13
May
2010
Savor by Thich Nhat Hanh & Lilian Cheung
In Savor, Thich Nhat Hanh combines his wisdom with the expertise of the Harvard Director of Health Promotion and Communication, Dr. Lilian Chang. Together they write about the ailments of unhealthy living, such as obesity, that plague so many people.
Then, they take the Buddhist principle of Mindfulness, about which Thich Nhat Hanh has written extensively in the past, and apply it to modern life, in order to combat these ailments, and allow the reader to make substantial changes.
As much as I have read (and adore) Thich Nhat Hanh, I am not very good at practicing Mindfulness. Mindful eating? Nope. I’m snacking and blogging right now. Mindful moving? Ha! When I exercise I try to think about anything BUT what I’m doing. The more I think about the movement of my body, the harder it seems and the more slowly time goes.
But slowing down is part of the program. Our busy lifestyles are just one of the many factors that keep us unhealthy. Sometimes multi-tasking is a bad thing.
The most important part of this book is chapter seven, “Mindful Living Plan”.
They go back to the ideas of Mindfulness and and give examples of how to combat the actions and thinking that hurt us.
I think that this book is best for those who are really looking to make a big lifestyle change in eating and exercising due to a desire to lose weight or other health reasons. For me, who already kind of knows about Mindfulness, and is in a healthy-but-would-like-to-lose-ten-pounds body, the book was a bit much. But that’s the problem with all lifestyle change books, isn’t it?
Yo FTC! I received this book as part of a TLC blog tour. For more information, check out TLC’s Savor page.
Buy Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life on Amazon
If you like this book/author, you might like:
(my reviews in blue)
The Game On Diet by Krista Vernoff and Az Ferguson
French Women Don’t Get Fat by Mireille Guilano
French Women for All Seasons: A Year of Secrets, Recipes, & Pleasure by Mireille Guilano
The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun by Gretchen Rubin
50 Ways to Soothe Yourself Without Food by Susan Albers
Eat, Drink and Be Mindful: How to End Your Struggle with Mindless Eating and Start Savoring Food with Intention and Joy by Susan Albers
Eating the Moment: 141 Mindful Practices to Overcome Overeating One Meal at a Time by Pavel Georgievich Somov
Meal by Meal: 365 Daily Meditations for Finding Balance Through Mindful Eating by Donald Altman
The Zen of Eating by R. Kabatznick
Other works by Thich Nhat Hanh:
Going Home: Jesus and the Buddha as Brothers
Living Buddha, Living Christ
Chanting from the Heart: Buddhist Ceremonies and Daily Practices
A Rose for Your Pocket: An Appreciation of Motherhood
Cultivating the Mind of Love
Hermitage Among the Clouds: An Historical Novel of Fourteenth Century Vietnam
Being Peace
Calming the Fearful Mind: A Zen Response to Terrorism
Call Me By My True Names: The Collected Poems of Thich Nhat Hanh
Creating True Peace: Ending Violence in Yourself, Your Family, Your Community, and the World
The Dragon Prince: Stories and Legends from Vietnam
Breathe, You Are Alive: The Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing
Friends on the Path: Living Spiritual Communities
A Pebble for Your Pocket by
Buddha Mind, Buddha Body: Walking Toward Enlightenment
Finding Our True Home: Living in the Pure Land Here and Now
The Blooming of a Lotus: Guided Meditation Exercises for Healing and Transformation
Each Breath a Smile
The Energy of Prayer: How to Deepen Your Spiritual Practice
Stepping into Freedom: An Introduction to Buddhist Monastic Training by Annabel Laity
The Art of Power
Taming the Tiger Within: Meditations on Transforming Difficult Emotions
Understanding Our Mind: 50 Verses on Buddhist Psychology
Teachings on Love
Joyfully Together: The Art of Building a Harmonious Community
No Death, No Fear: Comforting Wisdom for Life
Peace Begins Here: Palestinians and Israelis Listening to Each Other
The Heart of Understanding: Commentaries on the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra
Zen Keys: A Guide to Zen Practice
The Long Road Turns to Joy: A Guide to Walking Meditation
Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha
The Stone Boy and Other Stories
Under the Rose Apple Tree
Keeping the Peace: Mindfulness and Public Service
Transformation and Healing: Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness
The Hermit and the Well
Thundering Silence: Sutra on Knowing the Better Way to Catch a Snake
The Raft Is Not the Shore: Conversations Toward a Buddhist/Christian Awareness
Touching Peace: Practicing the Art of Mindful Living
True Love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart
Present Moment Wonderful Moment: Mindfulness Verses for Daily Living b
Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life
The Miracle of Mindfulness: A Manual on Meditation
The World We Have: A Buddhist Approach to Peace and Ecology
The Diamond That Cuts Through Illusion: Commentaries on the Prajnaparamita Diamond Sutra
Peaceful Action, Open Heart: Lessons from the Lotus Sutra
Master Tang Hoi: First Zen Teacher in Vietnam and China
Love in Action: Writings on Nonviolent Social Change
Two Treasures: Buddhist Teachings on Awakening and True Happiness
Opening the Heart of the Cosmos: Insights on the Lotus Sutra
The Sutra on the Eight Realizations of the Great Beings: A Buddhist Scripture on Simplicity, Genrosity and Compassion
Interbeing: Fourteen Guidelines for Engaged Buddhism
A Taste of Earth: And Other Legends of Vietnam
Thich Nhat Hanh: Essential Writings
A Lifetime of Peace: Essential Writings by and about Thich Nhat Hanh
Freedom Wherever We Go: A Buddhist Monastic Code for the Twenty-first Century
Nothing To Do, Nowhere To Go: Waking Up To Who You Are
The Sun My Heart
Be Free Where You Are
Fragrant Palm Leaves: Journals, 1962-1966
Answers from the Heart: Compassionate and Practical Responses to Life’s Burning Questions
Calm, Ease, Smile, Breathe by Logan Payne
For a Future to Be Possible: Buddhist Ethics for Everyday Life
Interbeing: Fourteen Guidelines for Engaged Buddhism
The Path of Emancipation: Talks from a 21-Day Mindfulness Retreat
Touching the Earth: Guided Meditations for Mindfulness Practice
I Have Arrived, I Am Home: Celebrating 20 Years of Plum Village Life
Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames
The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching
My Master’s Robe: Memories of a Novice Monk
Our Appointment with Life: Discourse on Living Happily in the Present Moment
Other works by Dr. Lilian Cheung:
Child Health, Nutrition, and Physical Activity
With Mavis Jukes:
Be Healthy! It’s a Girl Thing: Food, Fitness, and Feeling Great
Slowing down is so important…yet so hard! Glad you liked the book!
I’ve been a big fan of Hanh for a while and have a few of his books on my shelves. This book has caught my attention through the tour and I have to admit, I’m pretty interested in reading it. I’m considering picking it up for the summer. Hope all is well with you.
This is something I do need to work on (I need to lose way more than 10 pounds) and I do think mindfulness is something I should work on. I’ve always wanted to read something by him as I’ve seen some of his “poetry” or quotes. I think I will check this out. Great review by the way.