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Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art

Unabridged Audio Book

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James Nestor

7 Hours 18 Minutes

Penguin Audio

May 2020

Audio Book Summary

A New York Times Bestseller

A Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of 2020

Named a Best Book of 2020 by NPR
 
“A fascinating scientific, cultural, spiritual and evolutionary history of the way humans breathe—and how we’ve all been doing it wrong for a long, long time.” —Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Big Magic and Eat Pray Love

No matter what you eat, how much you exercise, how skinny or young or wise you are, none of it matters if you’re not breathing properly.

There is nothing more essential to our health and well-being than breathing: take air in, let it out, repeat twenty-five thousand times a day. Yet, as a species, humans have lost the ability to breathe correctly, with grave consequences.

Journalist James Nestor travels the world to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it. The answers aren’t found in pulmonology labs, as we might expect, but in the muddy digs of ancient burial sites, secret Soviet facilities, New Jersey choir schools, and the smoggy streets of São Paulo. Nestor tracks down men and women exploring the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices like Pranayama, Sudarshan Kriya, and Tummo and teams up with pulmonary tinkerers to scientifically test long-held beliefs about how we breathe.

Modern research is showing us that making even slight adjustments to the way we inhale and exhale can jump-start athletic performance; rejuvenate internal organs; halt snoring, asthma, and autoimmune disease; and even straighten scoliotic spines. None of this should be possible, and yet it is.

Drawing on thousands of years of medical texts and recent cutting-edge studies in pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry, and human physiology, Breath turns the conventional wisdom of what we thought we knew about our most basic biological function on its head. You will never breathe the same again.

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Reviews

  • Joyce H.

    This book is chock full of more things than I ever thought could be discovered about breathing. Fascinating.

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  • Anonymous

    For me, a newly discovered way of thinking an age old requirement of life. Very informative and I know it will help me have a stronger life and exercise ethic.

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  • Zachary M.

    All people should read this. Period

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  • Cait G.

    I had wanted to read this book but procrastinated thinking it would probably be dry. It was anything but. The writing is more fun than most nonfiction, and the breadth of the coverage on the topic was more than satisfying. It's one I can confidently recommend.

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  • Shar Banning

    Really helpful. About to do a sleep study and thinking about continuing yo tape to see how much it helps.

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  • Geoffrey L.

    Really good information.

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  • John H.

    This is a delightfully quirky book that will change your life...for the better. I say "quirky" because of the author's journey and narrative through the world of breath. The book is not only immensely informative but amusing and interesting. The author, James Nestor, will take you around the world and through the ages on an incredible, breathtaking journey. For these reasons, I intend to review sections to remind myself of the importance of quality breathing and its critical importance to good health.

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  • Anonymous

    Good book and really interesting findings. Love the breathing practices at the end. Book has changed my perception along with the way I breathe.

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  • Ismail F.

    It was a great book to reform our routine to have a better life. Book is full of experiences which prove the author’s theory but suspiciously none of them came out maybe part of his theory is wrong!

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  • Sbruner27

    I loved this book so much that I am probably going to listen to it again soon. I came in skeptical but curious but I quickly saw the benefits of proper breathing in my day to day life. Give it a try. You won’t be disappointed.

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