Tag Archives: #mindfulness

Best Mindfulness Books on the Market

August 24, 20222022, Inspiring, Personal development, Recommended, Self Care, Top Books, Wellbeing#breathe, #calm, #clarity, #imclever, #meditation, #mentalhealth, #mindfulness, #relax, #selfcare, #Topbooks, #wellbeingKaren Seligman

Continuing Booko’s August focus on self-care, this week we are looking at some recent releases on Mindfulness. Mindfulness is a form of meditation borne of Buddhist tradition – yet you don’t need to be spiritual or “the meditating type” to benefit from this practice. Mindfulness asks us to focus on the present moment without judgment, and can be as simple as focussing on our breathing for one minute. There is much evidence to show that mindfulness can improve our physical as well as mental wellbeing, helping to relief stress and anxiety, improving mental clarity, and helping us get more out of personal interactions. If you have ever felt too busy, overwhelmed, or distracted, then you may benefit from mindfulness practice – and here are some great guides to get you started:

Becoming Aware: a 21- Day Mindfulness Program for Reducing Anxiety and Cultivating Calm by Daniel J. Siegel

Cover for Becoming Aware by Daniel J. Siegel

This companion to Daniel J. Siegel’s bestselling Aware offers a 21-day, step-by-step guide to adopting his Wheel of Awareness meditation practice. Siegel developed Wheel of Awareness after reviewing current scientific research, which shows that mindfulness offers physical as well as mental health benefits. Using a series of meditation instructions, practical exercises, and everyday tools and techniques, Becoming Aware enables readers, including children, to focus attention, open awareness, and develop compassion, leading to an enduring sense of calm and quiet.

The Resilience Project: Finding Happiness through Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness by Hugh van Cuylenburg

The Resilience Project is more of a memoir than an instruction manual, yet Hugh van Cuylenberg’s life stories are sure to inspire you to make a habit of the simple yet transformational practices of gratitude, empathy and mindfulness – behaviours that lead to resilience and happiness. With humour, poignancy and clear-eyed insight, Hugh van Cuylenberg shares the personal experiences – including his sister’s eating disorder, and his time volunteering in northern India – that has led to his discovery of the link between gratitude, empathy, mindfulness and happiness, which in turn has inspired him to work to help people live a happier and more fulfilling life.

Now Is the Way: Simple Mindfulness for Modern Times by Cory Allen

Cory Allen, host of the popular Astral Hustle podcast, adds author to his resume with this practical, highly readable guide to the why, what, and how of mindfulness. As in his podcasts, Now is the Way mixes mindfulness, neuroscience, philosophy and music; it includes a detailed review of current research; discussion of trends in the mindfulness movement; no-nonsense exercises such as deep breathing; as well as how to use “binaural beats”, a form of sound therapy. There is also a detailed bibliography for further exploration. Cory Allen thinks of mindfulness as “strength training for the brain” – it can help us take control of our thinking, stop merely reacting to life and start to live it the way we want.

How to Focus (Mindfulness Essentials) by Thich Nhat Hanh

The late Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh is best known in the West as the “Father of Mindfulness”. He also developed the concept socially-engaged Buddhism, and was an active proponent of nonviolent activism. The Mindfulness Essentials series is a pocket-sized collection of Thich Nhat Hanh’s writing that focuses on key elements of mindfulness practice. How to Focus offers a set of simple meditations, written with his characteristic kindness, that can help us overcome constant distraction and regain our powers of concentration, and thus foster the conditions that bring insight and understanding.

Gutsy: Mindfulness Practices for Everyday Bravery by Leah Katz

Dr Leah Katz is a clinical psychologist who uses a mix of behavioural therapies and mindfulness techniques in treating anxiety and depression. In Gutsy, she shows how mindfulness can be part of a broader toolkit that helps us make bolder, more fulfilling choices;
by adopting a mindset of joy, gratitude, and resilience, we can learn to identify what is holding us back, to overcome our fears, and move past society’s unrealistic and often harmful expectations to create the self-loving and compassionate life that we all deserve.

Attention Hijacked: Using Mindfulness to Reclaim Your Brain from Tech by Erica B. Marcus

Attention Hijacked offers invaluable advice to steer teens towards healthier tech-use habits, without resorting to “screentime is bad” scare tactics. Erica B. Marcus acknowledges that technology offers many benefits, including education, entertainment, social connection and personal expression; yet some technologies are designed to be addictive, and can interfere with cognitive abilities and mental and physical health. Attention Hijacked shows how mindfulness can help us reassess our technology use, leading to a more conscious, balanced approach. A great resource for teens as well as their caregivers and teachers.

