It’s no secret that our technology-enthused age has had the unintentional side effect of promoting a sedentary lifestyle. Now publishers are beginning to respond by coming out with a spate of new books that propose various ways of getting folks re-energized and moving again.
Unfortunately, many of these self-improvement guides offer such dauntingly prescriptive routines they could have been written by drill sergeants.
For a more realistic and encouraging approach, check out “Invincible Living.”
Author Guru Jagat is becoming one of the most-recognized faces in the Kundalini Yoga movement, but she is a yogi who hasn’t forgotten her working-class roots.
“Even I have to admit there’s sometimes nothing more obnoxious than some 22-year-old, 200-hour trained yoga teacher spouting Sanskrit names about different parts of your body that you don’t know, can’t do, or just plain don’t understand,” she says.
Instead of setting out complex poses that require you have the flexibility of a pre-teen, this book emphasizes the accessibility of yoga. In her cheerfully down-to-earth discussion of the benefits of yoga, Guru Jagat encourages you to pay attention to your own breath and sensory system, promising that you can tap into a source of profound vitality. She offers a variety of breath exercises, short meditations, affirmations, dietary suggestions, simple poses and basic practices for you to try out and choose.
“If you pick just one of them to do on a daily basis, to become a master of, your practice will create a vortex of momentum,” she promises. The idea is to build upon this momentum, promoting your own mindfulness and boosting your energy.
“Invincible Living” is a hopeful, helpful book. The use of gauzy monochromatic photos of pretty white people to illustrate is its biggest misstep. Really, this is a book for everybody. More diverse representation of ages, body types and skin colors would have made that crystal clear.
Barbara McMichael
Barbara Lloyd McMichael is based in the Pacific Northwest and writes about books and culture. She writes a syndicated weekly book review column called “The Bookmonger” that focuses on Northwest books and authors. Her PR for People® Book Review is written exclusively for The Connector.