Chapters: Books for Movember

In honor of Movember*, a time where the focus on men’s health is front and center, we asked the male experts at Canyon Ranch to share which books have made the biggest impact on their journey to wellness. Below, their recommendations for the most powerful, life-affirming tomes that shifted their minds, opened their hearts, and helped them to sustain a life of wellness.

1. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry

Author: John Mark Comer Why It Matters: “In an age where our attention now has an economy with many different things trying to vie for our time, this book breaks down the physical and spiritual practices for simplifying and avoiding hurry in our lives. This book really helped me refresh and focus my time and attention to what is meaningful and important to me.” -Sam Barthel, Performance Scientist, Canyon Ranch

2. The Power of Story: Change Your Story, Change Your Destiny in Business and in Life

Author: Jim Loehr Why It Matters: “This book helped me understand how important it is to monitor the stories we tell ourselves. The voice inside our heads is remarkably powerful and can either help us achieve the life we want or limit us. This book gave me insight on how important this voice is and how to edit it to create the life I wanted.” -Mike Siemens, Director, Performance Science, Canyon Ranch

3. Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance

Author: Alex Hutchinson Why It Matters: “Endure uncovers the science and folklore of the limits of human performance in a way that both reveals the mystery behind amazing feats and inspires the reader to take on new challenges.” -Dustin Nabhan, Vice President, Health & Performance, Canyon Ranch

4. Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age

Author: Sanja Gupta Why It Matters: “Sanjay provides a very good explanation of what dementias are, and he gives good advice on things we can easily do, lifestyle wise, to potentially decrease our risk.” -Stephen Brewer, MD, Medical Director, Canyon Ranch    

5. Stop Fixing Yourself: Wake Up, All Is Well

Author: Anthony de Mello Why It Matters: “Reading and listening to Anthony de Mello liberates my spirit. I experience him as challenging and humorous. He borrows from different wisdom traditions to share stories and offers spiritual reflections that point us back to life, reality, and our soul." -Adam Smith, Spiritual Wellness Provider, Canyon Ranch

6. Creativity: Flow and the Psychology of Discovery and Invention

Author: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi  Why It Matters: “To learn about how creativity adds to the overall wellness of individuals and society in general. This book helped me to gain perspectives that inspire more creative output in my own life.” -Dan Marko, Senior Spiritual Wellness Provider, Canyon Ranch

7. The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World’s Greatest Teams

Author: Sam Walker Why It Matters: “This book gives advice to help create new, long-lasting behaviors for health and wellness in life; it’s not just about building great teams.” -Carlos Jimenez, Director, Sports Medicine, Canyon Ranch

*Movember is an annual event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men's health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and men's suicide.