Ryan's Reading Reviews

Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss by Joel Fuhrman, M.D.

An amazing (and commonsense) approach to health.

Updated November 27, 2021

If you can’t tell, I really love reading about dieting, exercise, and general health. I recently picked up this classic Dr. Furhman book of mine and re-read it. Here is my quick review.

Eating to Live

The basic formula of this book is that we should all eat a plant-based diet. In other words, 90% to 100% of our calories should come from fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. This diet- nay, I should say lifestyle will pretty much help anyone lose weight, reverse chronic diseases, and potentially get people off of their medicines, which could have harsh side effects.

I really like how Dr. Fuhrman publishes case studies about his current and former patients who have all kinds of diseases, and how his program really transformed their lives. People have gotten off their meds and lost hundreds of pounds by following his advice- they are like totally new persons!

S.A.D. = The Standard American Diet

This book was first published in 2003. The first part of the book goes on about the sad, angry, and infuriating statistics of our modern Western diet. The facts are just mind boggling. Here are just two:

“Americans consume a mere 5% of their calories from fruits, vegetables, and legumes” (Furhman, 58).
“Almost half of all vegetables consumed are potatoes, and half of the potatoes consumed are in the form of fries of chips”(Fuhrman, 58).

Wow.

My Biggest Takeaway

We as society should definitely eat more fruits and vegetables. It’s just common sense. The harder thing is to change your behavior, which is why I will be reviewing and reading more books on habits, psychology, and behavior change. But I have no doubt in my mind that diet is way more powerful than most doctors realize, and people can definitely change their whole lives by adopting a healthy diet. And that the American diet is killing us slowly and costing us billions of dollars.

–> Check Out Eat to Live Here<–

How Many Stars?

4.5 🙂

I liked this book a lot. Because of this book, I’ve made small changes including eating more fruits and vegetables in my diet, lowering my meat consumption (not completely!) and I drink a green juice daily. This book could help millions out there with chronic diseases and people who want to just feel better generally. Dr. Furhman practices in northern New Jersey, so if you’re in that area, you could go see him.

Book Details one more time

Title: Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss, Revised Edition
Author: Joel Fuhrman
Publish Date: January 5, 2011
ISBN: 031612091X ISBN-13: 978-0316120913

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Ryan’s Reading Reviews is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Dr. Jordan Metzl’s Workout Prescription: 10, 20, & 30 Minute High-Intensity Interval Training Workouts for Every Fitness Level

Updated November 27, 2021

The first 10 minute workout kicked my ass!

As you can tell, I’ve been on a health and fitness reading kick for a while now. I’ve been running a lot, and since my gym is closed right now during this crazy time, I wanted to change it up and keep doing some home workouts.

Easy Read, Hard Workouts

This book has a few sections: a section on general fitness, a section on workout motivation which I really appreciated, a section on common injuries and how to treat them, and a huge selection of workouts.

These workouts can be done anywhere, and require no or minimum equipment. Some require dumbbells or steps but you can do all of these workouts with just your body.

There are different workouts too- for total body, abs, upper body, or plyometrics. I appreciate the foam roller and yoga routine he gives readers, and I love his enthusiasm for movement- he calls movement “pure joy.” I love that. Don’t underestimate the short time limits. The first time I did a 10 minute workout, I was wiped out. It was intense!

–> Click here for Short, Intense Workouts<–

If you don’t know about HIIT (high intensity interval) training, that is explained as well, and it has lots of benefits.

I like that there are certain performance tests Dr. Jordan Metzl gives you to see if you need improvement. After I took the tests, I personally need to fix my upper body posture and core, as well as my weak hips which will stop my runners knee.

How Many Stars

4.5 🙂

I really enjoyed this book and will refer to it for years to come. It’s good for beginners as well as seasoned fitness experts but it definitely errs on the side of beginners in terms of the depth of its information, and though I believe diet is way more important than exercise, this is a precious resource. I really recommend you at least google Dr. Jordan Metzl to see what he is all about. He has several books.

