Bea Reviews 52 Small Changes: One Year to a Happier, Healthier You by Brett Blumenthal

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Release Date: December 28th, 2011
Buying Links: Amazon* | Book Depository * affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

Whether as New Year’s resolutions, birthday wishes, or daily promises, most everyone vows at some point to make a major life change. But change is easier said than done, especially when it comes to better managing our wellness amidst the chaos of everyday living. Fortunately, wellness coach and award-winning writer Brett Blumenthal has devised a way to inspire and motivate her readers to live healthier and make positive changes in their lives. Although Blumenthal’s method is not a quick fix, it is a surprisingly simple one: make one small change per week, for fifty-two weeks, and at the end of a year, you’ll be happier and healthier. After all, it is the small changes that are the most realistic, instead of trying to overhaul your lifestyle all at once. 52 Small Changes addresses all areas of wellbeing, including nutrition, exercise, stress management, mental wellness, and even the health of one’s home environment. By guiding readers through these changes at an easy, manageable pace, Blumenthal provides an engaging roadmap to lasting results and “a happier, healthier you.”

My Thoughts:

I borrowed this from Kindle Unlimited back in January; new year, new resolutions, all that. I started out reading it  one chapter a week. As the book and plan are designed so you make one change per week, that seemed to make sense. Especially since KU doesn't limit how long you can borrow a book. After a few weeks, I put the book down for a couple of months.

For a start, the title and the blurb are a bit misleading. The changes themselves are a mix of small and major. The idea of implementing them incrementally is probably what inspired the title, and it's a good concept. But many of the actual changes are not small. Blumenthal advocates, among other things, for major dietary changes, and lifestyles changes. For some of the changes a week is not actually long enough but the set up of the book allows for tweaking. I put the book down because some of his suggestions were infuriating.

I strongly disagree with the author's suggestion of buying a dog for the purpose of taking daily walks. You buy a dog because you want one and you are prepared to invest time, emotions, and money in that animal. There's more to owning and caring for a dog than daily walks but he makes no acknowledgement of that, just blithely says "Get a dog". In fact, my main problem with this book is Blumenthal's attitude. He's entitled, judgemental, and pompous. His attitude is a mix of arrogant, pretentious, and helpful. This guy is writing from such a place of privilege and entitlement that chunks of his advice are useless.

For example, there's an entire chapter on the benefits of eating fish and seafood but no acknowledgement that some people are allergic. He does condescend to offer alternatives for people who find it "challenging" to add fish to their diet, but fails to acknowledge there could be medical reasons for not eating fish or other seafood. In fact, all throughout this book he fails, most of the time, to acknowledge little details such as medical issues, religious beliefs (though he does advocate in one chapter for having spirituality), or personal beliefs. His ideas are the right way to live so you should do it, according to him. He does back up the majority of his claims with research, which I did appreciate. It was his holier than thou attitude I had problems with.

To be fair, some of his suggestions are practical and easily done at home. The book offers nothing radical or even new but it's (mostly) useful information collected all in one place for your convenience. Blumenthal gives examples, cites sources, and offers, at times, practical suggestions for incorporating these changes into your life. There's an extensive bibliography and some chapters have charts or illustrations. In fact, I liked the section where he went into depth on stretches for your body before exercising. There were illustrations for each stretch and clear directions to make incorporating them into your routine easier. The weekly changes are laid in a sensible progression and each chapter has a basic goal and an extender goal. The writing is clear, occasionally dry, but easy to read.

The book's not a bad how-to for making some positive changes to life or your health. You just have to ignore his attitude, and pick out the wheat from the chaff. Also, the book is old enough now (nine years), that verifying any health recommendations against current health advice would be a good idea.