Review Classical Stretch 2009 series

[toaster]

Hi all,

VFer CarlaVeg was kind enough to send me her damaged disc, and after several thorough cleanings, I got all but the first half of one episode on the disc to play in my DVD player. So, here are my reviews for the 7 (or 6 1/2 ) episodes on the this disc:

624: Legs Workout (23m)
Miranda works out alone inside a hotel lobby, using a chaise lounge for the lying portions. The warm-up includes arm and ankle rotations as well as little kicks. Next comes balance work on the toes, including plies. The active standing stretch includes pulling of the arms and windmills. With 10 minutes left, Miranda moves to lying for both outer and inner thigh work. The episode concludes with reclined leg and hip stretches.

625: Abs, Butt, & Back (24m) tough lower body workout!
This episode features Miranda exercising at ocean’s edge. She begins with a warm-up which includes spinal twists and then moves into an extra-long plie segment which includes hand/arms movements. This is followed by another strong standing stretch segment emphasizing the back, chest, and shoulders. With 12 minutes left, Miranda moves to the floor for abs work. Following this, she stretches the abs & back in a prone position and then finishes with brief kneeling and extended seated stretches for the back.

626: Shins, Calves, & Posture (23.5m)
Here Miranda is on an oceanside dock in the early a.m.; she starts with a warm-up that includes arm throws. Next comes articulation of the feet with kicks plus a brief side lunge series; this is followed by the standing flow segment. With 13 minutes to go, Miranda transitions to barre work, beginning with balance moves and toe ups. She then performs stretches for the calves and quads. She works the hips with cleaners and kicks, and she concludes the episode with a spinal twist.

627: Scar Tissue & Fascia (23.5m) uses a barre (chair) throughout
In this workout, Miranda is poolside with Greek-like columns behind her. There is no real warm-up; instead, she starts right in on feet articulation work and calf raises. She then performs hip cleaners and twists before moving into a standing series stretches for the back using the chair. This is followed by movements on the toes to stretch the shins and then more traditional stretches for the hands, triceps, and shoulders. Miranda concludes this episode with hip and hamstring stretches using the arm of the chair.

628: Hips, Feet, & Range of Motion Note: Review is of second half of episode only.
For this episode, Miranda is alone on a veranda with the ocean in the distance. The second half of the workout begins with barre work. Miranda starts with stretches for the hips, quads, and soaz before moving on to work for the feet and ankles. She then performs three sets of triceps dips, combining this with some light arms/shoulders work.

629: Hamstring & Hip (23.5m) entire workout is performed standing
For this workout, Miranda is on the beach, where she is joined by Sahra and Brendan. The warm-up includes arm circles and the moves right into arms work. Next comes a kick series which includes side leg lifts and which gradually picks up the pace. The standing stretch segment is brief, and it is followed by plie work in which the plie position is held at length while arm movements are performed. Miranda states that “essentrics” are coming next; what follows are side lunges with torso twists. The episode concludes with standing calf and hamstring stretches.

630: Posture (23.5m)
Miranda again appears with Sahra and Brendan on the beach. The short warm-up includes leg pumps and hips cleaners and ends with a held plie. Next comes the draw the alphabet move for each leg, then a stretch. This is followed by the standing stretch segment which includes side lunges and active pulling on the arms. At this point, Miranda performs arms work which is a bit longer than her usual sequence and which ends with a cow-face arms (from yoga) stretch. This is followed by some additional standing stretches, including washes, clock, and airplane.

[Floren]

My PBS station just started airing the 2009 series!!!!! So now I will get to see it too!!

Thanks so much for these reviews, it will really help to know what’s in each episode! I really enjoy Miranda's Classical Stretch stuff, and can't wait to try these too.

[toaster]

That's great Floren! I wish they showed them on PBS here so that I could try other ones...

[Colleen]

Thanks for the reviews, Beth! I didn't even take notes on this series after the first four episodes so your reviews will really help me too.

When I get back to writing reviews, I'll focus on the 2008 series. I need to finish those someday, LOL!

[Floren]

Colleen, what a great new picture!

[lreidgreen]

Did someone do reviews of episodes 616-623? I may trade for them.

Leslie