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Force of Nature: Mind, Body, Soul (And, of Course, Surfing) | 
 enlarge | Author: Laird Hamilton
Publisher: Rodale Books
Category: Book
List Price: $27.95
Buy New: $16.06
You Save: $11.89 (43%)
New (27) Used (9) from $16.06
Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 1016
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 7.4 x 0.9
ISBN: 1594869421
Dewey Decimal Number: 613
EAN: 9781594869426
ASIN: 1594869421
Publication Date: October 28, 2008 (New: Last 30 Days)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand New, Perfect Condition, Please allow 4-14 business days for delivery. 100% Money Back Guarantee, Over 1,000,000 customers served.
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Product Description
Laird Hamilton has been hailed as the world's greatest big-wave surfer. His first book, Force of Nature, allows readers a rare glimpse inside the unique philosophy that has created his circumstances, and not the other way around. After all, this is a man whose biological father abandoned him shortly after he was born; whose first job was working on a pig far; who dropped out of school in eleventh grade. And then the career decision: surfer. Though earning enough to pay the rent as any kind of surfer is next to impossible, Hamilton has ended up in the place we all desire to be: doing exactly what he loves, becoming the world's best in the process, making a great living, being surrounded by nature and family, radiating peak health and fitness, and succeeding by any definition of the word.How did he get there? And more importantly, how can the rest of us join him?Force of Nature is a detailed map to that destination, with Laird Hamilton as the reader's guide. It's not about chasing trophies or accolades or cash. It's about quality over quantitysoul and being true to your physical, mental, and spiritual roots. Not only is it possible to thrive in the modern world without adopting its harmful habits, it's essential. And not only has Hamilton mastered this balance, he makes a compelling and articulate case that anyone who wants to can do the same.This book is a deeply authoritative and cutting-edge guide to peak fitness in mind, body, sould, and surfing. It comes directly from the source and his inner circle, which includes those at the vanguard of sports, training, nutrition, and more. Former pro volleyball player Gabrielle Reece; surf legend Dave Kalama; fitness gurus Paul Chek, T.R. Goodman, and Don Wildman; and Food Network star Giada De Laurentiis all contribute their knowledge. Readers will get an all-access pass into an elite world filled with definitive and provocative ideas.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Good but not great November 13, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I gave the book three stars because I expected a little more than a glossy coffee table book. The book has enough substance and divulges enough about Laird and his worldview that it was an average read. However, I doubt I will ever read this book again which would merit a four or five star rating but if you are a Laird fan, probably a must have for you.
 A must read for everyone who cares about their wellbeing November 12, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
And everyone should care about their wellbeing. Discard the previous review. Laird is probably the most complete athlete in the world today. Buy this book and start with implementing the training and eating program.
Laird Is the Force of Nature: Dude Get Stoked About Life and Eat Some Poi November 3, 2008
3 out of 7 found this review helpful
The first thing you need to know is that this book is published by Rodale Press: glossy photos and generic glosses on what's personal, valuable and important in life, i.e., largely standard English, bromidic writing, with a strong commercial angle in mind.
Not that Laird Hamilton doesn't manage to put his own personal stamp on the final product; no, he actually pulls it off.
The book is tweaked to speak with Laird's own experience and voice. Laird Hamilton is sui generis after all, and because of this fact, the book is as much a testament to his being a force of nature as much as it is an inspirational how-to. The world is Laird's gymnasium.
To illustrate the commercial aspect of the book, Laird writes, "There's no such thing as not enough time.... So when I hear someone say they don't have time for fitness -- I'm not buying it.... That's messed up." That's fine. This is Laird himself speaking. Then, on the last page of the book, there's a list of Resources where you can buy all the stuff Laird references throughout his talk, like the Bosu ball he uses or the muscle milk he drinks.
The second thing you need to know is there are lots of photos of Laird in the book, colored ones as well as black-and-white. In some of these, he looks gorgeous; in others, he looks downright goofy. In yet others, particularly while surfing, he looks like an indistinguishable, unrecognizeable and small figure in the ocean. Interestingly, in the Forward to the book, Laird writes that it's a big world, but we humans are not so big. Maybe inserting photos that show the surfing celebrity as a tiny dot in the ocean was part of the author's plan.
Further inside the book, there's a section on circuit training (the standard stuff) and one on the power of Yoga (the standard poses). I admit I was surprised to learn that Laird advocates Yoga, but then, in reading the book, I learned Laird is a flexible athlete, both physically and mentally.
Laird's own personal twist on all these exercises is that he does not believe in routine or doing the same exercises or circuits over and over again. He advocates changing it up in order to challenge the body regularly, and he especially wants you to pay attention to the moment as well as to the body such that in doing the circuit, for example, he wants you to exercise more than just one muscle at a time but get lots of sleep afterward. Laird likes 8 to 10 hours a night.
There's a section on raw food eating ("Don't Eat Dead Food," i.e., raw milk), including a recipe chapter with lots of color photos of food, and there's a section on the supplements Laird recommends, including the use of the dubious colloidal silver, which Laird claims to take only topically, not internally (as the quacks recommend). While Laird does recommend eating raw butter and raw milk, the recipes for salmon, for example, do involve heat and baking. It's clear that there's nothing fixed or rigid about Laird's recommendations or plan. He's clearly a self-confessed meat-eater, not a vegetarian.
There's a small section on his wife and children (3 girls), too.
The very last few sections of the book contain surfing tips with not-so-special technical knowledge offered such as "To become an advanced surfer, it's critical to know ho to use your upper body in conjunction with your lower body."
Overall, Laird Hamilton ultimately wants the reader to understand that you need to have fun with your life and stay in tune with fun. Lastly, he wants the reader to know Pe'Ahi is his girl and will always be his girl, with all due apologies to wife and daughters.
The book reveals that Laird Hamilton is a total athlete. You can read about him; you can follow his recommendations; you can be inspired by him; but it's clear you can never match him. He's non-pareil.
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