The Program: THE MERIDIAN FLEXIBILITY SYSTEM® provides stretches for 16 unique muscle groups with physiological and psychological benefits.

    The culmination of 25 years of research on aging, nutrition, and disease across the globe, this unique program lays out a simple solution to living to a healthy old age through nutrition. The key is combining the healthy everyday eating plan the book outlines, with the scientifically engineered fasting-mimicking diet, or FMD; the FMD, done just 3-4 times a year, does away with the misery and starvation most of us experience while fasting, allowing you to reap all the beneficial health effects of a restrictive diet, while avoiding negative stressors, like low energy and sleeplessness. Valter Longo, director of the Longevity Institute at USC and the Program on Longevity and Cancer at IFOM in Milan, designed the FMD after making a series of remarkable discoveries in mice, then in humans, indicating that specific diets can activate stem cells and promote regeneration and rejuvenation in multiple organs to significantly reduce risk for diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer’s, and heart disease.

    For the first time in history a remarkably enjoyable way of consuming the necessary amount of greens has been created by blending the greens with fruit. From this smoothie, the body can absorb the essential nutrients much more efficiently. Anyone can prepare tasty green smoothies quickly in his or her own kitchen, with their own choice of ingredients. With green smoothies people gain more control of their own health. Green for Life includes 23 delicious smoothie recipes with ingredients like romaine, strawberries, and bananas, to get you started on drinking your way to a healthier life.

    (The somewhat confusing title is from a line in Zorba the Greek in which the title character refers to the ups and downs of family life as "the full catastrophe.") But this book is also a terrific introduction for anyone who has considered meditating but was afraid it would be too difficult or would include religious practices they found foreign. Kabat-Zinn focuses on "mindfulness," a concept that involves living in the moment, paying attention, and simply "being" rather than "doing." While you can practice anything "mindfully," from taking a walk to cleaning your house, Kabat-Zinn presents several meditation techniques that focus the attention most clearly, whether it's on a simple phrase, your breathing, or various parts of your body. The book goes into detail about how hospital patients have either improved their health or simply come to feel better despite their illness by using these techniques, but these meditations can help anyone deal with stress and gain a calmer outlook on life. "When we use the word healing to describe the experiences of people in the stress clinic, what we mean above all is that they are undergoing a profound transformation of view," Kabat-Zinn writes. "Out of this shift in perspective comes an ability to act with greater balance and inner security in the world." --Ben Kallenreissue 2005

    Wayne Scott Andersen has devoted his career to creating optimal health through a comprehensive approach that addresses and breaks through logistical and psychological barriers. Widely and affectionately known for his work in the field of health coaching as "Dr. A," in Discover Your Optimal Health, he provides an inegrative approach that begins with developing (and maintaining) healthy habits each day. This crucial approach makes health the centerpiece of your life instead of something you do when you discover you have an illness or imbalance. Dr. A reveals how a little attention and discipline now can avoid health crises down the road. No matter what your current health status, you can be as healthy as possible. The habits you develop now make the difference between surviving and thriving, life or death. The steps toward reaching and maintaining your optimal health include: Integrating the Habits of Health into Your Life Discovering the Habits of Healthy Weight Loss Using the Habits of Healthy Eating Understanding the Habits of Healthy Motion Practicing the Habits of Healthy Sleep Employing the Habits of a Healthy Mind

    She could barely find the strength to get off the sofa, let alone piece her life back together. Until one day she did something she had never done of her own free will – she pulled on a pair of trainers and went for a run.That first attempt didn’t last very long. But to her surprise, she was back out there the next day. And the day after that. She began to set herself achievable goals – to run 5k in under 30 minutes, to walk to work every day for a week, to attempt 10 push-ups in a row. Before she knew it, her mood was lifting for the first time in years.In Jog On, Bella explains with hilarious and unfiltered honesty how she used running to battle crippling anxiety and depression, without having to sacrifice her main loves: booze, cigarettes and ice cream. With the help of a supporting cast of doctors, psychologists, sportspeople and friends, she shares a wealth of inspirational stories, research and tips that show how exercise often can be the best medicine. This funny, moving and motivational book will encourage you to say ‘jog on’ to your problems and get your life back on track – no matter how small those first steps may be.

    Nutrition researcher Sally Fallon unites the wisdom of the ancients with the latest independent and accurate scientific research. The revised and updated Second Edition contains over 700 delicious recipes that will please both exacting gourmets and busy parents.

