July book recap – The Fitnessista

Sharing the books I read in July and if I’d recommend adding them to your collection!

Hi friends! Happy Monday! How was the weekend? I hope you had a great one! We swam and enjoyed dinner with friends, and also headed to Apple Annie’s to pick some fruit and veggies. It was SUPER hot, but we got a lot of amazing produce and followed it up with Mexican food. I can’t believe the kids start school this week!

For today’s post, let’s chat about books! I read three fantastic books this past month and thought I’d share the goods with ya.

July book recap

Here are July’s books:

Yours Truly

This was my introduction to Abby Jimenez and turns out I looooove her. I can definitely see why she’s so hyped up! This book had everything I enjoy in a summer read: a bit of romance, witty banter, and protagonists that are likable and don’t make horrible decisions the entire time.

I want to express my gratitude for the thoughtful approach taken in addressing mental health topics, including past trauma and anxiety. The content was handled with sensitivity, which I genuinely appreciated. While it wasn’t overwhelmingly heavy, it’s essential to recognize that it might be triggering for those who have dealt with these issues in the past. Personally, some parts relating to anxiety felt incredibly relatable, almost too real, as they perfectly described the emotions I used to experience when anxiety was a significant struggle for me.

From Amazon:

Dr. Briana Ortiz’s life is seriously flatlining. Her divorce is just about finalized, her brother’s running out of time to find a kidney donor, and that promotion she wants? Oh, that’s probably going to the new man-doctor who’s already registering eighty-friggin’-seven on Briana’s “pain in my ass” scale. But just when all systems are set to hate, Dr. Jacob Maddox completely flips the game . . . by sending Briana a letter.

And it’s a really good letter. Like the kind that proves that Jacob isn’t actually Satan. Worse, he might be this fantastically funny and subversively likeable guy who’s terrible at first impressions. Because suddenly he and Bri are exchanging letters, sharing lunch dates in her “sob closet,” and discussing the merits of freakishly tiny horses. But when Jacob decides to give Briana the best gift imaginable—a kidney for her brother—she wonders just how she can resist this quietly sexy new doctor . . . especially when he calls in a favor she can’t refuse.

I would give it a 10/10 for a summer read; I loved it and can’t wait to dive into Part of Your World this month.

One True Loves

I’ve read a few Taylor Jenkins Reid books, and have adored some (Malibu Rising, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo), and felt blah about others (Daisy Jones and the Six). This one was a home run for me. I was instantly drawn in by the plot, was extremely interested to see what happened, and adored the character development. I felt like I truly *knew* each of the main characters, which made me so much more invested in the story. I’d give it a 9/10.

From Amazon:

From the bestselling author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo comes a breathtaking love story about a woman unexpectedly forced to choose between the husband she has long thought dead and the fiancé who has finally brought her back to life.

In her twenties, Emma Blair marries her high school sweetheart, Jesse. They build a life for themselves, far away from the expectations of their parents and the people of their hometown in Massachusetts. They travel the world together, living life to the fullest and seizing every opportunity for adventure.
On their first wedding anniversary, Jesse is on a helicopter over the Pacific when it goes missing. Just like that, Jesse is gone forever.

Emma quits her job and moves home in an effort to put her life back together. Years later, now in her thirties, Emma runs into an old friend, Sam, and finds herself falling in love again. When Emma and Sam get engaged, it feels like Emma’s second chance at happiness.

That is, until Jesse is found. He’s alive, and he’s been trying all these years to come home to her. With a husband and a fiancé, Emma has to now figure out who she is and what she wants, while trying to protect the ones she loves.

Who is her one true love? What does it mean to love truly?

Emma knows she has to listen to her heart. She’s just not sure what it’s saying.

The Autoimmune Fix 

Since I had a little bit of a blood work surprise, I’ve been diving into autoimmunity, learning as much as possible, and found this book. It’s extremely well-researched and packed with helpful info. I’ve been making some dietary changes and exploring functional testing – I can’t wait to get my results back – in addition to reading and podcasts. I hope this ends up being nothing when I retest in the fall, but I’ll share more info then. All I really have right now is that we got some autoimmunity results that were a surprise, but since I don’t have any other major symptoms, we’re waiting a few months and retesting.

The Cliff’s note version of the book: stop eating inflammatory oils, sugar, gluten, and dairy. It’s not realistic for me to do this completely, but I’ve just really been focusing on whole foods, minimizing sugar, gut health, and working on stress management. I’d give it an 8/10.

From Amazon:

Millions of people suffer from autoimmunity whether they know it or not. The root cause of most weight gain, brain and mood problems, and fatigue, autoimmunity can take years – or even decades – for symptoms and a clear diagnosis to arise. Through years of research, Dr. Tom O’Bryan has discovered that autoimmunity is actually a spectrum, and many people experiencing general malaise are already on it. And while autoimmune diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, osteoporosis, diabetes, and lupus, have become the third leading cause of death behind heart disease and cancer, many people affected are left in the dark. The good news is that many autoimmune conditions can be reversed through a targeted protocol designed to heal the autoimmune system, 70 percent of which is located in the gut.

The Autoimmune Fix includes two comprehensive three-week plans: In the first three weeks, you’ll follow a paleo-inspired diet, during which you cut out gluten, sweets, and dairy – the three primary culprits behind autoimmunity. Once the dietary changes have been addressed, The Autoimmune Fix focuses on the other causes of autoimmunity, such as genetics, other dietary issues, and microbiome.

So, tell me, friends: what’s the best book you read in July? What are you reading this month?

It’s worth mentioning here that I’m still enjoying Book of the Month! The selections have been even better recently, and I have a whole stack of books in my to-read pile.

Have a wonderful day and I’ll see ya soon!
xo

Gina