The Mindful Elite delves into the elite foundation of the mindfulness movement, showing how its leaders' choices to spread meditation through elite networks both facilitated the rapid rise of mindful meditation, and undermined meditators' intentions to transform society from the cushion.

Many mental health clinicians--even those well acquainted with mindfulness--still view physical, body-oriented techniques as outside their scope of practice. In this accessible book, clinical psychologist, exercise physiologist, and yoga and mindfulness teacher Paul Salmon gives therapists of any orientation the tools to use mindful movement with clients. Salmon shows how simple practices like breathing, walking, and yoga-like stretches can help clients center their attention in the present moment with curiosity and self-acceptance. He summarizes research on the benefits of movement for specific mental and physical health conditions and provides vivid case examples and scripts. Purchasers get access to a companion website where they can download audio recordings of 29 guided practices.

"Spirituality is in the spotlight. While levels of religious belief and observance are declining in much of the Western world, interest in spirituality is surging. This volume advances our understanding of contemporary spirituality by highlighting its profoundly social dimensions. It demonstrates how spirituality is shaped by its religious, cultural, and political contexts; how embodied and collective spiritual practices undergird spiritual life and intersect with social characteristics (e.g., race, gender, and sexuality); and how spirituality is impacted by power relations and institutional arrangements. The contributors are leading international scholars and their chapters address spirituality in a wide range of religious and global contexts"--

A lively and razor-sharp critique of mindfulness as it has been enthusiastically co-opted by corporations, public schools, and the US military. Mindfulness is now all the rage. From celebrity endorsements to monks, neuroscientists and meditation coaches rubbing shoulders with CEOs at the World Economic Forum in Davos, it is clear that mindfulness has gone mainstream. Some have even called it a revolution. But what if, instead of changing the world, mindfulness has become a banal form of capitalist spirituality that mindlessly avoids social and political transformation, reinforcing the neoliberal status quo? In McMindfulness, Ronald Purser debunks the so-called "mindfulness revolution," exposing how corporations, schools, governments and the military have co-opted it as technique for social control and self-pacification. A lively and razor-sharp critique, Purser busts the myths its salesmen rely on, challenging the narrative that stress is self-imposed and mindfulness is the cure-all. If we are to harness the truly revolutionary potential of mindfulness, we have to cast off its neoliberal shackles, liberating mindfulness for a collective awakening.

Discover how mindfulness can enhance your running and make you a happier, more fulfilled person. By applying mental fitness training to your running regime, you tap into a powerful mind-body connection that not only optimizes sporting performance, but also boosts happiness both on and off the running trails. Mindful Running brings together scientific research, expert analysis, and elite athlete contributions to reveal how relating to your mind, body, and surroundings in a new way can help you run longer and faster, as well as offer a boost to your overall mental, emotional, and physical health. Devised with both the competitive and everyday runner in mind, Mackenzie L. Havey introduces an innovative, approachable, and authoritative guide designed to increase self-awareness, develop concentration, and improve endurance. Not only does this have the potential to translate into better running, it can also play a role in training you to endure life's challenges with greater ease and find joy in all things big and small. Mindful Running is a total body and mind fitness regime.

In The Mindful Musician: Mental Skills for Peak Performance, author Vanessa Cornett offers guidelines to help musicians cultivate artistic vision, objectivity, freedom, quiet awareness, and self-compassion, both on- and offstage in order to become more resilient performers. Contrary to modern culture's embrace of busyness and divided attention, Cornett's contemplative techniques provide greater space for artistic self-expression and satisfaction. With the aid of a companion website that includes audio files and downloadable templates, The Mindful Musician provides a method to promote attentional focus, self-assessment, emotional awareness, and creativity. The first of its kind to combine mindfulness practices with research in cognitive and sport psychology, this book helps musicians explore the roots of anxiety and other challenges related to performance, all through the deliberate focus of awareness.

Discover a life of ease and joy through Body in Mind Training, a groundbreaking program focused on movement-based mindfulness Written by neuroscientist and mindfulness expert Dr. Tamara Russell, Mindfulness in Motion presents a new approach to mindfulness that is practiced not by sitting still but by engaging with the moving body. It is the only book to explain why moving meditation is the best way of ‘rewiring’ the brain, teaching it to focus on the present moment. Russell's simple exercises are designed to be accessible to everyone, including those who can’t seem to find time for practice, and those who have struggled with traditional Zen-inspired mindfulness. This book will guide you step by step through Dr. Tamara Russell’s Body in Mind Training (BMT) program, a unique approach to secular mindfulness that uses the moving body as the main meditation tool. The message is simple: getting out of your head and into your body is the key to a happier, healthier life. Chapter by chapter, the book explores the five principles of movement-based mindfulness: • Pause: In order to hear your body, you have to slow down and listen to its voice—this is the starting point for BMT mindfulness practice. • Intention: Setting your intention before you act can dramatically increase your ability to achieve what you want in life. • Attention: You can detect the mind-wandering habits that hold you back and use your attention to create more space for the things that really matter. • Understanding Me: It’s possible to tame your unruly ‘mental monkeys’ and create new neural pathways in your brain to help you to realize your full potential. • Compassion: Facing and accepting your own difficult experiences can profoundly transform your relationship with life. With easy-to-follow exercises, step-by-step photographs, clear brain diagrams, and a host of practical tips, this book offers all the tools you need to start living in your body. With a little focus, determination, and practice, you too can experience the amazing benefits of mindfulness.

Incorporating the theoretical conceptualizations of Jon Kabat-Zinn and Ellen Langer, this volume illustrates how performers from a variety of disciplines - including sport, dance and music - can use mindfulness to achieve peak performance and improve personal well-being. Leading scholars in the field present cutting-edge research and outline their unique approach to mindfulness that is supported by both theory and practice. They provide an overview of current mindfulness-based manuals and programs used around the globe in countries such as the United States, China and Australia, exploring their effectiveness across cultures. Mindfulness and Performance will be a beneficial reference for practitioners, social and sport psychologists, coaches, athletes, teachers and students.

Originally published: Carlsbad, Calif.: Hay House, 2012.

***NATIONAL BESTSELLER*** STOP FOR A MOMENT. Are you here right now? Is your focus on this page? Or is it roaming elsewhere, to the past or future, to a worry, to your to-do list, or to your phone? Whether you’re simply browsing, talking to friends, or trying to stay focused in an important meeting, you can’t seem to manage to hang on to your attention. No matter how hard you try, you’re somewhere else. The consequence is that you miss out on 50 percent of your life—including the most important moments. The good news: There’s nothing wrong with you—your brain isn’t broken. The human brain was built to be distractible. The even better news: You can train your brain to pay attention more effectively. Stay with me a little longer and soon you will be able to: Focus without all the struggle. Take back your attention from the pull of distraction. And function at your peak, for all that truly matters in your life.