Boredom Busters for the School Holidays – the coolest activity books on the market

April 7, 20222022, Activities, Art, Children, Children's Books, School, school holidays, something new, Writing#activitybooks, #booksforkids, #boredombusters, #imclever, #mindfulness, #puzzles, #relax, #schoolholidays, #thingstodoTeam Booko

The school holidays are right around the corner and if they have snuck up on you as they have us, then fear not, we have found some amazing books that will eradicate any complaints of boredom over the next two weeks. But if these aren’t enough to fill the days, next week Karen is going to be sharing what’s on in the libraries over the holidays too, just in case you are running out of ideas.

Get ready to get clicking because we know that the children (and perhaps a parent or two) will absolutely love these creative activity books.

Absolutely Epic Sudoku by Ivy Finnegan

We all know that Sudoku puzzles reinforce logic and problem-solving and this is a bumper book of these number based puzzles.

Young puzzlers can put their number and logic skills to the test with this ultimate book of over 180 sudoku puzzles. Inside you’ll find puzzles for everyone, from sudoku beginners to number ninjas. They’re graded by skill level so that you can start wherever you feel comfortable – then level up when you’re ready for a challenge. With epic cartoon illustrations, this collection offers hours of fun and satisfaction while improving memory and critical thinking too! Fantastic fun for puzzlers aged 7+.

Everything Under the Sun: a curious question for every day of the year by Molly Oldfield

This is a wonderful collection of 366 curious questions asked by children from around the world, based on the award-winning p odcast by Molly Oldfield. How much bamboo can a giant panda eat? Do aliens exist? What we would do if we didn’t have a prime minister? Why do hammerhead sharks have such strange-shaped heads? Find out the answers to these curious questions and much, much more! Find out why you taste things differently when you have a cold with Michelin star chef, Heston Blumenthal. Learn about everything from how astronauts see in the dark to what the biggest dinosaur was with experts from the Natural History Museum. Fascinating facts are accompanied by gorgeous illustrations making this the perfect school holiday activity book. Whether you read a question a day, or dip into it whenever you are feeling curious, this is a book to treasure and share all year round.

Big Life Journal, Second Edition: A Growth Mindset Journal for Children by Alexandra Eidens

This is a second edition of the popular Big Life Journal for Children (you can buy the first edition here). It’s an illustrated and guided journal for children to develop a growth mindset, and promotes social-emotional learning. Children’s negative self-talk can lead to a fixed mindset, they begin to fear failure and their self-esteem plummets. As parents, we can make a huge impact on how much our kids believe in themselves and how they approach challenges. By giving them the right tools, we help them better understand their brain and learn the importance of positive self-talk.

Big Life Journal incorporates the latest research in positive psychology, brain science, and youth development. With plenty of room to draw and write on each page, this interactive journal is a growth mindset workbook for kids to work through at their own pace as they reflect, learn and grow. And there is a different engaging activity on every page, so this is the interactive journal kids will actually want to use! A life story journal becomes a beautiful future keepsake. With a bright, colourful and durable hard cover, this kids journal with prompts contains 176 high quality pages that stand up to pencils and markers with a lay-flat design, and a sewn in satin bookmark.

How to Draw a Mermaid and Other Cute Creatures by Lulu Mayo

From a magical mermicorn and a friendly narwhal to a puppy cupid and a panda cupcake, these cute creations are loads of fun to draw. The book demonstrates how to create quirky kawaii-style characters in an easy, step-by-step way that will also have readers coming up with their own cute characters in no time. Using simple shapes, illustrator Lulu Mayo explains how to draw each mythical, magical or just plain marvellous creature. Her 30 imaginative creations are sure to keep budding artists entertained and inspired to dream up their very own weird and wonderful characters.

if you have a budding artist that you know will love this book, Lulu has written more. You can find them here.

Puzzlooies! Space Cats to the Rescue: A Solve-the-Story Puzzle Adventure by Russell Ginns, Jonathan Maier

Snag a pencil. Sink into the story. Solve the puzzles – and save the day!

Say goodbye to boring downtime and hello to Puzzlooies!, the latest in portable entertainment. Meant for kids to write in, these illustrated and compact books flip up like a reporter’s notebook, making them perfect for fast fun while on-the-go. Each zany adventure is packed with eclectic puzzles to decipher and decode, as well as jokes, riddles, and true trivia galore that’ll keep readers laughing ’til the very end . . . if they can reach it!

Sharpen your pencils and prepare for liftoff! Here come . . . Space Cats to the Rescue! In this exciting Puzzlooey instalment, Earth is in big trouble. A deadly asteroid is on its way to pummel the planet. Humanity’s only hope is a fearless foursome of felines.

You can buy more Puzzlooies here.