BOOK DETAILS ONE MORE TIME

Title: Dr. Jordan Metzl’s Workout Prescription: 10, 20 & 30-minute high-intensity interval training workouts for every fitness level
Author: Dr. Jordan Metzl
Publish Date: December 13, 2016
ISBN: 1623365864 | ISBN-13: 978-1623365868

Book | eBook

The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph by Ryan Holiday

This post was updated on November 22, 2021.

Put simply, Ryan Holiday is a genius. He is obviously well-read and keeps you captivated by beginning each chapter with a story of how both contemporary and ancient extraordinary human beings were able to “turn trials into triumph” in his book, The Obstacle is the Way.

–>Check out Ryan’s Book Here <–

What is this book about?

In a word, this book is about Stoicism. Stoicism is a philosophy that I will be delving into deeper, thanks to this book; I’m sure I’ll have some more book reviews then.

The book is broken into three sections- perception, action, and will. Each chapter gives you examples of how people used adversity (think: “obstacles”) to their advantage instead of to their detriment. Lincoln tried to kill himself multiple times but is remembered as a great president. Steve Jobs demanded more out of his workers to produce under impossible deadlines. Edison looked in awe as his factory burnt down, admiring the fire and then starting over the next day, soon producing and turning profits again. We can take lessons from these examples in our personal lives and perform when things don’t always go our way, as we all face adversity.

My Biggest Takeway

Just like The Four Agreements, recognizing that bad things will happen in our life, and if we accept what we can and cannot control, and don’t take anything personally, we can use adversity to our advantage, and thrive instead of wither. Oh, and I gotta get into more stoicism, which I already said. Stoicism, amirite? 😉

In all serious, another point that people don’t like to think about is “memento mori“- we are all going to die someday. When we are present and aware of our own mortality, we see the world in a new perspective.

How Many Stars?

3.5 😐

This wasn’t his best book, though it is well written and inspired me.

BOOK DETAILS ONE MORE TIME

Title: The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph
Author: Ryan Holiday
Publish Date: May 1, 2014
ISBN: 1591846358 | ISBN-13: 978-1591846352

Book | eBook| Audio book

The Alchemist 25th Anniversary Edition by Paulo Coelho

A legendary book about finding your legend.

This review was updated on November 22, 2021.

I have been thinking of reading this book for a few years, and just kept putting in on the backburner. Well, I finally read it, and I wasn’t disappointed.

I do wish I read this when I was a little younger though– it reminded me of when I was in my early twenties. I was not a shepherd or a nomad, like the main character of this story is. I was, however, an English teacher abroad travelling and seeing the world. I was sort of on my quest to live my “Personal Legend” which is a main theme in The Alchemist.

My Biggest Takeaway from The Alchemist

I enjoyed this book, though I don’t think it was as life-changing for me as it is for some. Maybe it would have been if I read it when I was younger. It’s a short and easy read. My biggest takeaway is the now famous quote “And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” – Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist. I truly believe that. It’s amazing that this book has had such success across all cultures, so everyone can relate to it in some way.

How Many Stars?

–>Check it out here<–

4 🙂

See note above- this is a classic perennial bestseller that anyone can relate to. Especially recommended for people seeking life’s adventure and not wanting to follow the default path in life. A very spiritual book and a short read.

BOOK DETAILS ONE MORE TIME

Title: The Alchemist
Author: Paulo Coelho
Publish Date: April 15, 2014
ISBN: 0062315005 ISBN-13: 978-0062315007

Book | Audio | eBook

Food Fix: How to Save Our Health, Our Economy, and Our Planet- One Bite at a Time by Mark Hyman, MD

Our current state of affairs is uh…terrifying, but we there is hope in this book.

Updated November 22, 2021

So this book opens up on a rant about climate change, which was not totally what I was expecting. But after I finished reading, it made me mad as hell and reinforced one of my hardcore beliefs- the S.A.D. (Standard American Diet) is killing us slowly, and there is lots of corruption.

I love how Dr. Mark Hyman exposes some of the corruption and gives lots of ways we can find more information or get involved in organizations to save our health and our communities. You can find some of the resources mentioned in the book here.

