Working Out, Working Within: The Tao of Inner Fitness Through Sports and Exercise

Although the book Working Out, Working Within: The Tao of Inner Fitness Through Sports and Exercise by authors Jerry Lynch and Chungliang Al Huang is centered in principles aimed for the athlete, it is a book that helps one navigate not only athletics, but is an essential playbook in the game of life. In it, they define their formula for a successful life. And, trust me on this one, it's not what you may think. To begin The Way then, it is important to first define what authors Lynch and Al Huang describe as the "physical life." According to them: The physical life is "a sacred path of self-discovery and meditative time to be with yourself." If this sounds like the path you'd like to take - read on! The Tao teaches us that in many cases to "lose" or to be unsuccessful in any "wordly" endeavor is to make strides ahead. According to Taoists - to detach from outcomes and results is the most important thing one can do in this lifetime. To them, success means we must meditate on our insecurities in effort to find inner peace and then - as authors Lynch and Al Huang say: "learn to yield, flow and blend with external forces through non-resistance." Perhaps I'm mistaken, but the most difficult task for us mere mortals, is learning humility by letting go of the ego associated with "worldly" progress. How to have external victory in the Taoist sense? In effort to have "inner success" which is the ultimate Taoist quest, is to remember that there is less need for external victory. They believe, when we let go of our own need to win, there is less tension, less anxiety and stress and with a reduction of these pressures we can then achieve the best external result. I tend to agree with them. Here's why summarized in one of my favorite quotes from the book: "Success in this life therefore is the luminous reflection of all inner victories you experience... through physical activity it is coming to terms with your inner most self and how it impacts your entire world as you feel it deep within your soul." In this author's opinion, we could all do worse than to view our "physical path" from a broader scope. Yes, I do believe most humans need a reminder that the true challenge is to work "within," and we could all benefit by doing so. Moreover, Taoists believe, the rewards we experience as a result of our physical life are meant to be personal and private - they are a mere by-products of the greater challenge: to live authentically. When I fall off my path of spiritual thinking and Taoist action (which I do on a daily basis, I promise you), I continue to revisit The Tao of Inner Fitness. In conclusion, I share with you this quote that has remained faithfully beside me since it's first reading: "Playing like a winner regardless of outcome is a sure path to winning for a lifetime."

This books is truly outstanding. What it does is to tie sports and excercise into what matters in life: transcending limits, continually growing, becoming everything that you can be, and enjoying the process. The authors argue that you can use your workouts as a means to personal growth and transcendence and that that newfound spiritual power will transfer over into other areas of your life as well. I heartily agree! The book is about the mind in sports and is applicable to everything in life. It talks about dealing with fear, being compassionate in your "self talk", and the power of beliefs and self concept. The most pervasive concept, however, is the instruction to focus on the process rather than the outcome. The authors continually harp on being in the moment, giving one's best, dealing with inner demons, and just letting the results take care of themselves. What makes you a winner is not the outcome but the effort, perseverance and fortitude that you bring. This is a book that brings together fitness and excercise with philosophy and personal growth. A great achievement!...

Great book. I highly recomend it