Give This Book a Cover by Jarrett Lerner

Inspire kids to grow their imaginations with this second collection of creative activities from Jarrett Lerner, author of the EngiNerds, Geeger the Robot, and Hunger Heroes series! This collection of fun, open-ended writing and drawing prompts will kick-start creativity and challenge kids to be imaginative in new ways with every turn of a page. The Finish This Comic section features a variety of scenarios and characters inspire kids to write and illustrate a six-panel story. How to Draw instructions encourage kids to find their own drawing styles. Drawing and writing prompts and a smorgasbord of other activities add to the fun perfect for home, road trips, school, and anywhere!

Enjoy!

Clever Thinkers : Six books exploring how philosophy helps us solve life problems

July 22, 20212021, Ethics, Learning, Non-fiction, Personal development, Philosophy#ethics #thinking #philosophy #challenge #imclever, #lessons #toptips, #lifelessons, #mindfulnessKaren Seligman

Philosophy may be more associated with Dead White Men, but many contemporary philosophers examine how the structure of philosophical inquiry, and the cumulative wisdom of millenia of thinkers, can apply to the modern world. The books we’ve chosen this week look at how philosophy can help us clarify and tease out the complexities of everyday life problems – from how to achieve happiness, to the ethics of assisted dying, and even to the etiquette of dating.

Lives of the Stoics: the Art of Living from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman

Lives of the Stoics is an eye-opening mix of history, philosophy and self-help. Holiday and Hanselman (creators of the popular Daily Stoic website and podcast) show us that there is more to Stoicism than its current association with unemotional endurance. Through the mini-biographies of the most notable Stoics – from Zeno, the founder of this school of philosophy, to the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, the authors show the different ways these practitioners lived by their philosophy; and through these examples, help readers learn how stoicism can teach us about happiness, success, resilience and virtue.

The Socrates Express: in Search of Life Lessons from Dead Philosophers by Eric Weiner

Socrates is not the only philosopher whose teachings help guide Eric Weiner out of his mid-life crisis – through a series of figurative and literal journeys around the world, we meet 14 philosophers, a diverse group including Marcus Aurelius, de Beauvoir, Gandhi and Sei Shonagon, a 10th-century Japanese courtesan commonly regarded as the World’s first novelist. These thinkers help Eric Weiner figure out what he considers a meaningful life. The Socrates Express invites us to join in a process of self-examination, and to consider how philosophy can teach us how to think, how to live, and how to die.

Vexed: Ethics Beyond Political Tribes by James Mumford

In Vexed, James Mumford analyses the ethics of six issues – assisted dying, social welfare, sexual liberation, gun control, transhumanism and the rights of former felons. In doing so, he exposes the surprising contradictions within the “package deal” political beliefs of both sides of politics (particularly in the US) – for example, rationales for being pro-gun and pro-life/anti-abortion are inherently contradictory, even though both are associated with the political Right. Vexed is a provocative book that challenges readers to strive for ethical consistency by forming specific opinions on individual issues, rather than buying into political identities as a whole.

The Kindness Revolution: How we can Restore Hope, Rebuild Trust and Inspire Optimism by Hugh Mackay

Veteran social psychologist Hugh Mackay has observed how the last two years have challenged Australians’ livelihoods and resilience – and encourages the idea of “radical kindness” as a way to process and heal from these difficulties. Mackay reminds us that our capacity for kindness – compassion, tolerance, respect, sensitivity – to strangers is at the very heart of our humanity; and by choosing kindness over cynicism and indifference, we will contribute to a powerful, grassroots effort towards creating the country we want and need.

When you Kant Figure it Out, Ask a Philosopher by Marie Robert

This book takes agony-aunt advice to the next level. While Kant, Nietzsche or Heidegger may never have impulse-bought at IKEA, nor got dumped via text message, their powers of clear thinking can still help us in present-day situations. Marie Robert matches twelve modern dilemmas – digital detox, death of loved ones, hangovers, dating – to the teachings of some of our greatest philosophers. When You Kant Figure It Out, Ask a Philosopher is witty and fun, and makes Western philosophy accessible for modern audiences.

In Search of Wisdom: a Monk, a Philosopher, and a Psychiatrist on What Matters Most by Matthieu Ricard, Christophe Andre and Alexandre Jollien

A monk, a philosopher and a psychiatrist walk into a cabin in the woods and start chatting… what follows is not the punchline of a joke, but rather an intimate, enlightening discussion on the essence of being human. The three authors became close friends after discovering and admiring each other’s writings; here they draw upon their learnings in positive psychology, mindfulness, Buddhism and spirituality to explore topics such as compassion, gratitude, listening without judgment, living according to one’s ideals, and responsibly exercising freedom of thought, speech, and action.

