This is a two-part video featuring Ashtanga yoga instructor Kino MacGregor. In the first segment, A Journey, MacGregor talks about her teachers, Sri K Pattabhi Jois and Sharath Rangaswamy, and her yoga shala, the Miami Life Center. She reviews how her dream was to create a space that would serve a multipurpose function—i.e., not only for the practice of asana but also to provide cooking classes, information on nutrition, etc. MacGregor further discusses her discovery of Ashtanga as well as her first trip to Mysore, and she offers tips on finding a yoga teacher. Clips of MacGregor demonstrating advanced yoga postures are featured throughout this 17-minute production; she has beautiful form as she moves into free-standing inversions, arm balances, and backbending postures. This “journey” ends with approximately three and a half minutes of sung chanting, I assume performed by MacGregor herself.

The second portion of the download, A Workshop, is a 22-minute excerpt from a workshop offered by MacGregor on October 17, 2007, in Orlando. Here she begins by talking about how the strength required for certain postures comes from body integration, not from having a certain body type. MacGregor specifically addresses how we make assumptions about our own limitations to the point that these can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. The remainder is made up of several shorter sequences. In “The Beginning,” MacGregor brings the class back to the basics in a hands and knees position, reviewing foundational elements such as tucking the tailbone, drawing in the ribs, and creating space between the shoulders. She has the workshop members practice these principles in plank and partner work, including assisted handstands. MacGregor also briefly covers “Jumping Through,” providing some tips for reaching this goal, and then offers a slightly more in-depth segment on “Jumping Back,” again allowing the class time for practice. As noted above, this is not the entire workshop; there are many cuts, and as with the “Journey” segment, the program is interspersed with video footage of MacGregor performing asana. However, it provides a nice window into MacGregor’s work. The final three minutes of the Workshop segment conclude with a compilation of still photos, interviews with MacGregor’s students, and clips of MacGregor providing assists.

MacGregor’s A Journey, A Workshop does not provide a follow-along class. Instead, it offers an inspirational view for deepening your connection to the practice. I would particularly recommend it for yoga teachers and others wishing to go beyond their limitations.