Do What Feels Good: Recipes, Remedies, and Routines to Treat Your Body Right – A Holistic Guide to Wellness, Self-Acceptance, and Confidence

by Hannah Bronfman

"Hannah Bronfman is challenging us all to rethink our default standards of beauty and definitions of ‘healthy’ —and I, for one, couldn’t be happier to hear this from another woman of color in the wellness community.   Do What Feels Good is a practical, inspirational, and beautiful guidebook to feeling good in your own skin.” --Gabrielle Union, actress and bestselling author of We’re Going to Need More Wine As a food lover, beauty product addict, exercise junkie, and wellness entrepreneur, Hannah Bronfman practically radiates confidence and health. But she’ll be the first one to admit that the road to wellness and self-acceptance hasn’t been easy. As a woman of color who grew up watching a close family member struggle with an eating disorder, Hannah’s had to forge her own path and create her own standards of beauty. And what she’s learned is Healthy is beautiful. And healthy should feel good. In Do What Feels Good , Hannah offers real talk about getting in touch with your body’s needs, baring her soul and sharing her story along the way. Hannah provides insight on everything from gut health to nutrition to fitness to skincare, sharing insight from top experts on how to understand your body’s unique chemistry so that you can fuel it with more of the things that feel good and less of the things that don’t. And since delicious food is one of the things that makes everyone feel good, Hannah shares more than 50 of her favorite recipes for healthy hedonism (desserts and cocktails included!). Enlightening, empowering, and educational, this is an approach to wellness that is holistic, hedonistic, and real. Because self-care should not feel self-punishing, and every body deserves to feel good.

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction, Health, Cookbooks, Audiobook

336 pages, Hardcover

Published January 8, 2019

Reviews

[Jennifer]

“For centuries women have been subjected to so many expectations about how we should look and act and speak, and I say screw that. The only person who gets to set expectations for me is ME. The only person who gets to set the bar for you is YOU. We want to break societal norms as twenty-first-century women, and that starts with knowing who we are, what we deserve, and how to take care of ourselves and one another with love, compassion, and honor. If you want to be a superhero, you need to identify your superpower. You need to give your attention to the things that make you feel incandescent.”

In Do What Feels Good: Recipes, Remedies, and Routines to Treat Your Body Right, Hannah Bronfman embraces these statements by sharing all the information she has learned on her own health and wellness journey in hopes that it may support others on theirs. Bronfman stresses that Do What Feels Good is “a resource for self-care” and not a one-size-fits-all instruction manual. It is filled with the information that supports her own daily health routine, along with a wealth of holistic education she has been taught that has helped her mind and body function well and feel good. It touches on self-image, gender, heritage/culture, skin and hair, gut-care, hydration, nutrition and exercise. It comes with recipes for everything under the sun, including tonics, broths, spreads, meals, desserts, cocktails and even homemade beauty and bath products.

Bronfman doesn't preach or try to solicit followers, she appears to genuinely care about supporting other women. She ends with the statement, “There is power in women sharing knowledge with one another. There is power in being vulnerable. There is power in talking honestly and openly about our physical and mental health and then sharing the practices that make us feel good.” If her goal is to empower other women in such a way, I think she succeeded.

My favorite quote:
“...because I think a woman is most beautiful and radiates well-being when she embraces her individuality. You are not the same as anyone else, and that is part of your superpower.”

[Yoonmee]

I became interested in Hannah Bronfman a while ago because she's a black fitness and health influencer . Let's face it, most of the fitness/health gurus I see are white, so it's refreshing to find a person of color. I really like that Bronfman talks about being black, hair, body image, and champions other black professionals in the wellness field. That said, this book is pretty bland and vanilla. Bronfman is basically a socialite, so keep that in mind. It's a general health/fitness book that mostly consists of pretty bland stories about Bronfman, lots of unnecessary pictures of Bronfman, and some very vanilla "heard it all before" fitness and health advice. Eat clean, get enough sleep, have a morning routine, blah blah blah. Most of the book consists of recipes, one of which I tried and it was just alright (the seasoned salmon one). If you like Bronfman, you'd be better off following her on Instagram and subscribing to her newsletter. If you're brand new to thinking about your health and fitness, this might be a good beginner book for you.

[Melanie - OverBookedMel]

The format felt very personal. If you’ve read self-motivation books before then familiar with some of these tips, tricks, and stories. However, the layout created a beautiful story and the recipes were phenomenal. Not only smoothy recipes but there is a whole section about making bath time a priority in self-care (don’t mind if I do). I borrowed this in ebook format but ordered a physical copy for all the relaxing bath ideas!

[Jennifer]

I picked this up because I'm trying to be more diverse in my reading selection, focusing on writers of color. This was on a curated list of new books that are worth reading by black women -- sadly, I can't remember which one. I would quibble with this inclusion.