    His life is about being bold and risky. So when Jesse felt himself drifting on autopilot, he hired a rather unconventional trainer to live with him for a month-an accomplished Navy SEAL widely considered to be "the toughest man on the planet"! Living With a Seal is like a buddy movie if it starred the Fresh Prince of Bel- Air. . .and Rambo. Jesse is about as easy-going as you can get. SEAL is. . . not. Jesse and SEAL's escapades soon produce a great friendship, and Jesse gains much more than muscle. At turns hilarious and inspiring, Living With a Seal ultimately shows you the benefits of stepping out of your comfort zone.

    Jacobs tackles his most challenging experiment yet: a yearlong mission to radically improve every element of his body and mind—from his brain to his fingertips to his abs.From the bestselling author of The Year of Living Biblically and The Know-It-All comes the true and truly hilarious story of one person’s quest to become the healthiest man in the world. Hospitalized with a freak case of tropical pneumonia, goaded by his wife telling him, “I don’t want to be a widow at forty-five,” and ashamed of a middle-aged body best described as “a python that swallowed a goat,” A.J. Jacobs felt compelled to change his ways and get healthy. And he didn’t want only to lose weight, or finish a triathlon, or lower his cholesterol. His ambitions were far greater: maximal health from head to toe. The task was epic. He consulted an army of experts— sleep consultants and sex clinicians, nutritionists and dermatologists. He subjected himself to dozens of different workouts—from Strollercize classes to Finger Fitness sessions, from bouldering with cavemen to a treadmill desk. And he took in a cartload of diets: raw foods, veganism, high protein, calorie restriction, extreme chewing, and dozens more. He bought gadgets and helmets, earphones and juicers. He poked and he pinched. He counted and he measured. The story of his transformation is not only brilliantly entertaining, but it just may be the healthiest book ever written. It will make you laugh until your sides split and endorphins flood your bloodstream. It will alter the contours of your brain, imprinting you with better habits of hygiene and diet. It will move you emotionally and get you moving physically in surprising ways. And it will give you occasion to reflect on the body’s many mysteries and the ultimate pursuit of health: a well-lived life.

    Creative energy, falling in love, entrepreneurship, and even the continued propagation of the human race are driven by this system . . . just as is, unfortunately, the urge to overeat. In The Fix, Dr. Pamela Peeke uses the latest neuroscience to explain how unhealthy food and behavioral “hooks” have gotten us ensnared; indeed, she shows that dopamine rushes in the body work exactly the same way with food as with cocaine. Luckily, we are all capable of rewiring, and the very same dopamine-driven system can be used to reward us for healthful, exciting, and fulfilling activities. The Fix makes this possible by laying out a lifelong, 3-stage plan that starts with a 3- to 4-week jump start to break so-called heinous hooks and replace them with healthier actions. Fitness guides, meal plans, and recipes are constructed to bolster the growth of new neurons and stimulate the body’s reward system. Gradually, healthy hooks like playing games, meditating, having sex, going for a run, laughing, and learning a new language will replace the junk food, couch time, and other bad habits that leave us unhappy and overweight.

    But it’s harder to understand why we can't seem to stop eating—even when we know better. When we want so badly to say "no," why do we continue to reach for food? Dr. David Kessler, the dynamic former FDA commissioner who reinvented the food label and tackled the tobacco industry, now reveals how the food industry has hijacked the brains of millions of Americans. The result? America’s number-one public health issue. Dr. Kessler cracks the code of overeating by explaining how our bodies and minds are changed when we consume foods that contain sugar, fat, and salt. Food manufacturers create products by manipulating these ingredients to stimulate our appetites, setting in motion a cycle of desire and consumption that ends with a nation of overeaters. The End of Overeating explains for the first time why it is exceptionally difficult to resist certain foods and why it’s so easy to overindulge. Dr. Kessler met with top scientists, physicians, and food industry insiders. The End of Overeating uncovers the shocking facts about how we lost control over our eating habits—and how we can get it back. Dr. Kessler presents groundbreaking research, along with what is sure to be a controversial view inside the industry that continues to feed a nation of overeaters—from popular brand manufacturers to advertisers, chain restaurants, and fast food franchises. For the millions of people struggling with weight as well as for those of us who simply don't understand why we can't seem to stop eating our favorite foods, Dr. Kessler’s cutting-edge investigation offers new insights and helpful tools to help us find a solution. There has never been a more thorough, compelling, or in-depth analysis of why we eat the way we do.

