Reviews for The Mental-Cure: Illustrating the Influence of the Mind On the Body, Both in Health and Dise...

The average rating for The Mental-Cure: Illustrating the Influence of the Mind On the Body, Both in Health and Dise... based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2011-12-01 00:00:00 Theresa Gates Very intriguing: the author proposes a different way to improve fitness. Instead of constantly pushing the body or trying to exhaust it to trigger super-compensation, he wants us to be gently and to leave the comfort zone only slightly. What really helped me was the focus on nasal breathing. I have tried to run slow in the past but reached a point where it became frustrating without any of the promised improvements. (I guess I wasn't running often enough to benefit more.) Anyway, to know what "slow" really means Phil Maffetone made me wear a heart-rate monitor. While it's helpful in the beginning, listening to a technical device instead of connecting with your body is not the smartest idea in the long run. John Douillard says that you should listen to your breathing instead. He tells the funny story of Indian doctors who watched a typical runner huffing and puffing. They wondered why he has to be under such a pain! Good point. It's also worth mentioning that nasal breathing gives you enough oxygene and that there is no need to breath through your mouth while running. There are a couple of practical exercises and many success stories. I think he is up to something! There are different pathways to improvement in all areas (not restricted to sports). You can have someone yelling at you and pushing your limits all the time. Or you can work with an emphatic teacher who is building the base first and slowly expands of what you are capable of. The outcome is probably the same but the first approach is much more stressful. Or if you think about stretching. If you want to force it your body will not allow it. Relax and gently test your limits - and this time your body lets you continue. Well, slowly I feel like a guinea pig by trying out all these different methods. :-) This time, however, another piece fell into place. People who need a structured, fixed approach will have no fun with this book. Everyone else who is open to the "body and mind connection" will find some real gems. There is a lot more here. I don't know what I should think about the body types. My result was mixed with scores in any type and slightly favoring the Winter-Spring type. This wasn't really helpful. Nutrition and diets are other topics I only skimmed. The author has written a whole book about it (The 3-Season Diet and I might check it out later. 5 out of 5 stars

Review # 2 was written on 2015-11-30 00:00:00 Michele Martinez This is a phenomenal book. To be honest, I almost didn't read it because, frankly, the summary seemed incredibly boring, and I've never been particularly interested in athletics. But with every chapter, I was constantly surprised at the skillful writing and fascinating material. This book has deeply influenced my thoughts and actions regarding health, fitness, and what it means to live a life in balance. I highly recommend this book to anyone who does any kind of physical activity AND to anyone who claims to "hate exercise."