The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying


Sogyal Rinpoche - 1992
    In its power to touch the heart, to awaken consciousness, [The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying] is an inestimable gift.”—San Francisco Chronicle A newly revised and updated edition of the internationally bestselling spiritual classic, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, written by Sogyal Rinpoche, is the ultimate introduction to Tibetan Buddhist wisdom. An enlightening, inspiring, and comforting manual for life and death that the New York Times calls, “The Tibetan equivalent of [Dante’s] The Divine Comedy,” this is the essential work that moved Huston Smith, author of The World’s Religions, to proclaim, “I have encountered no book on the interplay of life and death that is more comprehensive, practical, and wise.”

No Run Intended


Hannah Phillips - 2015
    Chubby is cute was her motto and cake with pints of cider her diet. Then came 'the' fateful night that saw her staring awkwardly at a ‘fat bird’ with her top on. When that 'fat bird' turned out to be her very own reflection Hannah ran (quite quickly) to the toilets to wail in self-pity and humiliation. Hannah knew she had to make a decision, so she decided to lace up a pair of trainers she happened to have in the cupboard and head for the hills…or at least to the nearest park…if she could ever make it. Chased by geese, the police and Jack Russel’s, No Run Intended is a small story about a big journey that follows Hannah’s running progress through good times, bad times and can’t be bothered times. Deeply honest, insightful and a little bit funny, it’s definitely not a how to but a what if kind of book that celebrates running in all its beautiful, ugly glory.

Runner's World Running on Air: A Revolutionary, Scientifically Proven Breathing Technique for Runners


Budd Coates - 2013
    Validating his method through a mix of accessible science, Eastern philosophy, and the experiences of test subjects, Coates shows readers how focusing on their breathingbrings their minds and bodies into harmony and helps them run stronger, faster, and more comfortably.Rhythmic breathing increases lung volume; improves awareness and control; helps prevent injury and side stitches; improves running for those with asthma; allows runners to quickly set a pace for quality training and racing; and helps athletes manage muscle cramps. This book reviews the basics of rhythmic breathing, teaching readers how to perform it while walking and, eventually, while running. Weeklongsample schedules from different programs shows readers how to apply the rhythmic breathing scale to any workout. Coates also touches on the importance of stretching, cross-training, and core training and provides detailed training plans and schedules.

Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself


Kristin Neff - 2011
    Kristin Neff comes a step-by-step guide explaining how to be more self-compassionate and achieve your dreams in lifeThe relentless pursuit of high self-esteem has become a virtual religion—and a tyrannical one at that. Our ultracompetitive culture tells us we need to be constantly above average to feel good about ourselves, but there is always someone more attractive, successful, or intelligent than we are. And even when we do manage to grab hold of high self-esteem for a brief moment, we can't seem to keep it. Our sense of self-worth goes up and down like a ping-pong ball, rising and falling in lockstep with our latest success or failure.Fortunately, there is an alternative to self-esteem that many experts believe is a better and more effective path to happiness: self-compassion. The research of Dr. Kristin Neff and other leading psychologists indicates that people who are compassionate toward their failings and imperfections experience greater well-being than those who repeatedly judge themselves. The feelings of security and self-worth provided by self-compassion are also highly stable, kicking in precisely when self-esteem falls down. This book powerfully demonstrates why it's so important to be self-compassionate and give yourself the same caring support you'd give to a good friend.This groundbreaking work will show you how to let go of debilitating self-criticism and finally learn to be kind to yourself. Using solid empirical research, personal stories, practical exercises, and humor, Dr. Neff—the world's foremost expert on self-compassion—explains how to heal destructive emotional patterns so that you can be healthier, happier, and more effective. Engaging, highly readable, and eminently accessible, this book has the power to change your life.

The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking


Oliver Burkeman - 2012
    What they have in common is a hunch about human psychology: that it's our constant effort to eliminate the negative that causes us to feel so anxious, insecure, and unhappy. And that there is an alternative "negative path" to happiness and success that involves embracing the things we spend our lives trying to avoid. It is a subversive, galvanizing message, which turns out to have a long and distinguished philosophical lineage ranging from ancient Roman Stoic philosophers to Buddhists. Oliver Burkeman talks to life coaches paid to make their clients' lives a living hell, and to maverick security experts such as Bruce Schneier, who contends that the changes we've made to airport and aircraft security since the 9/11 attacks have actually made us less safe. And then there are the "backwards" business gurus, who suggest not having any goals at all and not planning for a company's future. Burkeman's new book is a witty, fascinating, and counterintuitive read that turns decades of self-help advice on its head and forces us to rethink completely our attitudes toward failure, uncertainty, and death.

