40 Days to Personal Revolution [Paperback]

Baron Baptiste (Author)

Book Description

Release date: October 12, 2004

Let the Revolution Begin Now

In 40 Days to Personal Revolution, Baron Baptiste -- one of the world's most beloved master yoga teachers -- inspires us to transform more than body and mind: He gives us the tools we need to set ourselves free to live the healthful life we've always imagined. In the next 40 days you will create a whole new way of being and living. Tapping ancient wisdom and his own personal experience, Baron has created a relevant and completely practical program that will lead you to the clarity of mind, body, and spirit that awaits on the other side of your revolution. Each week includes:

• A yoga practice to do every morning
• Principles to cleanse your diet along with eating plan
• Instructions to begin and deepen a meditation practice
• Excavation questions to root out limiting beliefs and patterns

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Those familiar with yoga teacher Baron Baptiste know that he trains many high-profile celebrities and athletes. Yet his message is the antithesis of the American obsession with wealth and fame. For Baptiste, personal transformation is about facing the abyss of our internal emptiness and recognizing all the ways we seek to fill the void with money, status and material possessions. Ultimately, this program offers readers a kick-butt chance to get started on a steadier and more lasting, internal form of fulfillment. "In the end yoga is not a magic cure-all, but the way challenges our bodies moves our stuck energy, clears our mind, and inspires us to seek and live in truth can be a catalyst for amazing spiritual growth," he writes. "Ultimately the yoga program found in the book is about developing a soulful perspective to the question that I hear nearly every day in my classroom: 'How did I get into this state, and how can I get out?'"

Baptiste divides his program into a six-week system. Each week focuses on a theme for transformation. For instance, Week One starts with the theme of "Presence." Baptiste suggests readers start with a daily 20-minute yoga practice. (His asanas are all gentle, but the mechanics may be challenging for readers completely new to yoga, although the pictures and lengthy captions will help.) He also suggests a beginning "balancing diet" (based on Ayurveda principles), and thematic meditations, which include a list of "excavation questions." One could argue that this book is even better than going on a 40-day retreat at one of Baptiste's yoga centers. The program is designed to be integrated into your life as you live it. Readers do the yoga and prepare the food in their homes, and contemplate the principles for enlightenment within the routines of daily life. In this way it has the potential to be a lasting and well integrated transformation. --Gail Hudson --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Beryl Bender Birch Author of Power Yoga Baron's 40-day plan offers a friendly and genuine springboard into personal revolution of body and mind, showing us how to build strength, motivation, and discipline one day at a time. He connects how we practice and what we eat with how we feel -- whether we're working, socializing, meditating, or playing with the kids and dogs. Just take the plunge!

Sharon Gannon Author of Jivamukti Yoga The Bhagavad Gita tells us, in chapter six, that one of the best births, though difficult to attain, is to be reborn into a family of yogis. Baron has accomplished this difficult feat, and his reflections are worth listening to.

Gary Kraftsow Author of Yoga for Wellness and Yoga for Transformation Baron creatively blends wisdom from great masters of Western spirituality with Yogic insights into the process of transformation. The result is a refreshingly simple, yet surprisingly profound manual for personal transformation. What remains is for the reader to actualize the processes he offers, and experience the Revolution.

Rodney Yee Author of Yoga: The Poetry of the Body In 40 Days to Personal Revolution, Baron takes off into newfound freedom and inspiration. He shares his formulas with all of us so directly and selflessly. Let his book take you deep into the wisdom of yourself to liberate your true nature.

Ana T. Forrest Founder of Forrest Yoga and owner of the Forrest Yoga Circle in Santa Monica Baron's fresh and synergistic approach to yoga has excited and turned on many people who previously thought yoga had nothing to offer them. He has contributed greatly to spreading the benefits of yoga in the United States.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Touchstone; Reprint edition (October 12, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743227832
• ISBN-13: 978-0743227834
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.5 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #24,920 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

BARON BAPTISTE is the son of two of America's yoga pioneers. He began to seriously study yoga at age twelve and trained extensively in all the major traditions before creating Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga in the mid-nineties. Baptiste has trained both celebrities and athletes, including Helen Hunt, Randall Cunningham, Raquel Welch, and Elisabeth Shue, and for four years he was Peak Performance Specialist for the Philadelphia Eagles. He divides his time between his yoga studio in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Sundance, Utah.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

71 of 72 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT SUPPLEMENT TO "JOURNEY INTO POWER" April 20, 2005

By CPTScott

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

If you found "Journey Into Power" (Baron's first book), to be a life changing book (I also have it on CD and listen to it all the time for inspiration), Baron has produced another excellent guide along the path of his approach to yoga.

While I must admit that I haven't followed the plan on a week by week basis, I have already been doing yoga daily for 8 years and have a very well established practice which I vary daily (I have over 70 videos of every imaginable style of yoga).

A big part of the reason that I purchased this book is because I was curious to see how he broke the sequences down for the various weeks. I like the way he lays out the routines in the series of photographs in the back section of the book, very useful!

The excavation questions in the meditation sections are useful as well as the principles he outlines in the first part of the book. The last section is also very useful in terms of applying yoga to one's whole life and not just what happens on the mat.

I did find Baron's nutritional principles ("The Cleansing Diet" and "The Detoxifying Cleanse") a bit easier to follow in "Journey Into Power", but there was still much interesting "food for thought" in this new book :) Baron's approach to eating is not a "diet" in the way the word is typically used, it's just really an approach to eating vital, living and unprocessed foods along with the psychology behind your relationship to food.