Not Your Typical “Food Book”

If you are familiar with Mark Hyman, you may think this is similar to his other books. But it’s not really. It’s basically part “how to eat better” and part exposé on the lengths at which big food and big agriculture work to mislead customers, and destroy the planet because they just care about profits.

For example, who know that money from the SNAP program makes up about 20% of Coca Cola’s annual revenue in the United States? Ever notice that in America, we don’t use the metric system, but our nutrition facts are measured in grams and milligrams? Did you know that 1 teaspoon of sugar is 4 grams of sugar ? A Food Fix solution would be to change nutrition facts of sugar in teaspoon units- that might make consumers more aware of how much sugar they are eating.

Did you know Cuba now has a higher life expectancy that the U.S.? And why do most of the subsidies our government doles out go to big farms and the production of unhealthy food like corn, wheat, and soy, instead of fruits and vegetables? Why would companies pay millions of dollars to fight laws telling consumers if their products contain GMOs or not?

Okay, my rant is over. But seriously, if this doesn’t make you upset, then you must work for big food companies. I don’t want to leave you with the wrong impression.

As much as we are screwed, as much as your are angry that we’ve been hoodwinked by the food and agriculture industries- our obesity rates pretty much prove this – we have a lot of hope to make changes to save ourselves and our planet. So I’ll include some other resources at the bottom of this post. Or you can just read the book yourself or check out the book’s website. I hope you enjoyed my Food Fix Hyman review.

How Many Stars

4.5 🙂

My Biggest Takeaway From Food Fix

I’ve been interested in dieting, exercise, fitness, and our food system for a long time. This book reinforces my belief that in order to lose weight or to eat healthy, it’s not just “calories in, calories out”, and that big food companies intentionally mislead the consumer. But books like Food Fix allow more people to see the light, and there are changes being made every day. So with that, let me leave you some more resources to check out.

–>Check out Food Fix Here<–

Some More Resources- Some Here and Many More in the Book

Food Fix Book
Local Harvest – Find your local food
Eatwild– Find grass-fed meat
Soil Carbon Initiative– Fight climate change through soil
Carbon Underground– Fight climate change through soil, again

Book Details one more time

Title: Food Fix: How to Save Our Health, Our Economy, and Our Planet- One Bite at a Time
Author: Mark Hyman
Publish Date: February 25, 2020
ISBN: 031645317X ISBN-13: 978-0316453172

Book | Audio | eBook

Drop Dead Healthy: One Man’s Humble Quest for Bodily Perfection by A.J. Jacobs

Updated November 21, 2021

This book was not on my short list, but I picked it up for 50 cents at a local book sale. Go me.

I had heard of The Year of Living Biblically, which is on my list, and Drop Dead Healthy’s novel concept of someone trying to live as healthy as possible in a constant N-1 experiment seemed interesting. And it was.

Tell Me More

I think Drop Dead Healthy was pretty good. I liked how Jacobs often cited both sides of a controversial medical topic to explore all angles. An example was when he interviewed a (sort-of) germophobe physician and a physician who wasn’t so hygienic. This allowed readers to see the good and the bad of certain situations.

The book was also really funny, I think A.J. Jacobs is a great writer. It was similar to Emergency in that both of the authors really like to leave their comfort zones and grow as a person. And they are both excellent writers.

How Many Stars?

3.5 😐

I gave it 3.5 stars because I don’t think this is a mainstream topic. Sure, health is mainstream, but this is just one person’s story of trying out new diets and exercises and writing chapters about hands, the bladder, and the brain, among other things. It was a very entertaining read, however. But it wasn’t a specific diet or exercise book, per se. Ya know what I mean?

–>Buy it here <–

My Biggest Takeaway from Drop Dead Healthy

A.J. Jacobs is funny, and not afraid to put himself out there in terms of writing, experimenting, and trying to get healthy. And for that, I applaud you, Mr. Jacobs!

book details one more time

Title: Drop Dead Healthy: One Man’s Humble Quest for Bodily Perfection
Author: A.J. Jacobs
Publish Date: November 3, 2012
ISBN: 1416599088 ISBN-13: 978-1416599081

Book | Audio | eBook

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life by Mark Manson

Updated June 12th, 2023

Honestly it wasn’t the orange cover or the profanity that got me into this book. What got me was one of my friends who isn’t an avid reader posted this book on his Facebook, saying this was his “favorite piece of literature.”

