The Shaolin Workout: 28 Days to Transforming Your Body, Mind and Spirit with Kung Fu Paperback – Import, January 1, 2006

I've received some great gifts in my life, but looking back on them, few surpass the gift of knowledge.And most of the knowledge I've acquired has come from books.Some of these books inspired me to dream; to imagine no longer living poor.Some helped me build a business; to avoid the mistakes of other entrepreneurs.Some gave me confidence; to believe in myself and what I've learned.But the greatest book I've ever received (after the Bible, which you already know about) is this book.DON'T STOP READING if you're over forty or if you don't care about martial arts. (Oh, I barely caught you, didn't I? You were about to leave the page.)The older you are, the more this book is for you.And if you don't care about self-defense or martial arts, this book is for you.This book -- when I follow its daily exercises -- gives me peace, makes me feel handsome, and removes all the cares from my life. It's taught me incredible stretches, unbelievable exercises (don't worry, it starts off slow), and indescribable teachings. (It's very much like yoga, but better in my opinion.)It has fundamentally improved my health, my posture, my attitude.As I walked my dog recently, living in the moment and enjoying heaven on earth, I realized I must share this book with everyone I can. To not do so would be a sin. It would be nothing short of theft.And as I felt inspired to share my thoughts on this amazing gift, I wondered: How do you describe such a book?How do you describe a book that years ago (when I first bought it) made me feel completely at peace when just minutes before I'd been worrying about my lack of health insurance and the struggling company that I had founded, which could barely pay me $20,000 a year and still had nearly $100,000 in debt?How can a book with just a few stretches, exercises, and teachings bring true happiness? How can such a book almost instantly lift your mood and make you ecstatic to be alive? How can it do this when minutes before you were seconds away from giving up, crying, or wanting to end your life?How can it take you from no hope to hope in just minutes?And what would such a book be worth? My first thought as I walked my dog in complete bliss -- living fully in the moment, as the book teaches -- was that such a book would be worth at least $500.I've spent $500 to travel far away and gaze at the ocean while waves lapped my feet and gulls glided by me. I've experienced that heaven on earth and it was worth every penny of that $500.But, I had never experienced this heaven on earth while sitting alone in a bland room, surrounded by stress, to-do projects, and intense feelings of deep depression.So, what's a book worth that gives you that feeling of deep peace and happiness any time you want, without having to travel or spend additional money? I can say with complete certainty that this book has given me this feeling hundreds of times, and I literally carry it in my work bag every single day -- I hate not having it by my side.What's a book worth that does this? I think without question that this book is worth $10,000.It's changed my life that much.It's made me happier, healthier, improved my posture, and allowed me to catch glimpses of God's beauty that I'd never seen before (by teaching me to live in the moment, not the past or fears of the future). It's helped me deal with angry customers and bad employees and "impossible" situations -- all with a smile on my face and laughter in my heart.Furthermore, the book has the best abs/core exercises I've ever seen, and believe me -- between four years in the Marine Corps and nearly thirty years as a fitness fanatic -- I've seen them all. Yet still, this Shaolin workout does so much for your posture and attitude that you'll feel a difference very quickly as you explore it.I've shared parts of this book with family and friends and they've all been changed. The book is that deep, and that powerful. But remember, we shouldn't be surprised. The book contains 1,500 years of compiled wisdom from Shaolin Monks.These teachers have seen what bad posture does to you. How sadness and negativity can beat you down and wreck your body.They've seen how birds live their lives, gleeful and spry (ever seen a sad bird?) and they've transferred this knowledge into passed-down wisdom.The only folks who won't like this book are young. If you're under twenty, don't waste your money. You haven't experienced the hell of life. You're still rushing through it 90 mph convinced happiness awaits you at the next mile marker. You'll soon learn you're wrong, just as I did, but you're too young to listen to me, just as I once was, as well.But for everyone else, this book is over-the-top good. It will change your life, if you let it. If you simply just try its stretches and exercises, and read its teachings on philosophy/Eastern thinking at the end of each chapter, you will begin to be fundamentally changed. You will sharpen your life and launch yourself into those projects you've been putting off, and you'll do so with a smile and a light heart.And the exercises are easy enough that you can start them at any age. (That's part of what makes the book unique. It starts so easy that you won't get frustrated and quit. The first day's exercise lasts less than five minutes -- actually, it's about two minutes. Surely, you can stand up straight and stretch out your wrists and ankles for two minutes, even if you're 80, right? And ignoring the exercises and stretches, I've got to say the teachings/philosophy lessons at the end of each chapter are worth a $100 alone.)So, there you go. I've tried to explain the inexplicable. I've attempted to give you the greatest gift I've ever received.This book has taught me to slow down, live in the moment, and feel handsome and pure; like an angel on earth that God wants to wrap His arms around, instead of some worthless failure who's wrecked by the reality that I didn't measure up, who's frustrated that my body is growing weaker and softer each passing day, and that feels with a growing dread that I'm growing older and older, and that the best may be behind me.The book has reversed most of those thoughts. (Hey, I'm still a work in progress!)It's taught me to love harder and give more at work and in every thing else I do. It's taught me that life is a blessing, and that I can grow younger every day -- not older (you'll understand this admittedly crazy point once you read the book).You can mock this review. You can ignore it. Frankly, I don't blame you. And, I might have, too, if the situation were reversed.But I have attempted to hand you the greatest gift I could give you. I'm extending both my hands to you with this knowledge lying in them, like gleaming gold medicine, radiating outward from my cupped hands.The book isn't free though... It's roughly $20, depending on when you check its price.It's the cost of a night out for dinner or some silly purchase you won't remember a month later.And it's right there. In my hands. Glowing and awaiting you, battling your skeptical mind with nothing but the power of centuries worth of love and wisdom that you won't find in Western teachings. (Well, you could find some of it in the Bible, but not the way we teach it in the West, and you still wouldn't know the stretches and exercises, so do yourself the favor and buy the book. Or at a minimum get involved in Yoga, though I'd put this FAR above yoga.)If you're not convinced, I hope you'll at least go read some of the other reviews here and give it some consideration. And for those who take the plunge based on my words, I hope this book transforms and improves your life 1/1,000th as much as it has mine. And when it does, you, too, will be begging your friends to buy it, like some babbling, silly prophet. Like it's something you must share.Trust me on this.Stan R. MitchellP.S. For those who may wonder, the author's teachings do NOT interfere with Christianity. He expresses his appreciation for Christianity and all religions and even says not to change your faith.