Top 5 Books on Self Help

February 27, 2018Lifestyle, Non-fiction, Personal development#Learning, #mindfulness, #Nonfiction, #SelfhelpKaren Seligman

Self-help books are a perfect example of why reading is an investment in yourself. There’s an inspirational author ready to guide you, whether you want to improve your health, your happiness, your finances or your professional success. The best ones offer a perfect balance between entertaining stories, intellectual challenge and emotional uplift. Here are 5 that are guaranteed conversation starters in 2018:

The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnusson

The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning seems destined for pop-cultural attention – it’s a Scandinavian concept about living well (hygge 2.0?); it’s about decluttering (and shares similar philosophies with Marie “Spark Joy” Kondo); and it grabs our attention with its matter-of-factness about mortality. But more than that, it’s a really good idea! Margareta Magnusson introduces her readers to döstädning – sorting out your stuff before you die, rather than leaving the whole mess to your loved ones. Keep the items you care about, and give away or sell the others. Such decluttering can reduce stress, and is a good opportunity for reminiscing and curating your legacy. Margareta Magnusson’s gentle wit and wisdom makes this a surprisingly funny and thoroughly interesting book.

How to be Human: the Manual by Ruby Wax

A comedian, a neuroscientist and a monk meet up and talk…. this may sound like a joke, but instead is the basis of this manual on how our bodies, minds and brains interact to make us “human”. Ruby Wax is a comedian whose struggle with depression motivated her to gain a Master’s Degree in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. In How to be Human, she has teamed up with a monk (an expert in our inner lives) and a neuroscientist (an expert on the brain) to explore the tough questions around how to find happiness in the modern world – evolution, thoughts, emotions, relationships, addictions, the future. Ruby’s wit and anecdotes bring it all together into a funny, readable, insightful and uplifting read – you can also look forward to the stage show version in the works!

Make Your Bed: Small Things that can Change your Life … and maybe the World by William H. McRaven

Make Your Bed started off as a speech given by Admiral William McRaven at his alma mater, the University of Texas at Austin, where he reflected on some life lessons he learnt through basic Navy SEAL training. (Making your bed every morning was his first lesson. Even such a small task can motivate you to complete more tasks, and, at the end of a rough day, a made bed will offer you some solace.) The speech went viral, with many people inspired by his down-to-earth, tough-but-kind approach, particularly within the context of his highly distinguished, 37-year naval career. Make your Bed expands on the ideas in that speech to present ten life lessons in greater detail – these lessons will serve you well, whether you want to become a better person, succeed in business, or indeed change the world.

Barking Up The Wrong Tree: the Surprising Science Behind why Everything you Know about Success is (Mostly) Wrong by Eric Baker

Barking up the Wrong Tree is a distillation of the enormously entertaining and thought-provoking blog of the same name, by Eric Barker. Here Eric applies the Mythbusters treatment to some age-old advice about success, such as “nice guys finish last” and “winners never quit, and quitters never win”. He argues that these maxims were not based on research, and presents scientific data that disprove or qualify them. With quirky examples ranging from pirates to Albert Einstein to serial killers, Barking up the Wrong Tree encourages us to challenge conventional wisdom, and forge our own paths to awesome lives.

The Happiness Plan by Elise Bialylew

The Happiness Plan is a one-month mindfulness meditation program that aims to help us experience greater happiness, focus and emotional balance. Its collection of exercises shows us how to incorporate mindfulness practice into our daily routine – even ten minutes’ worth each day can create positive changes in our physical and mental wellbeing. Elise Bialylew is a meditation teacher and life coach with a background in medicine and psychiatry, and her understanding of the science behind mindfulness informs her approach. The Happiness Plan also aims to support readers beyond the book itself, by offering access to guided meditations available through Elise’s website.

Books to help you get your act together

September 14, 2017Clean Living, Lifestyle, Non-fiction, Personal development#Learning, #mindfulness, #Nonfiction, #Reading, #SelfhelpKaren Seligman

Last week we offered some ideas on how to spring clean and declutter your belongings; this week we turn inward to look at how we can declutter our minds. Do you ever feel exhausted just thinking about change?
It’s easy to procrastinate when we feel anxious about the amount of disruption and effort we’ll need to make lasting change. Decluttering our minds means letting go of these preconceived ideas and anxieties, which can then help us welcome in fresh thinking and opportunities. These authors are here to guide you towards greater clarity, focus and calm:

Declutter Your Mind by S J Scott and Barrie Davenport

Do you feel overwhelmed easily? As if your mind is spinning from too many thoughts? Do you find it hard to get motivated? Or feel there is too much negativity around you? If you answered YES to any of these then you may be experiencing mind clutter. Mind clutter gives rise to anxiety, stress and frustrations – issues that can only be solved by changing mindsets and behaviours. S J Scott and Barrie Davenport show how to use mindfulness techniques to declutter our thoughts, obligations, relationships and surroundings. Declutter Your Mind is concise and readable, packed with ideas and advice.