As far as practicing Yoga, in general I feel it's much easier to work with his Video/DVD programs than any book, even those as excellent as Baron's. His video/dvd programs are the best I've seen if you want a real "physical" yet sensible practice. For me the information on the poses in the books are excellent for getting detailed information on the specific elements of the poses which can be hard to get and absorb in the flow of a class (be it live or recorded).

In particular I'd recommend his "Live" programs, such as "Core Power" and "Unlocking Athletic Power" which are shorter practices. Plus "Soul Of Strength" which is a longer program (and it follows the "Journey Into Power" sequence almost exactly, just a few differences.

His PBS special which you can buy called "Transform Your Life" is a documentary of sorts which shows 40 students on one of Baron's weeklong "Bootcamps" and it is very inspirational, it also has a fabulous 20 minute Power Yoga Basics routine which is worth the price of the tape alone, I use it all the time for a short but effective practice.

Also, you may want to check out Baron's "Bootcamp Box" which has two CD's (not DVD's, but the CD's are VERY easy to follow) and flash cards which contain three 20 minute practices (Vinayas Flow/Hip Flow/Core Flow) and a long 75 minute practice. It also has a small booklet that helps you structure a home "Bootcamp" weekend practice.

Since writing this review I have purchased and used his "Journey Into Power" Video/DVD programs and they are excellent. The level one is a wonderful introduction to Baron's approach, it certainly seems that it would be challenging for someone new to vinyasa flow, and even for an experienced person it is a nice shorter and less intense practice than the level 2 which is considerably more intense. The level 2 program follows the sequence of Baron's book "Journey Into Power" quite closely (though it is very close to "Soul Of Strength" so if you have that you may not need "Journey Into Power" Level 2)
Namaste

37 of 42 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Good concept, nice thoughts, mediocre execution January 26, 2004

By Phil

Format:Hardcover

The concept of having one book that covers spiritual philosphy, detailed yoga sessions, meditation practices and alternative diet theory is a noble goal. It is difficult to execute that goal though, especially in an easy-to-read format like Baptiste tries. This book may be useful for those already with some experience in yoga, and spiritual quests, but may be disjointed for beginers.

The first part of the book lays out 12 good spiritual "laws" and is a great mixture of Eastern and Western spiritual guidelines, quoting Jesus, Buddha, Ghandi, and others. This is worthwhile reading, and may touch on a foundation for spirituality that will resonate with many Weterners. Very Intriguing, I wish there was more here.

The Yoga Vinyasas are much more difficult to follow, with over 30 pages of writing and photos showing the first 20 minute session alone. Yoga appears to be Baptiste's primary fame to date, and where most of the pages of the book focus. Video may be a better format to get Yoga across. I run one of Rodney Yee's videos (albeit with a different sequence of Vinyasas) and use Baptiste's photos and description to give me details if I don't know a pose.

The diet sections are confusing, I saw Baptiste in a lecture and I'm not sure he even understands what is written here ( was there a ghost writer helping?) Still, their focus on balance in a diet, and balance from many viewpoints (including building vs cleansing, cooling vs heating foods)is good.

The meditation emphases and "Excavation questions" are good also.

Can one have a personal revolution in 40 days with this book? The book is too new to know so stay tuned. From what I see, there needs to be significant supplements as far as reading and instruction for this to be the main catalyst for such a revolution.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Great book for specific audiences, some shortcomings for others December 17, 2006

By Patrick D. Goonan

Format:Paperback

I have to admit I have an ambiguous relationship to this book. I admire the author's credentials and experience and the contents are organized around a 40 day plan which is a great idea. However, I think there are some important gaps if this is your only reference.

First, the best part about this book is progressing and deepening your commitment a day at a time. This is a great way to change your life and the ideas presented are useful and cover physical, mental and spiritual practices. The book is also well-illustrated and provides basic instruction on the most important asanas.

What I feel is missing here is more depth on the appropriate and safe ways to practice the asanas. If one is attending regular yoga classes or has a teacher, then I think the instructions are adequate. However, I think it's particulary important for beginners to focus on the details and if you purchase this book I would get something to supplement it such as Judith Lasater's "The 30 Essential Yoga Poses" and/or "Dancing the Body of Light" by Dona Holleman. If you have a bad back or neck, then it might also be worth purchasing "Back Care Basics" by Mary Pullig Schatz. (The Pilates back book might also be helpful, but it is not as comprehensive and it's not a yoga book per se.)

Some other aspects of this book that I like is the broad scope that covers philosophy, diet, meditation and routines that build up over time. It also talks about dealing with resistance and has a very motivational tone. While this approach may be a bit aggressive for non-athletes or people who are casually acquainted with yoga, the challenge will appeal to more serious students and atheletes who want to move forward quickly and are already in relatively good shape. These people are also less likely to get injured along the way.

In truth, I would rate the book a 3.5. However, there is no 3.5 category. While there are many things I like here, I don't see it as a standalone book. The most interesting thing about it for me was the attempt to integrate lots of elements into a way of life. However, I think there wasn't enough space to completely tackle this task. The effort to do this is admirable and there is certainly a lot one can learn, but please pick up one or more of the other books above before you starting combining bending and twisting or other physical moves that put high strain on fragile joints as well as the back.