Hannah Bronfman writes a straightforward book steeped in the culture of body positivity, self love, and Instagram fitspo. And... well, it was pretty saccharine. Hannah seems to live a charmed life as a trust fund baby and entrepreneur. Even though not all of her ventures are successful, the occasional family name-dropping let the reader know that she has some serious moolah -- and the privilege that goes along with that. I would go broke trying to incorporate all of her suggestions into my life. The essential oils chapter alone would have cost a pretty penny.

Bronfman did not narrate, which I think was a shame. I also didn't learn too much new in terms of lifestyle choices or eating habits. She's a successful DJ who came into the business with a huge safety net. The most ridiculous part of the whole book was where she describes getting a head tattoo as her first. Folks, I wouldn't recommend this.

[Julie]

I liked the memoir-y/manifesto-y parts of the book, but found it to be a little bit too woo woo otherwise

[Jenna Whalen]

I picked up Hannah Bronfman's book because I've heard great things about her Instagram page where she focuses on health and fitness - and she's doing it as a Black women in a sea of white health and fitness influencers.
Bronfman's book is best for people who are just starting their health journey or are trying to get back into healthy routines. I've heard or read many of the points Bronfman's talks about, but I still enjoyed the reminders and reading about her life and her health journey. Bronfman also talks about health things that are specific to Black women - while I can't relate to this as a white women, I feel it is still important for me to read about these topics and broaden my viewpoints.
Bronfman also includes recipes ranging from food to baths to skin masks. These recipes are a great companion to what she talks about and let you feel as if you can follow her routine.
Overall, while this book seems to be geared more towards "beginners," it was still an interesting read and I did gain some recipes and routines/ideas I want to incorporate in my life.

[Jean MacLeod]

I've nothing but good things to say about this book. I picked it up for the recipes and got more than I expected. Do What Feels Good is packed with practical, down-to-earth information (such as not drinking water with meals-something I've practiced for years) along with recipes and remedies that promote health and well-being, inside and out. A nice inspiring, pleasurable book.

[Noor G.]

I appreciate the author’s enthusiasm and while I feel inspired to make changes in my diet, a lot of it is “hippyish” in that I’m not sure how scientifically proven her suggestions are. The author is likable enough but nothing really groundbreaking in this book, except maybe drinking water after meals and not during.

[Mary Kotapka]

This is a very upbeat and energized kind of book. I really felt like I was there with Hannah and she was just advising me personally. Many good ideas from cooking to beauty to baths and working out. I definitely will be more aware of myself and taking care of me, inside and out. Thanks Hannah! Can't wait for your next book!

[Melanie]

I’d rate it higher if 90% of what was read didn’t say “find out the recipe/details in the enhancement.” I listened to this book as an audiobook and that part made it tank for me. I want to know those recipes too. It wasn’t consistent throughout. Like near the end, she goes into detail about essential oils. Why wasn’t this a consistency throughout?

[Cassandra]

There are some recipes in here that really great, simple, delicious, and healthy at the same time. But there are also a lot that call for all sorts of expensive, hard to find powders and herbs. Overall, Hannah shares a great story about her journey to a healthy, balanced life.

[Gwen Renee]

I really LOVED this book, because she gives great advice, shares incredibly healthy recipes, and provides many "clean" beauty secrets. I appreciate her approach to luxurious self-care utilizing whole foods. Again, LOVED it and may incorporate some of her recipes into my routine.

[Mia]

Great Start to a Wellness Journey

I really enjoyed this book. Hannah made fitness and wellness feel accessible and exciting. There are lots of yummy recipes, DIYS and dietary fun facts in this book. An easy light hearted but inspirational read.

[Kasey]

I love this book. I appreciate the emphasis on feeling good from the inside out. There are so many recipes given that I'll be eating something different every week.

[Jozi]

I loved everything single thing about this book! The tips, the recipes and the eye-openers!

[Monique]

Unique outlook on all things wellness

Honest truths about wellness from a person who I closely identify with and believe her journey. The tips seem easy to follow.

[Sarah]

Great recipes and easy to understand information.

[Margaret Gerberding]

A book with recipies and ideas for whole-body health.

[Lila Simmons]

A recipe book + some stories

I think d disappointed because I waited ages for my library to purchase this and it's just a bunch of recipes 😆😆

[Nanaz Carlson]

Info we all already know. Nothing special. I did learn about pearl protein though which I didn’t know existed.

[Amy]

This book is so refreshing and a wonderful read when you are going through a reset. Hannah is great :)

[Liliana Brazão]

I loved the book, the truth is that sometimes i again read again some recipe or simply leaf. Simple and fun to read, and with the right approach on important subjects.