Search - Romana's Pilates - Introduction to Pilates Matwork on DVD

Adequate Not Stellar

02/26/2004

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I am a certified instructor who studied with Bob Liekens and Romana Kryzanowska during the 1990s. With out a doubt I am fortunate to haved trained with both of these famous Pilates instructors.When I first heard that Romana was going to be on video, I thought, WOW, this is great! Unfortunately, this video does not live up to the excellent teachings of Romana. It seems like the producer and director didn't have a focued purpose: did they want to create a documentary, or, did they want to creat a mass market Pilates video? It's a little of both, and somehow, this video is neither a documentary nor a mass market video. Watching this video, I wondered if Romana had control.As I watched the performer demonstrate Pilates, she seemed self-conscious and a little nervous about which exercises were coming next sometimes.I was hoping to get a first rate documentary, and a good instructional video. Instead, I bought a lackluster mixture."

Stretch, Strength & Control

Rebecca Johnson | Washington State | 06/25/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was quite excited to learn about the lessons taught by Romana Kryzanowska, the last living disciple of Joseph Pilates. It is not every day that you have someone teaching you Pilates who actually studied with Joseph Pilates.

The Introduction to Pilates Matwork introduces you to the magic of Pilates and I must say this seems to be more for serious students of Pilates or for anyone interested in seriously changing their body shape.

If you are new to Pilates, this will also gives you the basics and some of the history I was not aware of when I first started exercising. I started to get a sense of how everything evolved and how Pilates has become so prominent in the exercise culture.

There are many segments in this DVD, so it is not only informative, you get two exercise sections. In one, you have a one on one lesson with Romana and then there is a Workout with rapid sequences that will be enjoyed by intermediate students.

Other special features:

Wall alignment warm up
History
Special Wakeup Routine
Documentary

Mari Windsor appears in the documentary. It was fun to see her talking about Romana since Mari first introduced me to Pilates in her Accelerated Body Sculpting videos. While I had done other Pilates exercises in many workouts, that was the first time I actually realized the exercises were part of Joseph Pilates innovative techniques for body sculpting.

Some of the basics you will learn in this workout:

The Hundred
Leg Circles
Rolling Like a Ball
Roll-Up

The results of Pilates are long-lasting and healing. You can literally resculpt your entire body with a good routine. When you see Romana at 80 years old and how flexible she is and how she moves like a dancer even while walking, you will be very motivated to keep up with your exercises.

Romana's energy and zest for life is refreshing and I lament the fact that I did not have anyone like her in my life as a teenager. Sometimes you need a little extra motivation and for someone to care enough to show you how to take care of your physical form. Romana stated Pilates at the young age of 15 and her life is an inspiration. There are quite a few secrets in these DVDs that I have not seen in any other Pilates workouts.

This DVD put everything into perspective and I think this is one of the essential Pilates DVDs to watch because I learned so much about the history and the introduction to Romana's life was magical. She made me want to keep up with my exercises for the rest of my life.

~The Rebecca Review

P.S. If you enjoy this DVD, you may also want to read Ultimate Pilates by Dreas Reyneke.

Also Highly Recommended:

Winsor Pilates with Mari Winsor
The Method Standing Pilates Blend
MTV Pilates Mix
Crunch Fat Burning Pilates
The Method Pilates Target Specifics
Crunch Pick Your Spot Pilates
"

Romana's Pilates-Introduction to Pilates Matwork

Rebecca Johnson | 01/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I've taken Pilates classes and also bought a couple of tapes that I was satisfied with, but I found this video especially good. The instruction is demonstrated and explained well enough and slow enough that a beginner can pick it up quickly. The slow motion playbacks of the moves is an added bonus. The first half of the tape I felt like I was in a private class with Romana!Can't beat getting instruction from the master instructer who was taught by Joe Pilates himself! I found one of her other videos The Powerhouse Mat Workout challenging and I'm considered fit...I'll have to work up to being able to complete that one! But I will be purchasing all of her tapes!"