    This philosophy is a year-round common-sense approach to health and fitness that involves doing your best most of the time—and by that I don't mean being naughty for three days and good for four. I mean doing your absolute best most of the time during every week, 52 weeks of the year."—Carrie UnderwoodCarrie Underwood believes that fitness is a lifelong journey. She wasn’t born with the toned arms and strong legs that fans know her for. Like all of us, she has to work hard every day to look the way that she does! In FIND YOUR PATH she shares her secrets with readers, with the ultimate goal of being the strongest version of themselves, and looking as good as they feel. Carrie’s book will share secrets for fitting diet and exercise into a packed routine—she’s not only a multi-Platinum singer, she’s a businesswoman and busy mom with two young children. Based on her own active lifestyle, diet, and workouts, FIND YOUR PATH is packed with meal plans, recipes, weekly workout programs, and guidelines for keeping a weekly food and workout journal. It also introduces readers to Carrie's signature Fit52 workout, which involves a deck of cards and exercises that can be done at home—and it sets her fans on a path to sustainable health and fitness for life. Fit52 begins with embracing the "Pleasure Principle" in eating, making healthy swaps in your favorite recipes, and embracing a long view approach to health—so that a cheat a day won't derail you.Throughout the book, Carrie shares her personal journey towards optimal health, from her passion for sports as a kid, to the pressure to look perfect and fit the mold as she launched her career after winning American Idol, to eventually discovering the importance of balance and the meaning of true health. For Carrie, being fit isn't about crash diets or a workout routine that you're going to dread. It’s about healthy choices and simple meals that you can put together from the ingredients in your local grocery store, and making the time, every day, to move, to love your body, and to be the best version of yourself.

     With more than five million copies sold, Prescription for Nutritional Healing is the most trusted, comprehensive source on dietary supplements, vitamins, minerals, and herbs. A pioneer in the field of nutritional healing, Phyllis Balch passionately and meticulously researched and compiled this groundbreaking book. Now, a generation later, her message has more relevance than ever: consume fresh foods, avoid processed foods and those high in saturated fat, and optimize your intake of essential nutrients with the right supplements. Today's well-stocked vitamin and natural-health stores can be confusing, and people need Balch's clear, concise, landmark guide. To help them make sense of the mind-numbing array of choices that are available, readers of Prescription for Nutritional Healing will: - learn the basics of good nutrition; - find out how to balance vitamins and minerals so that the body can properly absorb both; - determine how best to treat 250 problems-from abscesses to wrinkles-using herbs, nutrition, and supplements; and - get the facts on other complementary therapies, like ayurveda, biofeedback, chiropractic care, and more. Prescription for Nutritional Healing is an essential resource for every health-minded consumer.

    Now he lays out the detailed program he uses with his own patients. Accessible and detailed, it can be tailored to anyone's needs and will enhance cognitive ability at any age.What we call Alzheimer's disease is actually a protective response to a wide variety of insults to the brain: inflammation, insulin resistance, toxins, infections, and inadequate levels of nutrients, hormones, and growth factors. Bredesen starts by having us figure out which of these insults we need to address and continues by laying out a personalized lifestyle plan. Focusing on the Ketoflex 12/3 Diet, which triggers ketosis and lets the brain restore itself with a minimum 12-hour fast, Dr. Bredesen drills down on restorative sleep, targeted supplementation, exercise, and brain training. He also examines the tricky question of toxic exposure and provides workarounds for many difficult problems. The takeaway is that we do not need to do the program perfectly but will see tremendous results if we can do it well enough.With inspiring stories from patients who have reversed cognitive decline and are now thriving, this book shifts the treatment paradigm and offers a new and effective way to enhance cognition as well as unprecedented hope to sufferers of this now no longer deadly disease.

    In 7 Steps to a Pain-Free Life, its founder, world-renowned physical therapist Robin McKenzie, shares the innovative program that can save you from a life of pain. 7 Steps to a Pain-Free Life combines and enhances McKenzie's back and neck books that have sold more than 5.5 million copies worldwide.The 7 essential steps that make up the McKenzie Method have become the keystone for back and neck care in 35 countries, including the United States. In this easy-to-follow, fully illustrated book, you'll read about: * Common causes of lower-back and neck pain* The vital role discs play in back and neck health* Easy exercises that alleviate pain immediately* How to stay out of painComplete with more than 150 photos and illustrations, and considered the treatment of choice by health care professionals throughout the world, 7 Steps to a Pain-Free Life will help you get out of pain-and stay out of pain. It is an invaluable tool for better health.