That, and I got a gift card to Barnes and Noble from my aunt for Christmas. So I bought Mark Manson’s book, read it in like a day, and here I am posting about it. Cool story, Ryan!

To Give or Not to Give (A Fck)?

This is essentially what the Subtle Art is about. Kind of. It’s a lot deeper than that and pretty damn awesome. We only have a certain amount of fucks (pardon my language) to give, and we must choose what we care about and forget about the rest.

Mark Manson doesn’t lie in the subtitle: this book has a lot of counter-intuitive arguments and thoughts.

One of my favorite ideas from the book that I’ve never thought about is that while everyone has problems, some problems are better to have than others. Rich people have money problems (hmm, should I buy or sell my shares of Tesla?…What should I do about taxes?), and poor people have money problems. Clearly, “rich” money problems are better problems to have if I had to give you my own two cents!

Speaking of problems, I thought this was a brilliant call by Manson: Successful people are willing to enjoy the process and put up with pain and problems. So if we want to be successful, instead of focusing on the pleasures, we should ask ourselves which problems we can endure. Successful office workers are willing to endure long hours at the office and playing corporate politics. Entrepreneurs are willing to take risks and put out “fires” every day, like when your supplier suddenly quits on you or how to make payroll. It’s literally the reverse of, like, how everyone in society thinks!

My Biggest Takeaway from The Subtle Art of Not Giving a…

Is that most people are entitled. There are different categories of entitlement as well. I can’t do Manson’s explanations of entitlement justice, so you’ll have to just take my word for it, or check out the book to see for yourself. Maybe me writing this is a sign of my entitlement? I don’t know.

–>Check out The Subtle Art Here<–

How Many Stars?

4 🙂

His arguments, viewpoints, and ideas are very unique. But I just can’t put it in the very best books I’ve ever read, but 4 stars out of 5 ain’t bad!

BOOK DETAILS ONE MORE TIME

Title: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life
Author: Mark Manson
Publish Date: September 13, 2016
ISBN: 0062457713 | ISBN-13: 978-0062457714

Book | Audio | eBook

Comments?

I didn’t put The Subtle Art in the best books I’ve ever read category. But many people did, like my friend in the beginning of this post. Did you love this book? Let me know in the comments.

The Four Agreements: A Toltec Wisdom Book by Don Miguel Ruiz

Updated November 21, 2021

I am not a spiritual or religious guy really, but I needed a good spiritual book to read, and I had recently remembered that years ago a college roommate of mine use to always talk about The Four Agreements. Here is my quick review of it.

A Wise and Practical Spiritual Book

The Four Agreements is a short book- I read it in a day, and you can too.

It’s a short spiritual guide about four ways in which you can change your attitude in the world around you and to improve your health, happiness, and relationships with others.

The Four Agreements: What are they?

Be impeccable with your word
Don’t take anything personally
Don’t make assumptions
Always do your best

How this Book Changed my Life

Recently, I’ve noticed myself being grumpy and stressed out. Through reading this book, I realized that I was taking things personally. When you take everything personally, you make everything about you, when it isn’t, and that is selfish.

I’ve noticed my stress levels have gone down after reading The Four Agreements. I also realize, as Ruiz says in the book, sticking to these four agreements is not easy!

–>Click Here to Purchase The Four Agreements<–

How Many Stars?

5 🙂

With a life-changing book like this, I had no choice but to give The Four Agreements 5 stars.

BOOK DETAILS ONE MORE TIME

Title: The Four Agreements: A Toltec Wisdom Book
Author: Don Miguel Ruiz
Publish Date: November 7, 1997
ISBN: 9781878424310 | ISBN-13: 978-1878424310

Book | Audio | eBook

Emergency: This Book Will Save Your Life by Neil Strauss

Updated November 21, 2021

This book won’t save your life– but it will entertain you. Any maybe give you some survival ideas…

I’ve been a fan of Neil Strauss for years– he’s an excellent writer and I really enjoyed The Game.

