Web Exclusive: Great Expectations

We road-tested Purple Yoga’s new DVD, designed for pregnant women.

Among pregnant women in Honolulu, Cathy Louise Broda is a bit of a celebrity. Broda, who, with her husband, Glen Butcher, owns Purple Yoga, teaches a popular pregnancy yoga class that this year won a Best of HONOLULU award. Her class uses postures and breathing to strengthen a woman’s body—and resolve. Broda has more than 20 years of teaching experience, but she’s also beloved, I think, because she teaches more than yoga: she shares her personal pregnancy and delivery experiences to help women know what to expect.

I took her class when I was expecting and was happy to discover that her new DVD, Pregnancy Yoga: A Practice for Each Trimester is the same class. It offers three yoga sessions, especially designed for the first, second and third trimesters, and features a pregnant Broda in beautiful, peaceful settings. You don’t need any fancy equipment or a huge time commitment to use the DVD yoga sessions; just a yoga mat and 40 minutes.

The DVD doesn’t capture, however, one of the best things about Broda’s class: the camaraderie and support you feel among a bunch of fellow pregnant women. Still, it’s ideal if you can’t make it to Broda’s class, or if you want to supplement your practice between sessions at the studio, which would be my recommendation.

Pregnancy Yoga: A Practice for Each Trimester is $19.95, and you can purchase it online at www.purpleyoga.com or in the studio, 2615 S. King St., Suite A305; 944-8585.