Toughness Training for Life: A Revolutionary Program for Maximizing Health, Happiness and Productivity [Paperback]

James E. Loehr (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1994

Jim Loehr, a renowned sports psychologist and trainer applies his expertise from the playing field to the trials and tribulations of everyday life. Drawing on years of research and experience, Loehr provides a step-by-step approach that combines mental and physical conditioning with the latest scientific advances in nutrition to create a mind-body synergy that reinforces the immune system, builds energy levels, and toughens you up all-around.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Drawing upon 16 years of research and clinical experience, noted sports psychologist Loehr presents a comprehensive training program to convert stress into emotional, mental, and physical toughness. Such toughness is needed to achieve maximum productivity, health, and happiness in life, he claims. According to Loehr, the model in this program is a "quantum leap" beyond that detailed in his previous work, Mental Toughness Training for Sports ( LJ 8/86). Here, he adapts and expands his former model to treat topics such as toughness training for kids, women, the military, and recovering from rough times. Particularly interesting are chapters on the chemistry of toughness and strengthening the immune system. Aided by numerous charts, case studies, exercises, and a glossary, Loehr combines research with readable prose to provide superior stress management advice. Recommended for general psychology collections in public and academic libraries. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 4/1/93.
- Carol R. Nelson, Ball St. Univ. Lib., Muncie, Ind.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 308 pages
• Publisher: Plume (October 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452272432
• ISBN-13: 978-0452272439
• Product Dimensions: 5.7 x 0.7 x 8.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #127,750 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Jim Loehr has worked with hundreds of world-class performers from the arenas of business, sport, medicine, and law enforcement including Fortune 100 executives, FBI Hostage Rescue Teams, and Army Special Forces. He is the author or coauthor of several books on mental and physical training for peak performance, including "The Power of Full Engagement," "The Power of Story," "Stress for Success," and "Mentally Tough: The Principles of Winning at Sports Applied to Winning in Business." He is co-founder of the Human Performance Institute with Dr. Jack Groeppel.

Jim Loehr is also well known for his individual work with top-flight athletes and Olympians. A sampling of his elite clients from the world of sport include: golfers Mark O'Meara and Justin Rose; tennis players Jim Courier, Monica Seles, and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario; boxer Ray Mancini; hockey players Eric Lindros and Mike Richter; and Olympic gold medal speed skater Dan Jansen.

Dr. Loehr has a masters and doctorate in psychology, serves on several scientific boards, and is a full member of the American Psychological Association, the American College of Sports Medicine, the National Strength and Conditioning Association, and the Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bible of Balance, November 23, 1999

By 

Colin Jensen "http://www.colinandbethany.com/... (Marin County, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Toughness Training for Life: A Revolutionary Program for Maximizing Health, Happiness and Productivity (Paperback)

We are taught through life that "we are strengthened by trials." That is not true. We don't grow stronger by adversity. We are made stronger through _healing_ from trials. The same applies to Nietzsche's popular sport/war chant "that which does not kill us makes us stronger." Anyone who has seen a homeless Vietnam Veteran knows that Nietzsche was wrong. "That which does not kill us, which we heal from, makes us stronger" is perhaps a better saying. WWII did not make us stronger. It made us dead, or at best, bitter. Yet a few were able to be strengthened by the combined process. What separated those few? What kept them alive, submissive to their captors, and able to transcend their adversity and use it to their advantage? This is the subject of Loehr's book.

How do we balance our stress and recovery cycles so that we maximize our growth potential?

This is one of my favorite books, because I, like everyone, am constantly seeking order and battling frustration...

He has other books along these lines, but this is the newest and most comprehensive.

--Colin Jensen

36 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A lot of theory, few specific tools, October 12, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Toughness Training for Life: A Revolutionary Program for Maximizing Health, Happiness and Productivity (Paperback)

I picked this book up after reading an article about Loehr's program in Outside Magazine. Unfortunately, the article had more specific, day-to-day advice than this book does. Loehr's ideas are very interesting and ring true, but he spends a great deal of time justifying his theory and reviewing brain biochemistry and physiology experiments. Then he throws in some case studies and some vague recommendations - eat multiple small meals a day, target your heart rate during exercise, reframe your inner dialogue, etc. Based on the magazine article, I was expecting a program to help you identify your weaknesses when it comes to implementing these changes and structure a program around that. I was expecting a realistic look at why people fail to become tough and how to work around it. The book starts to do that, but never really follows through with specifics.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A training program to make the most of your life, March 1, 2011

By 

Susan Jones (Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Toughness Training for Life: A Revolutionary Program for Maximizing Health, Happiness and Productivity (Paperback)

I have read a lot of book - and this is one of the most helpful. It starts with the premise that to get stronger we need to balance stress/work and rest/recovery in our lives. Loehr looks at the theory of why this is so and also gives practical tips on how to implement it in your life. The ideas are not complex and are easy to implement, but are revolutionary. I have become fitter, have more physical energy and have taken leaps in my career by being mentally tougher since reading this book. I see it as a training program for life. My husband and I have been recommending it to everyone. To be honest, it's not the best written book I have ever read, but the content more than makes up for it.