Breath

 
 

Why we chose this title

Breathing.

We inhale the moment we are born.

We exhale just before we die.

Many of us take it for granted, but whenever we are having trouble breathing, we realise how essential it actually is.

Breathing can become an invaluable tool to fight anxiety, calm our thoughts and centre ourselves.

The moment we focus on our breath we are fully present. We just are.

With this book James Nestor not only shares years of research. He provides us with tools and exercises that can truly change our lives.

Book Summary

There is nothing more essential to our health and wellbeing than breathing: take air in, let it out, repeat 25,000 times a day. Yet, as a species, humans have lost the ability to breathe correctly, with grave consequences. In Breath, journalist James Nestor travels the world to discover the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it.

Modern research is showing us that making even slight adjustments to the way we inhale and exhale can:

- jump-start athletic performance

- rejuvenate internal organs

- halt snoring, allergies, asthma and autoimmune disease, and even straighten scoliotic spines

None of this should be possible, and yet it is. Drawing on thousands of years of ancient wisdom and cutting-edge studies in pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry and human physiology, Breath turns the conventional wisdom of what we thought we knew about our most basic biological function on its head.

About the Author

James Nestor is an author and journalist who has written for Outside Magazine, The Atlantic, National Public Radio, The New York Times, Scientific American, Dwell Magazine, The San Francisco Chronicle, and more.

Nestor has presented his research at Stanford Medical School, the United Nations, UBS, Global Classroom (World Health Organization+UNICEF), as well as more than 40 radio and television shows, including Fresh Air with Terry Gross, the Joe Rogan Show, BulletProof, ABC's Nightline, CBS Morning News, and dozens of NPR programs.

Where to buy it

Please support your local independent book stores or order on bookshop.org

 
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The Child in You