Meditations aim to integrate mind and body

LAURA AXELROD
News staff writer

While running for your health, are you letting your mind wander?

"Running Home" by Toby Estler contains 35 meditations aimed at integrating exercise with positive thinking and spiritual health.

Each multi-page meditation focuses on a quality, such as loving, patience or gratitude. Quotes are followed by a discussion, often laced with wisdom from Estler's own life. The meditation ends with an affirmation to remember throughout the workout.

In writing this book, Estler states that he would like to help runners bring the joy from their workouts into their daily lives, because preparing the mind and soul for physical activity is just as important as warming up the body.

Estler deftly shares his life experience in an honest and grounded manner. At times, he presents his previous life choices in a less-than stellar light. Addiction and a stint in a British prison are seen as challenges, negative experiences alchemized into wisdom for the greater good.

While the book concentrates on runners, these meditations can be easily adapted to any form of exercise. Whether walking or lifting weights, the affirmations alone will change the experience of working out.

Estler's honesty and energy are contagious. While becoming healthier on the outside, why not address the rest?