If the Buddha Came to Dinner: How to Nourish Your Body to Awaken Your Spirit


Hale Sofia Schatz - 2004
    But the next time you have dinner, what will you eat? With so much processed food in the marketplace, obesity in adults and children dramatically on the rise, and digestive problems increasingly more common, it's clear that we're facing a serious food crisis in this country. The answer, however, isn't just to go on a diet. Reducing the intake of refined and processed foods and increasing whole foods certainly can improve one's health. But we need more. We need to feed ourselves with a sense of purpose, self-respect, love, and passion for our lives. We need to nourish our spirits. Nourishment isn't a fad diet . . . it's a lifelong journey, and Haléofia Schatz is the ideal guide. Gentle, wise, and humorous, she shows us the way to the heart of nourishment--our own inner wisdom that knows exactly how to feed our whole self. A perfect blend of inspiration and practical suggestions, If the Buddha Came to Dinner includes guidelines for selecting vital foods, ideas for keeping your energy balanced throughout the day, a cleanse program, and over 60 recipes to awaken your palate. Open this book and nurture yourself as never before. You'll be fed in a whole new way.

Zen and the Art of Making a Living: A Practical Guide to Creative Career Design


Laurence G. Boldt - 1992
    This new edition has been updated throughout with up-to-the-minute contact information and hundreds of new bibliographical and Internet resources. It includes all-new sections on developing a successful home-based business and creating an effective work development support group to assist you in your quest for fulfillling work.

The Joy of Movement: How Exercise Helps Us Find Happiness, Hope, Connection, and Courage


Kelly McGonigal - 2019
    But, as Kelly McGonigal reveals, it doesn't have to be. Movement can and should be a source of joy.Through her trademark blend of science and storytelling, McGonigal draws on insights from neuroscience, psychology, anthropology, and evolutionary biology, as well as memoirs, ethnographies, and philosophers. She shows how movement is intertwined with some of the most basic human joys, including self-expression, social connection, and mastery--and why it is a powerful antidote to the modern epidemics of depression, anxiety, and loneliness.McGonigal tells the stories of people who have found fulfillment and belonging through running, walking, dancing, swimming, weightlifting, and more, with examples that span the globe, from Tanzania, where one of the last hunter-gatherer tribes on the planet live, to a dance class at Juilliard for people with Parkinson's disease, to the streets of London, where volunteers combine fitness and community service, to races in the remote wilderness, where athletes push the limits of what a human can endure. Along the way, McGonigal paints a portrait of human nature that highlights our capacity for hope, cooperation, and self-transcendence.The result is a revolutionary narrative that goes beyond familiar arguments in favor of exercise, to illustrate why movement is integral to both our happiness and our humanity. Readers will learn what they can do in their own lives and communities to harness the power of movement to create happiness, meaning, and connection.

Awareness: The Perils and Opportunities of Reality


Anthony de Mello - 1990
    Mixing Christian spirituality, Buddhist parables, Hindu breathing exercises, and psychological insight, de Mello's words of hope come together in Awareness in a grand synthesis.In short chapters for reading in quiet moments at home or at the office, he cajoles and challenges: We must leave this go-go-go world of illusion and become aware. And this only happens, he insists, by becoming alive to the needs and potential of others, whether at home or in the workplace.Here, then, is a masterful book of the spirit, challenging us to wake up in every aspect of our lives.

The Wisdom of Insecurity: A Message for an Age of Anxiety


Alan W. Watts - 1951
    The Wisdom of Insecurity underlines the importance of our search for stability in an age where human life seems particularly vulnerable and uncertain. Watts argues our insecurity is the consequence of trying to be secure and that, ironically, salvation and sanity lie in the recognition that we have no way of saving ourselves.

Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment


Robert Wright - 2017
    The mind is designed to often delude us, he argued, about ourselves and about the world. And it is designed to make happiness hard to sustain. But if we know our minds are rigged for anxiety, depression, anger, and greed, what do we do? Wright locates the answer in Buddhism, which figured out thousands of years ago what scientists are only discovering now. Buddhism holds that human suffering is a result of not seeing the world clearly—and proposes that seeing the world more clearly, through meditation, will make us better, happier people. In Why Buddhism is True, Wright leads readers on a journey through psychology, philosophy, and a great many silent retreats to show how and why meditation can serve as the foundation for a spiritual life in a secular age. At once excitingly ambitious and wittily accessible, this is the first book to combine evolutionary psychology with cutting-edge neuroscience to defend the radical claims at the heart of Buddhist philosophy. With bracing honesty and fierce wisdom, it will persuade you not just that Buddhism is true—which is to say, a way out of our delusion—but that it can ultimately save us from ourselves, as individuals and as a species.

