Stretch: The Unlikely Making of a Yoga Dude

Stretch: The Unlikely Making of a Yoga Dude Review

Allow me to start off by saying that I'm one of the (apparently few) 40-year-old women on Earth who could not get through "Eat Pray Love." I've only realy done anything resembling Yoga on the Wii Fit. If anybody else had written this book, I doubt I'd read it... but Neal Pollack is painfully honest about his journey into yoga, and though he is trying to find his best self, he never loses his bite. I'd recommend this book to anyone who thinks that yoga is delegated either to wealthy soccer moms or that patchouli-smelling barefoot guy who had a vitamin store in the 70s. And to anyone who has reached, gone through, or even thought about having any kind of personal identity crisis.

In "Stretch," Pollack embarks on an early-midlife crisis after a literary reviewer makes a crass comment about his appearance. He doesn't have a "lighting bolt" turnaround; none of what he's going through is easy (emotionally or physically), but he's also upfront about the fact that his suffering is on a relative scale.

This is not a book about how someone overcame a great outside obstacle (traumatic disability, violence, force of nature), but how he took on a very personal crisis. I love that Pollack is so honest about how some teachers and methods really appealed to him, and some did not -- and that he was brave enough to try a little bit of everything he could to develop his own approaches. He reveals throughout the book how his wife both supported his search and sometimes was the voice of reason for him. And I think that the fact that he did go on this personal journey will make him a better teacher, because in sharing his own trials and tribulations, he will be more able to relate to those of others.

Witty, touching, and very down-to-earth for a book that's really about a spiritual journey, "Stretch" won't force you into studying yoga, but don't be surprised if you start downloading Michael Franti and standing a little taller after reading it.

Stretch: The Unlikely Making of a Yoga Dude Feature

• ISBN13: 9780061727696
• Condition: New
• Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

Stretch: The Unlikely Making of a Yoga Dude Overview

The hilarious true account of an overweight, balding, skeptical guy's unexpected transformation into a healthy, blissful yoga fiend.

Neal Pollack was out of shape. The hair on his head was thinning and the hair on his face was pretentious—traits a New York Times critic gleefully pointed out while panning his second book. Combined with the predestined failure of his punk rock band, it was almost too much for Pollack to bear. He was willing to try anything to get his life back on track . . . even yoga.

While struggling to master difficult poses without kicking other yogis in the face, Pollack actually, remarkably, began to feel better, both in body and mind. Soon he found himself immersed in the "weird and circuslike" world of yoga. He participated in a 24-hour yogathon, attended yoga conferences and Asian retreats, went to yoga rock shows, started getting regular assignments for Yoga Journal magazine, and, finally, began teaching yoga classes himself.

Stretch mercilessly lampoons the bizarre, omnipresent culture of yoga, but it's also a story of profound personal transformation. Pollack started off mocking yoga. Now he's become one of its most enthusiastic proponents.

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