Healthy Brain, Happy Life: A Personal Program to Activate Your Brain and Do Everything Better

Wendy Suzuki · Billie Fitzpatrick

May 2015 · HarperAudio · Narrated by Wendy Suzuki

About this audiobook

A neuroscientist transforms the way we think about our brain, our health, and our personal happiness in this clear, informative, and inspiring guide—a blend of personal memoir, science narrative, and immediately useful takeaways that bring the human brain into focus as never before, revealing the powerful connection between exercise, learning, memory, and cognitive abilities.

Nearing forty, Dr. Wendy Suzuki was at the pinnacle of her career. An award-winning university professor and world-renowned neuroscientist, she had tenure, her own successful research lab, prestigious awards, and international renown.

That’s when to celebrate her birthday, she booked an adventure trip that forced her to wake up to a startling reality: despite her professional success, she was overweight, lonely, and tired and knew that her life had to change.  Wendy started simply—by going to an exercise class. Eventually, she noticed an improvement in her memory, her energy levels, and her ability to work quickly and move from task to task easily. Not only did Wendy begin to get fit, but she also became sharper, had more energy, and her memory improved.  Being a neuroscientist, she wanted to know why.

What she learned transformed her body and her life. Now, it can transform yours.

Wendy discovered that there is a biological connection between exercise, mindfulness, and action. With exercise, your body feels more alive and your brain actually performs better.  Yes—you can make yourself smarter. In this fascinating book, Suzuki makes neuroscience easy to understand, interweaving her personal story with groundbreaking research, and offering practical, short exercises—4 minute Brain Hacks—to engage your mind and improve your memory, your ability to learn new skills, and function more efficiently.

Taking us on an amazing journey inside the brain as never before, Suzuki helps us unlock the keys to neuroplasticity that can change our brains, or bodies, and, ultimately, our lives.

Ratings and reviews

Drawn to this book after Dr. Suzuki's exceptional appearance on Andrew Huberman PhD's 'Huberman Lab Podcast.' Sadly, this book should be catagorized as a tedious autobiography. It just goes on endlessly about the author's personal experiences and life. Lovely, if that's what you're seeking, but I was looking for a well told neuroscience book in the tradition of David Eagleman, Steven Johnson, Jeffery Schwartz, Adam Gazzally, Ethan Kross, John Ratey, and many more. These authors lead with the science, and offer only as much personal life as needed to move the subject matter along. Unfortunately, Dr. Suzuki seem to have this approach backward. It delves FAR too much into her personal life - and treats the neuroscience like garnish around the edges. Again - great stuff if you care to read an autobiography about a gifted academician / scientist. But if the neuroscience itself is your goal - I'd recommend one (or all) of the authors listed above (and many more - where that came from).

Boring. wanted to learn something, but instead, got a book about a doctor talking about her for 10 hours. what did i learn? nothing, except if you didn't know exercise helps you feel good, you will learn the obvious stuff everyone knows about. really disapointed and it is the first time I buy a book and do not finish it.. it was that bad.

About the author

Wendy Suzuki, PhD, runs an interactive research lab at New York University, where her work has been recognized with numerous awards including the prestigious Troland Research Award from the National Academy of Sciences. She is a two-time TEDx speaker and is regularly interviewed in the media. She lectures nationally and internationally on her research and serves as a reviewer for many of the top neuroscience journals. She lives in New York City.

Billie Fitzpatrick has coauthored numerous books, including several New York Times bestsellers. She specializes in mind-body health, neuroscience, nutrition, and diet and fitness.