Creative Visualization: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life


Shakti Gawain - 1978
    Now considered a classic, Creative Visualization teaches readers how to use their imaginations to manifest their deepest desires.

Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Male Body


Michael Matthews - 2011
    I'm pretty sure muscles lack cognitive abilities, but this approach is a good way to just confuse you instead.You don't need to burn through buckets of protein powder every month, stuffing down enough protein each day to feed a third world village. You don't need to toil away in the gym for a couple of hours per day, doing tons of sets, supersets, drop sets, giant sets, etc. (As a matter of fact, this is a great way to stunt gains and get nowhere.)You don't need to grind out hours and hours of boring cardio to shed ugly belly fat and love handles and get a shredded six-pack. (How many flabby treadmillers have you come across over the years?)You don't need to completely abstain from "cheat" foods while getting down to single-digit body fat percentages. If you plan cheat meals correctly, you can actually speed your metabolism up and accelerate fat loss.In this book you're going to learn something most guys will never know: The exact formula of exercise and eating that makes putting on 10 to 15 pounds of quality lean mass a breeze...and it only takes 8-12 weeks.This book reveals secrets like...The 6 biggest myths & mistakes of building muscle that stunt 99% of guys' muscle gains. (These BS lies are pushed by all the big magazines and even by many trainers.) (Page 28)How to get a lean, cut physique that you love (and that girls drool over) by spending no more than 5 percent of your time each day. (Page 61)The 4 laws of muscle growth that, when applied, turn your body into an anabolic, muscle-building machine. You'll be shocked at how easy it really is to get big once you know what you're doing... (Page 32)How to develop a lightning-fast metabolism that burns up fat quickly and leaves you feeling full of energy all day long. (Page 41)The carefully-selected exercises that deliver MAXIMUM results for your efforts, helping you build a big, full chest, a wide, tapered back, and bulging biceps. (Page 91)A no-BS guide to supplements that will save you hundreds if not THOUSANDS of dollars each year that you would've wasted on products that are nothing more than bunk science and marketing hype. (Page 100)How to get shredded while still indulging in the "cheat" foods that you love every week like pasta, pizza, and ice cream. (Page 83)And a whole lot more!The bottom line is you CAN achieve that "Hollywood hunk" body without having your life revolve around it--no long hours in the gym, no starving yourself, no grueling cardio that turns your stomach. Imagine, just 12 weeks from now, being constantly complimented on how you look and asked what the heck you're doing to make such startling gains. Imagine enjoying the added benefits of high energy levels, no aches and pains, better spirits, and knowing that you're getting healthier every day.SPECIAL BONUS FOR READERS!With this book you'll also get a free 75-page bonus report from the author called "The Year One Challenge." In this bonus report, you'll learn exactly how to train, eat, and supplement to make maximum gains in your first year of training. By applying what you learn in the book and in this report, you can make more progress in one year than most guys make in three, four, or even five (seriously!).

Swim Speed Secrets for Swimmers and Triathletes


Sheila Taormina - 2012
    Over the course of 4 Olympic Games and throughout her career as a world champion triathlete, Taormina refined her exceptional technique as a student of the sport, studying the world's best swimmers using underwater photographs and video analysis. From Johnny Weissmuller to Michael Phelps, the world’s fastest swimmers share one common element: a high-elbow underwater pull. Too many swimmers and triathletes neglect the pull, distracted by stroke count or perfecting details like body position or streamlining. Taormina uses simple science and crystal clear underwater photos of Olympic athletes to show how the high-elbow underwater pull is the most crucial technique for faster swimming. With a commonsense approach that comes from decades of practice and 15 years of hands-on coaching experience, Taormina’s Swim Speed Secrets gives triathletes and swimmers the clear direction they need to overhaul their swim stroke and find the speed that’s been eluding them. Swim Speed Secrets includes: · The best drills to cultivate a more sensitive feel for the water· Dryland and strength building exercises to develop arm position and upper body musculature· Crisp photos of Olympic swimmers and variations in their high-elbow underwater pull· Clear descriptions of the key moments of the underwater pull· Tips that helped her perform at a world-class level for two decades Swim Speed Secrets brings the focus back where it belongs—to a powerful underwater stroke. With this book, triathletes and swimmers can stop swimming for survival and break through to new levels of speed and confidence in the water.

The New Rules of Lifting for Women: Lift Like a Man, Look Like a Goddess


Lou Schuler - 2005
    This book is for the woman whos ready to throw down the Barbie weights and start a strength and conditioning program that will give her the body she wants. Illustrated.