So when I saw Emergency on Amazon, I had no hesitation picking it up.

What is Emergency About?

Essentially, Neil Strauss realizes one day, he has no real life survival skills. These survival skills actually scare him since he’s such a beginner, among other things.

In his early years, life in America was safe and easy. It wasn’t until 9/11 that America began to show its vulnerable side.

Conclusion?

The book gives some cool facts and figures about surviving, as Strauss goes through different survivalist subcultures and communities around the country: tracking school in New Jersey, gun shooting school in Arizona, E.M.T. and search and rescue schools in California. I think the most bad-ass part is that he gets a second passport to a country which I will leave unnamed in case you read the book.

I really admire Neil because while most people run away for their fears, Neil faces them head on and this is a story of his own personal development into a skilled survivalist– actually more than that. Because of all the things he put himself through — entertaining stories you can read in this book– he has built a confidence that no one — or no disaster– can take away.

How Many Stars?

4 🙂

It was a good entertaining read, but I don’t know if this is the first book of Strauss’s you should read. If you’ve never heard of Neil Strauss, I’d check out one of his other books first.

My Biggest Takeaway From Emergency

Besides the respect for facing one’s fears to overcome them, it’s amazing how vulnerable we are as a society. Anything can happen at any time. We depend way too much on electricity, internet, and water systems, for instance, and if anything happened to them, we’d be in a wayyyy bigger situation than just an emergency.

Book Details one more time

Title: Emergency: This Book Will Save Your Life
Author: Neil Strauss
Publish Date: March 10, 2009
ISBN: 9780060898779 ISBN-13: 978-0060898779

Book | Audio | eBook

Make Time: How to Focus on What Matters Every Day by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky

Updated November 21, 2021

Yo – I don’t really mean to yo you- Make Time is the best time management book I’ve ever read.

The best time management book ever written.

Bold Statement

I know, I know, saying this book is the best book about time ever written is definitely a bold statement. I will now share with you why I think this way.

First, it’s approach is very different from all other time management books like Getting Things Done for example.

Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky (JZ) have a unique writing style. Literally, they have pertinent illustrations and speech bubbles when they are offering their own personal insights. It’s not just boring blocks of text.

They conceptualize two modern time sucks in society today: Busy Bandwagon (the idea that in our society, busy=successful) and Infinity Pools (any content that allows you to consume endlessly; think: news, Facebook, Twitter, NetFlix.)

Make Time focuses on 87 pointers on how you can optimize every day. You don’t have to heed them all, and can choose ones that work for you. They even talk about eating right, exercising, and the best ways to drink coffee!

I also love how the authors give specific examples on how to use your own psychology to modify your behaviors or make new habits without using just willpower alone.

How Many Stars?

5 🙂

My Biggest Takeaway from Make Time:

A Personal, Specific Example

Snippet 31: Trading Fake Wins for Real Wins

I am so guilty of this. When you clean your room instead of going to the gym, that’s a fake win- your intention was to go to the gym and build muscle. Instead, you stayed at home and cleaned your room. Now, don’t get me wrong, cleaning your room is nice, and it makes you feel good, but it wasn’t the right intention. So, you feel good, but you didn’t actually accomplish what you wanted to. Another example of a fake win is clearing your inbox when you should be finishing up a project for work. Cleaning your inbox feels good, but it’s not the goal you set. These are what Knapp and Zeratsky call “fake wins”. The way to combat fake wins, is to get back in your laser focus mode: a mode they tell you how to get into to get the real work done. This is just one of hundreds (or at least 87 ;)) tips of time management wisdom.

BOOK DETAILS ONe MORE TIME

Title: Make Time: How to Focus on What Matters Every Day
Authors: Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky
Publish Date: September 25, 2018
ISBN: 0525572422 | ISBN-13: 978-0525572428

Book | Audio | eBook