Another month I didn’t stick to my reading list from the end of last months post.
For last months update, please go here
About midway I got sidetracked into reading a couple of books that dive deep into the science behind fasting and fitness in general, a topic I’ve been spending some time looking into in order to apply its principles in my own life.
Anyway, I did knock one book off the list, the other 2 were fitness related.
The books I read were:
The Complete Guide to Fasting - Jason Fung
This is an author I last read just over 2 years ago, I found him through medium (this was back when my reading updates were a part of my main blog and I was writing through medium) and read his book The Longevity Solution
While that book is littered with recommendations by the authors for products to buy, it does suggest some life changes for living longer, one of the main ones it proposes is to ‘fast’
I tried doing this last year and the year before, but, I think I’ve been doing a better job this time out (I recently finished a 5 day fast and will be attempting a 7 day fast soon, more on my main blog on that later this month)
Anyway, I’m digressing way too much, I read this book while I was doing my 5 day fast to see if what I was experiencing matched with what the book said I would and to try and follow its prescriptions.
This is a well done book, opens with some testimonials by people who tried fasting in their lives and their experiences and then goes into the details of what happens when you fast, when you go on an extended fast, benefits, negatives.
Quite a few things that I’ve been experiencing since I restarted fasting were validated by what I read in this book (this might be confirmation bias, but, I’m inclined to believe otherwise in this case)
It’s an interesting read if you’re looking to start fasting or in the middle of a 5 day fast (like me)
Anaerobics - Mark Baker
I got this book for free as the author was running a giveaway on his Twitter.
In a similar vein to the fasting book, I read it purely because I like the author and how he presents himself on twitter.
One of the things the fasting book made me think about was that I wasn’t measuring some of the signals from my body, like Blood Glucose levels, Insulin levels etc, which are supposed to be fundamentally changing while we fast.
On the flip side, I’ve been measuring several aspects of my fitness regimen in detail, which is where this book comes in.
Its hard to categorise this book because its
self-published
informal
has rants in places
is mostly self-contained essays
deeply subjective
Yet, I liked it because it applies the via negativa approach to most issues.
This is a book about cutting out things with regards to health and fitness in your life that are borderline poisonous, a lot of it is lifestyle.
It also suggests some benchmarks to help you understand not just how fit you are, but, also how fit you will be in the future.
This book is not for everyone, but, check the author out on twitter, if you like his style there, you’ll probably like the book.
Silas Marner - George Eliot
I actually finished reading this around the time I published my last update. I picked this up at an old book sale late last year and didn’t get around to reading it until now.
I hadn’t read any books by George Eliot prior to this, nor had I read too many books set in rural Northern England in the 19th Century. So, overall, great pick.
It didn’t disappoint, the writing felt reasonably modern, although there was some slang that I had to look up in places.
The narration is rich is detail while remaining simple. Almost felt like I was reading a play.
I don’t want to get into plot here, its a short book, worth discovering on your own. In short, it’s about a life of a character filled with misfortune and his redemption.
I think I need to read some humorous books next.
Currently Reading
Is that a Fish in your Ear ? - David Bellos
Cancer Ward - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Green Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Quo Vadis - Henryk Sienkiewicz
If you have any recommendations or comments leave them below.
Do consider subscribing if you’d like to receive future posts in your mail.
Also I’m reasonably active on goodreads if that’s of interest to you.
Thank you for reading
Sainath