more) rotation. However, a couple of comments:

-I would have preferred more yoga. In her Precision Pilates video, she uses a number of yoga poses in her lowerbody workout that could have been effectively incorporated here (Chair, Lunge variations, etc.). Also, I feel that she didn't draw out the need to breathe differently for the yoga and Pilates movements.

-I would have preferred more dance. There are not too many repetitions of each of the moves in the Plie series. Minor complaint- this is a book, and one could easily add on another set if desired.

+/-Jennifer can be very profound, and judging from other comments about her, this can be very off-putting. However, I really enjoy her comments and insights.

+/-She states that this routine can take 30 to 45 minutes, and after performing this workout three times, it's taking me an hour and a half. That's down from two hours, so there is some improvement. Admittedly, much of that is me stopping to look at the sequence as well as referring to each individual exercise to look at the number of reps required. I read once in Brooke Siler's book (which I really only skimmed) that some advanced students can perform the entire Pilates mat sequence in as little as 15 minutes. Clearly then, this workout can be done in 30 to 45 minutes, but that in and of itself should be considered a goal.

+Many people have questioned the benefits of Pilates for the legs and arms. I am here to tell you they exist. After each workout, my legs have been noticeably sorer, but not painfully so. Also, after using 5 pound weights for most of the Standing Series (but I had to use 3 for the last two), my upper body is definitely feeling it the next day.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who already practices Pilates and who is also interested in yoga or dance. The yoga and dance sections should be accessible to the beginner, but the Pilates sections may be challenging to the absolute beginners. I plan on doing this workout 3 times a week, supplemented by some other strength training. After one week, I already feel the difference in my legs, arms and core.

Summary of Jennifer Kries' Pilates Plus Method: The Unique Combination of Yoga, Dance, and Pilates

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