Unstuffed: Declutter your Home, Mind and Soul by Ruth Soukup

Unstuffed helps with spring-cleaning of both our physical and mental spaces. Following Ruth Soukup’s bestseller Living Well, Spending Less, Unstuffed continues to help us reduce those cravings for more of everything – possessions, relationships, responsibilities. She encourages us to think deeply, identify our most important values and prioritise accordingly, shedding unimportant stuff in the process. She also advises on how to deal with the guilt associated with letting go! For those interested in faith and spirituality, there is also a unique section on decluttering your spirit. Unstuffed comes with an app that offers further tips and support on this decluttering journey.

The Life-changing Magic of Not Giving a F**k by Sarah Knight

Sarah Knight penned this irreverent but heartfelt anti-self help guide when she realised her perfectionist “good girl” tendencies were the cause of her constant stress and anxiety. So she learned to give fewer f**ks – to feel OK about not being perfect, to say yes only to things she cared about. The result is letting go of everything except the things that actually matter. With a decluttered mind and fresh focus, Sarah Knight then takes us to the next level in Get Your Sh!t Together, which shows how to “win at life” – start prioritising and doing the things you actually want to do, while still managing all the sh*t you have to do.

Let it Out: a Journey through Journaling by Katie Dalebout

Journaling can be as simple as jotting down a To-Do List, or as complex as expressing your innermost feelings. In either case, it is a powerful way of relieving a load from your mind. Let it Out is both an inspirational story and a how-to guide to Journaling. Katie Dalebout has been journaling since her teens, discovering that her writing can be a plan, a review, therapy as well as life coach. She credits journaling in helping her to recover from an eating disorder. After sharing her life story in the Introduction, Katie sets out a range of journaling topics / exercises to suit different moods and purposes. Katie’s young age and experiences make this a great book to share with the teens / young adults in your life.

Mindset: the New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck

When Bill Gates writes a detailed (glowing) review of a book then you know it deserves attention. Carol Dweck is a psychology professor who popularised the idea of fixed mindset versus growth mindset. A fixed mindset assumes ability is innate and thus success is largely predetermined; while a growth mindset believes that ability is the result of effort and persistence, and thus can be attained by anyone. A growth mindset makes us more resilient and helps us maximise our potential. I’ve included Mindset here as inspiration of what can be achieved when our minds are unburdened by anxieties, bad habits and negative self-talk, which tend to contribute to a fixed mindset.

Smiling Mind

S J Scott advocated mindfulness in Declutter your Mind, but, if you’re like me, you might prefer to learn mindfulness while listening – this is where Smiling Mind comes in. Smiling Mind is a non-profit organisation aimed at making mindfulness techniques accessible to all ages. They have two excellent free apps (one for smart phones and a web-based app for computers) co-developed with psychologists and health professionals. These apps offer something for everyone – there are guided practices of different lengths, separately aimed at kids, teens as well as adults. My local school uses Smiling Mind in the classroom and I know many parents who use it in their children’s bedtime routines. The Smiling Mind website also offers tips on how to use mindfulness meditation at schools or in the workplace.

Great family board games to try

September 25, 2016Activities, Blog, Board Games, Children, Lifestyle#boardgames, #mindfulnessTeam Booko

When it comes to spending time together as a family, the habit is often to jump in the car and get ‘out and about.’ Children want unhurried time with their family where you can just take pleasure in each other’s company. Quite often, the actual activity isn’t that important. Bearing that in mind, board games have come back into vogue and also have a secondary benefit of teaching social skills such as how to win, lose, take turns and comprehend rules together. Some board games are particularly useful in boosting number, shape and letter recognition, as well as hand and eye coordination in children.

We may have been brought up on old favourites such as Monopoly, Cluedo and Scrabble as children, but there are a fantastic range of new board games on the market that you can play together, all available on Booko. Here are some of our recommendations:

Ticket To Ride – Europe

The aim of this game is for players to claim train routes between European cities in turn-of-the-Century Europe. There are different coloured routes linking cities such as Paris, Moscow and London . Players must collect train cards that match the colour of the route to win it. A light-hearted family game, this is best played with 4-5 players. This game is fun and easy to understand for younger players.