I wanted a one stop shop for kung fu, and this is it. Wonderfully inspirational, and easy to follow, I was surprised how easily I started picking things up. Shi Yan Ming has very impressive credentials, and I see why now. He really makes the reader want to train harder, and with more chi, and in the most positive way. Since I've started doing this, I've noticed beautiful transformations in my life, as I apply ancient art & techniques into my modern living. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to advance their own personal limits, feel better about themselves overall, and improve their health. I also like to study ninjutsu, but I keep coming back to this as a source of light, & positivity. It's very easy for the beginner who's never had any martial arts training to be doing moves like Bruce Lee in no time at all, without feeling like you're learning some deadly martial art-form. Self-displine & practice is the key to quick success with this book, and I recommend it; especially if you like yoga. Women can do these techniques too very easily. We're all warriors in life, and this helps guide us on the right path. I'm glad I bought this book, so I can move at my own pace, and not be constrained by a library due date.

I love the photos in this book. They are sequential so they give a good idea of how to perform the exercises it it. It does not leave you wondering about how to do the exercises like some books I have seen that only give you one or two pictures. One needs to have a bit of flexability to do the exercises found in the workout. Sticking with it should help. I have started with some of the program and find it a good supplement to my daily Qigong routine. The background information in the book is also well written.

I've been in and out of the Martial Arts since I was six years old. Years ago I suffered a back injury which due to not being able to do anything without intense pain for years turned my abs from a six pack into a keg. I have since slowly rebuilt my back and have wanted to get back into full fighting form (the fittest I've ever been).Literally I have skill, practice and ranking in the following forms: Hoshinsol, Tai Lung Young Tao, Tae Kwan Do, Tai Chi, Drunken Monkey, Togakure Ryu amongsts others. I am no master. But for me I was competent and skilled enough to be happy in life. Right before my serious back injury at work, I started practicing some Capoeira (which fortunately for me was the only thing that stopped me from actually breaking my back). Literally I had ripped and tore every muscle from my shoulder blades down. I only refer to this to illustrate where I've been in life and the fact that rebuilding was hard, and I have looked at many various martial arts forms, instructional materials etc. to try to be a better me again.Maybe my health wasn't right at the time for the other things I've tried, but now I have this book, and with practice people have remarked that I have been getting skinnier every time they see me, and they've told me that I am looking more fit. These workouts feel wonderful. My self esteem has increased. My back is stronger. I can see my abs again. My clothes feel larger and less constricting.I have more energy throughout the day now and my old flexibility is coming back. Also to note: In one aspect I am now more flexible than I've ever been. And as the book says "Merry Christmas!" it's improved my whole mood and has raised my spirits (you should not skip the meditations in the book for they are wonderful as well).