Yoga for Normal Guys: The Best Workout on the Planet by Diamond Dallas Page

This is not your usual yoga book! But it’s not a joke either. It is serious training. “Yoga for Regular Guys: The Best Workout on the Planet” by three-time wrestling world champion Diamond Dallas Page is a fun book that provides the basics for a great yoga workout. Page wrote the book with Dr. Craig Aaron and even got Rob Zombie to write the Foreword. I found a copy in a used bookstore and am very glad I did.

First of all, the book is aimed at boys. This should be obvious from the title. That said, there are a few small doses of costume humor, but nothing too bad, and as the cover says, there are yoga girls included. Page begins by presenting his personal case regarding the practice of yoga. Why it started, what it has done for him and why you think it is the best workout you can do. Your case is compelling. I agree that yoga is great for you and I hope Page can get a lot of regular guys to try this form of exercise and stretching. Then move on to the first lesson on breathing. This is very important and I am glad it was included. (If not, I would question the book.)

Most of the book is devoted to three routines. The 20-minute training section, the 30-minute training section, and the 45-minute training section. Each of these provides pictures and brief descriptions to follow and learn the routines. Pictures and descriptions are good, but those who have taken classes or watched DVDs will have an advantage. It is much easier to learn the movements that way than with a book. But for a book, this one is well done. It also has some pages of the workouts at a glance. These have the pictures without the descriptions to help you remember the sequence of movements.

The book concludes with a section called “Hammers and Duct Tape” that provides some quick fixes for instant stress relief, and a chapter that has quick information on ice vs. heat, organic food and juices, massages and drinking water. Finally, there is some inspiration and motivation.

Throughout the book there are boxes by Dr. Aaron (Yoga-Doc says …) and boxes by Page’s wife, Kimberly, called “Hint!” These provide additional information and add it to the book. The models that demonstrate everything in the pictures include Page and his wife, as well as some “yoga girls” as he calls them and some normal guys.

Yoga is really good exercise and now you can take it from Diamond Dallas Page, it is also for normal men. If you’ve ever been interested in trying yoga or adding it to your exercise regimen, this book may be just what you need to get off the couch and onto your yoga mat. I enjoyed reading it and am including Page’s yoga workouts in my weekly exercise and stretching. Read it and see what yoga can do for you.