Carcassonne Over Hill and Dale Board Game

Part of the larger series of Carcassonne games, ‘Carcassonne Over Hill and Dale’ allows players to be farmers who care for animals on their large farms and cultivate the fruits and vegetables in their fields. Players must take turns selecting tiles and fit them with the current landscape. Players can claim control of roads or fields and win points when these are completed. This game is more of a relaxing, thinking game than high energy.

Pandemic Legacy

Pandemic Legacy has been reviewed against hundreds of board games and crowned ‘The Best Board Game Ever Made.’ Such an impressive title, but the subject matter is slightly depressing: the game is based on a fight between four disease specialists who travel the world trying to find a cure to four different diseases that threaten to bring the world to the brink of disaster. Each month will bring new surprises and your actions in each game will have repercussions on the next. The game is played co-op style and is won by curing diseases. The thinking man or woman’s board game.

TImeline: Music & Cinema

A card game played using 110 cards, ‘Timeline: Music and Cinema’ is based on players placing their cards in the correct chronological order of an historical event. The winner is the person who places all of their cards in the correct date order. Great for lovers of pop and historical culture. Ages 8+.

Mysterium

Mysterium is a cooperative game involving ghosts, a psychic and a murder. All players bar one are psychics, spending time in a haunted house after a murder has taken place. The ghost must guide the psychics to the correct murder weapon, crime scene and culprit as quickly as possible. The final round involves psychics deciphering a single dream to tell them who committed the murder. This game is loads of fun and an easy to play card game.

Dixit

Dixit Memories is the latest offering from the Internationally best-selling Dixit series. A card-based game for 3-6 players, there are 84 cards to the series. Each of the cards contains surrealist images from artists Carine Hinder and Jerome Pelissier. The cards contain images of exotic landscapes and beautiful creatures. The active player must provide a clue to what their chosen card is. The remaining players must then select one of their cards that best represents the clue from their pack. The players must then vote on what they believe the active player’s card is. We were enchanted by the beautiful artwork on the playing cards.

For more options on the board games available through Booko, visit our Pinterest page.

The best mindful eating cookbooks

September 19, 2016Clean Living, Personal development#Cookbooks, #mindfulnessTeam Booko

As we are packing more and more into each day, the act of eating is simply another task that is completed while we are online or engaged in another activity. As a result, we’re not fully aware of what food is being consumed.

The practice of mindful eating is about focusing and minimising distractions so you are paying full attention to the foods you are eating: by taking this more slowly you can really savour the food and pay attention to how much of it you are consuming. Reports indicate that many consumers base their food choices on taste first, followed by the price and finally the health benefits of the food. There are many resources that can support the practice of mindful eating, including cookbooks and guides that help us slow down and engage with our food. Here are some of our recommended reads for this genre:

Every bite affects the world by Catherine Verrall

Every Bite Affects the World is a guide that helps connect our bodies to the external world around us.

Verrall’s book helps us to be mindful of the connections between what we eat and the health of our bodies, as well as the health of the soil, water, climate, communities and farmers both here and far away.

Featuring many vegetarian recipes, ‘Every Bite’ also contains the imperative for meat eaters to obtain their food locally and from humanely raised sources.

Mindful Eating by Jan Chozen Bays

Ever feel that you really taste the first few bites of a meal and then, seemingly on auto pilot, find that your meal has been eaten and you have not even tasted the rest? This book is for you.

Drawing on recent research and integrating her experiences as a physician and meditation teacher, Dr. Jan Bays offers a clear presentation of what mindfulness is and how it can help with food issues. Particularly interesting are the 7 different types of hunger and how they impact your food choices: eyes, nose, mouth, stomach, mind, heart, and cell hunger.

Mindless Eating by Brian Wansink

This book is based around common sense thinking with respect to our eating but backs it up with research, which makes it a comprehensive read.

Every day, we each make around 200 decisions about eating. But studies have shown that 90% of these decisions are made without any conscious choice. Why? Wansink explains the hidden ‘persuaders’ that are used by restaurants and supermarkets to encourage you to eat more. Even music choice and the colour of a room can influence how much and how quickly you eat. ‘Mindless Eating’ will change the way you think about your next meal.

The Alkaline Cure: The remarkable 14-day diet and anti-ageing plan by Dr Stephan Domenig

Want to lose weight, improve your health and look younger, all in 14 days? Who doesn’t??

Our bodies function best with a pH balance of between 7.3 and 7.5. According to Dr Domenig, our modern lifestyles upset this balance by making our bodies too acidic. His book aims to rectify the balance.

‘The Alkaline Cure’ is a clinically tested fourteen-day plan designed to help establish acid-alkaline balance in the body. It includes daily menus and more than 40 recipes to give your body a kick start.

