This is not a book that you can finish in a day or two as there are written exercises etc that you need to do. Skip advises you to read it twice and dip in and out of it as you please or fast forward to whatever sections are relevant to you at the time. He also asks us to revisit in a a few months time after we have put some or all of the Secrets into practice. I really enjoyed the "Nourish" section which focuses on nutrition and learnt a lot from it.

I really enjoyed this.

I loved this book. Admittedly I have only read it once so far but it is a book that needs revisiting and absorbing. I would definitely by a paper copy because I think I could do it justice with the number of sticky notelets I'd attach to pages with information that inspires me. I'm approaching 50 and it's at this time of life that I've suddenly realised I won't be here forever and it's time to really make the most of my time. This book has helped immensely to achieve that. With thanks to Netgalley and publisher for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review. I am adding a paper copy to my Christmas wishlist!

Book: “Living Forever Young: The 10 Secrets to Optimal Strength, Energy and Vitality” by Skip Archimedes, Watkins Publishing, 256 pages.

Book Review by Mary Mikawoz

Right away when you learn about the author Skip, you have to be amazed. He was a gymnast but had an accident and broke his back. He was told by doctors and specialists that he would never walk again. Within 18 months, he was back on his feet and winning a championship, the English Sports Acrobatics Championship. He has helped change many people including his mother who walks her dog and swims a 100 lengths every day. What is also very important to note is that the forward was written by David “Avocado” Wolfe who is well known in the natural health industry.

The ten main chapters of the book are: Breathe, Move, Nourish, Rest, Love, Shine, Believe, Learn, Commit and Live. This book is not an exercise or nutrition book but more of a life-enhancement book. It is important to have an alkaline body – not one based on acid.

With the first element breathing, it is important to breathe deeply with the exhale longer than the inhale. Interestingly, breathing deals with 70% of toxins. Breathing during exercise or while outdoors is important. Try to exercise for 30 to 45 minutes of good breathing. The second element, movement is important to your body and Skip offers up his Mom as an example. At 69, she had physical troubles, then she went on one of Skip's retreat and lost 28 pounds and soon afterwards took up swimming and walking her new dog. At 74, she is in great shape and is active. Try aerobic, anaerobic exercise and yoga. The important thing to do is to find an activity that you enjoy.

Did you know that jogging, skipping, circuit training and rebounding can stimulate bone growth and reduce the risk of osteoporosis, especially in women?

With nourishment, the third element, it is important to drink 2 litres of water a day. Skip is a vegan but indicates this is an individual choice. He does suggest a plant-based diet is best. Skip suggest juicing and making smoothies from scratch so that you know what goes in them. He has a number of Morning Green Juices to start his day before breakfast. Superfoods such as wheatgrass, barley, chlorella, spirulina, hemp protein, chia, and cacao add to your smoothies and boosts your nutritional intake. Eating a raw salad helps too. Fruits and vegetables are alkaline foods which are good for dealing with you pH levels. If you are going vegetarian, there should be enough protein in a diet filled with fruit, vegetables, nuts, beans, pulses, seeds and grains.

The fourth element is rest or regularly scheduled sleep which is important to the body. A change is as good as a rest such as a change in routine or small vacation. A meditation or guided visualization is a good option for changing a mood.

Love is the fifth element. As Lucille Ball said “Love yourself first and everything falls in place.” It is important to love yourself first and foremost before loving others. Esther Hicks says that what you give out is what comes back to you whether it is negative or positive energy. Consider also how love will imprint your DNA to affect future generations in your family.

The sixth element is sunshine both in terms of vitamin D requirements and also a metaphor for your internal sunshine – of light emanating from inside of you out. There is, after all, no life without sunlight. You should be exposing 40% of your skin 20 minutes daily. Rats had more serotonin when exposed to more natural sunlight which deals with depression.

The seventh element is believe so that you can live an authentic, valuable and rewarding life. It is important to find your purpose and passion and combine the two if possible. For this to happen, you need self-belief and a lack of doubt. As Confucius said, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”

The eighth element is to learn that stimulating your mind is also nourishing your body. Likewise in a similar fashion, Plato emphasized exercises as being important for the mind.

The ninth element is commitment and being able to visualize the end goal that you desire. It is your beliefs, passions and purpose that define who you are. It is important to have thankfulness and a positive attitude in reaching one's goals.

The final and tenth element is to live. You have your inner world of body and mind and now you need to deal with the outer environment that you physically live in. Your spirit is vitally important. For internally, you should do a detoxification, such as a 3 day juice fast of fruits and vegetables (5 pints or 2.5 litres). Failures are only lessons so continue on your way with trying everything from A to Z.

These in a nut shell are the ten elements to a successful life. This was a good read and I recommend it to be people would like to be encouraged.

Tags: Breathe, Move, Nourish, Rest, Love, Shine, Believe, Learn, Commit and Live, Self-help improvement book, broken back, mother, gymnastics, champion, fast, detoxification

"Because no matter how you are challenged - or how tired, unwell or lacking in energy you feel right now - you can rise up higher and stronger than before. And Im going to give you the secrets as to how."

This is the premise of this life-enhancement book. It is about transforming your life in 10 key ways focusing on:
Breathe/Move/Nourish/Rest/Love/Shine/Believe/Learn/Commit/Live.

I was really inspired by this book. First of all, Skip Archimedes, the author, has an unbelievable life story. He has overcome some pretty serious health challenges with strength and courage. He makes you think that if he could overcome these kind of challenges, you could certainly overcome much simpler ones!

I enjoyed that it is a practical book. You can read it one time to get the general idea on how to live a vibrant and full life and then you can read it a second time, more thoroughly, and do the exercises that it has at the end of each chapter so as to score yourself on the 10 areas of personal growth. Also, at the end of each chapter, there is a list of living forever young top 10 takeaways which serves as a synopsis of each chapter.

My favourite chapter was the "Love" one especially where the author focuses on Self-love.

On a more personal note, I adored the passages where he talks with so much love on his relationship with his mother. As a mother of three sons, I hope one day that my sons will talk so warmly about me too! :)

The author took ten tips for living a long happy life and expanded upon them to ensure the reader understood the impact following the steps could have on their life. His tips seemed like obvious and easy to follow advice, but unless you read this slowly and absorb the information presented, you will not benefit. I love that there were written exercises to do. This book really made me reflect on decisions I have been making with my physical and emotional health.

I learnt a lot from this book.. This book was my first encounter with Skip Archimedes.. Skip introduces us to the ten secrets of living a happy long life. Even though they seem simple enough and we all think we know the basics, when the author expands on these, it brought me to further realisation particularly into diet and breathing. Firstly we are introduced to the ten secrets and the author then expands on each point. I think that if we put these ten rules (or at least some of them into practice), we will live a full, healthy happy life as well as having a healthy mind and body.

This is not a book that you can finish in a day or two as there are written exercises etc that you need to do. Skip advises you to read it twice and dip in and out of it as you please or fast forward to whatever sections are relevant to you at the time. He also asks us to revisit in a a few months time after we have put some or all of the Secrets into ptactice. I really enjoyed the "Nourish" section which focuses on nutrition and learnt a lot from it.

I really enjoyed this. Thanks NetGalley, Watkins Publishing and the author for allowing me to read in exchange for an honest review.