The Conscious Cook: Delicious Meatless Recipes That Will Change the Way You Eat by Tal Ronnen

A former steak-lover himself, Chef Tal struggled for years on a vegan diet that left him filled with cravings for meat and dairy. Frustrated by the limited options available and unwilling to sacrifice the delicious flavours he associated with eating meat, he created vegan meals that could hold their own at the centre of the plate. Chef Tal found that by applying traditional French culinary techniques to meatless cuisine, he was able to create delicious meals full of rich flavour.

The Oh She Glows Cookbook by Angela Liddon

‘Oh She Glows’ was written after Liddon struggled for over a decade with an eating disorder and ate predominantly low-calorie processed foods. Seeing the benefits of changing her diet to whole foods, she spent time perfecting cooking and eating the right foods in the right way.

‘Oh She Glows’ contains over 100 vegan recipes that are easy to perfect. Whether you are a vegan or you simply want to incorporate a few vegan meals into your week, Angela’s recipes are a must-have for anyone who longs to eat well, feel great, and simply glow!

What we can learn from the Slow Books movement

September 13, 2016Personal development#mindfulness, #Reading, #readingtips, #slowbooksKaren Seligman

source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Are you a booklover who struggles to find time to read? If, like me, your answer is yes, then the Slow Books movement is for you.

Slow Books is the extension of a philosophy first appearing as Slow Food. It encourages people to rediscover “old-fashioned reading” – sit down and read a book, uninterrupted, for at least 30 minutes each day. Such reading should be deliberate and reflective, not simply trying to finish as many pages as possible. Slow Books devotees suggest that slow reading reduces stress, as well as improve people’s ability to think, concentrate and empathise.

Slow Books ties in with digital detox; an opportunity to reduce mental clutter and to re-develop our attention spans and comprehension – known negative effects of our increasing reliance upon online reading. The Internet’s effect upon changes to our cognition is explored in Nicholas Carr’s provocative book The Shallows: how the internet is changing the way we read, think and remember.

Besides Slow Food and Slow Books, the Slow philosophy can also be applied to activities including travel, education and relationships. Carl Honoré’s In Praise of Slowness offers a compelling overview of the Slow ideal, including how it can be applied to daily life. This subversive book also spawned a popular TED talk. The guiding principle of the Slow Movement is the rejection of the “faster is better” mentality ; instead it advocates a mindful approach where we slow down to do something properly – savouring the process along the way.

And if you need any more encouragement, just remember that a recent study from Yale has found that regular book-readers live almost two years longer than non-readers.

How to get started: Ingredients for enjoying books, slowly

Create a comfortable reading spot – beanbag, armchair or in bed? An internet search on “reading nooks” will reveal gorgeous examples, from cosy to quirky to elegant.
Make time for reading – before it becomes a natural habit, use reminders to help you set aside a regular timeslot. You can even join a Slow Reading Club if you prefer to read in a social environment.
Find a great book – a gripping story that will draw you in and help you forget the passage of time. Start with a genre you enjoy, or try some current bestsellers such as The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman, The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, and Truly, Madly, Guilty by Liane Moriarty.

Books to help our children slow down

September 12, 2016Blog, Children#Childrensbooks, #ChildrensLiterature, #mindfulnessTeam Booko

I had a chat with an older lady in the supermarket today and she was telling me about her childhood. One of eight children, they foraged or trapped their dinners most nights. Whether it was mushrooms, blackberries or catching rabbits, they went out with dad to find their ‘tea’. After lunch, which was a weetbix with butter, they were told to go and play, just be home by dinnertime.

If you have a think about your childhood and compare it to the children of today: what are the main differences? My childhood was definitely slower, we just did….less. While we didn’t trap rabbits for dinner, there was a simple mundanity: dinners were meat and 3 veg and we spent most of our days outdoors playing on our bikes. When I was growing up, there were less activities, opportunities and sources of information. There were far less choices when I was a child, but there was a beautiful simplicity that went with it. Many behavioural issues that children are experiencing are said to come from our modern frenetic lifestyles. As a result, authors have penned books to help us help our children to slow down. Here are some of our favourite titles:

A Boy and a Bear by Lori Lite

‘A Boy and a Bear’ is a very simple story that can be read to children who might find it hard getting to sleep. Through the story, a very simple technique called ‘circular breathing is taught. This aims to bring calmness and well-being to both the child and the parent. It’s a nice calm read to promote an easier bed-time routine. Lite has written a suite of stories focused on bringing calm, visualisations and affirmations to children. There have been positive reviews from some of the children, too: ‘I liked the story because it makes you feel relaxed and sleepy. Every muscle in my body felt still. I felt as relaxed as I could be’. (Mandy, aged 8).

The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep by Carl-Johan Foreseen Ehrlin

The groundbreaking #1 bestseller is sure to turn nightly bedtime battles into a loving and special end-of-day ritual. This child-tested, parent-approved story uses an innovative technique that brings a calm end to any child’s day. Do you struggle with getting your child to fall asleep? Join parents all over the world who have embraced ‘The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep’ as their new nightly routine.

A Boy and a Turtle by Lori Lite

Children love to visualize or imagine filling their bodies with the colors of the rainbow. This effective stress-management technique also known as guided imagery is widely accepted and used by both traditional and holistic communities. These gentle but powerful visualization techniques stimulate the imagination. Visualization can have a positive impact on the health of children, improving creativity and performance. It can also lower stress and anxiety levels and is used to control anger.

Relax Kids – How to be Happy: 52 positive activities for children by Marneta Viegas

‘Relax Kids: How to be Happy’ is packed with ideas focused on children spending quality time with their families. At the same time, it helps children manage their worries and emotions and encourages them to grow up happy and contented.

The aim of the book is for families to spend time together completing activities and creating memories. There is a different activity each week and each of the activities is explained with diagrams, which make it easy to follow. Children experience confidence and increased self esteem from their ability to complete the activities.

Imaginations by Carolyn Clarke

Winner of the San Diego Book Award for Children’s Non Fiction, ‘Imaginations’ teaches children to relax and meditate as a means of slowing down their minds. The ability to relax is an essential skill in our hectic world today. Kids are shuttled from home to school to after school activities and home again, often without transition time or down time. ‘Imaginations’ contains stories to help children learn to calm their bodies and relax their minds.

A Handful of Quiet by Thich Nhat Hanh

A Handful of Quiet presents one of the best known and most innovative meditation practices developed by Thich Nhat Hanh as part of the Plum Village community’s practice with children. Pebble meditation is a playful and fun activity that parents and educators can do with their children to introduce them to meditation. It is designed to involve children in a hands-on and creative way that touches on their interconnection with nature.

How to choose the right colouring book for you

September 5, 2016Activities, Personal development#colouring, #mindfulnessTeam Booko

Adult colouring books are now ubiquitous: you can find them everywhere from specialty bookstores to your local Coles or Kmart. The question is: are colouring books for grown-ups a trend or have they morphed into a mechanism for adults to cope with their increasingly busy lives? Psychologists have found that some of the qualities of adult colouring books prompt positive neurological responses in their patients: namely those of repetition, pattern and detail. If you haven’t joined the wave of this trend yet or you’re looking for some different options, here are our recommendations for colouring books for adults:

Animal Kingdom by Millie Marotta

This is a colouring book to keep and treasure forever. The wonderful illustrations from Millie Marotta’s Animal KIngdom are reproduced here on the thickest paper yet (180 gsm) on one side only, including five additional prints that can be pulled out of an envelope at the back of the book. This is an edition for all Millie fans and even those new to her work who want something special to record their creative outputs.

Colour Me Good London by I Love Mel

Perfect for London lovers or global travellers, this colouring book captures the key landmarks and the madcap culture that is London life. Over 16 pages, you can enjoy colouring landmarks such as Piccadilly Circus, well-known faces like Will and Kate and common sights such as a black cab and fish & chips.

Fill Me In by Moose Allain

Perfect for both adults and children alike, ‘Fill Me In’ invites people to draw, imagine and complete the dense line drawings. Why not complete your own city or draw your own comic book? Perfect for the doodler as well as the colouring-in fan, this book is fun to share with a friend, be they big or small.

Dream Cities by Rosie Goodwin and Alice Chadwick

Fancy going on a journey around the world in black and white? From the huge domes of Moscow to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, choose your colours, unleash your creativity and lose yourself in a wonderful coloured universe. As you focus on colouring in and forget the stresses of everyday life, you’ll find calm returning.

Animorphia by Kerby Rosanes

Welcome to this weird and wacky colouring challenge. There are pictures to colour in, drawings to complete, spaces to scribble in and lots of things to find in these super-detailed doodles by artist Kerby Rosanes. This book features unique and intricate ink drawings of incredible animals, shape-shifting aliens and breathtaking scenes. Readers will have to keep their eyes peeled for hidden treasures and creatures scattered throughout the pages.

Doodle Invasion by Zifflin and Kerby Rosanes

Described by some as a colouring book on steroids, this book is another great option for those that love doodling. Doodle Invasion is filled with 50 unique and extremely detailed works of art by the master of doodles Kerby Rosanes. With thick, single-sided pages perfect for markers, this book is perfect for the serious doodler. The intricate artworks are spectacularly drawn and will keep even the most serious doodler busy for hours.

If you’re interested in more of our colouring-in picks, check out the Pinterest board!