Ilchi Lee

This book is the product of Ilchi Lee’s work with health and wellness education, meditation, and other Asian traditions that unify mind and body into a healthful, integrated whole, as well as Dr. Jessie Jones’s work, especially in gerokinesiology, the specialized science of the ways in which exercise and aging interact.

Ilchi Lee
• President, University of Brain Education
• President, Korea Institute of Brain Science
• President, International Brain Education Association

For the past 30 years, Ilchi Lee has dedicated his life to finding ways to develop the potential of the human brain. Brain Education System Training (BEST), a collection of mind-body training programs that helps to unlock the brain’s true potential, is the primary fruit of his search. The ultimate purpose of brain development, according to Lee, is lasting world peace. Currently, Lee serves as the president of the University of Brain Education. He is also president of the Korea Institute of Brain Science and president of the International Brain Education Association. Lee is the author of 30 books, and his work as a peacemaker and educator has been widely recognized, both in his native Korea and in the international community.

Jessie Jones
• Professor, Department of Health Science, California State University, Fullerton
• Codirector, Center for Successful Aging, California State University, Fullerton

Jessie Jones is a scholar in the areas of gerontology, health and exercise science. She currently serves as professor in the department of Health Science and as codirector of the Center for Successful Aging at California State University, Fullerton. She is a fellow for the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Academy for Kinesiology and Physical Education. Jones is internationally recognized in the fields of exercise science and aging for her research, program design, and curriculum development. Her work has been published in numerous professional journals and cited in more than 100 newspapers and magazines. She has led senior health and fitness programs for more than 25 years and has authored or coauthored several major books related to successful aging.

Interview with Authors

Read an interview with Ilchi Lee and Jessie Jones, authors of In Full Bloom: A Brain Education Guide for Successful Aging. The authors share why they wrote the book and why the brain is so important to aging.

Q: Why did you write In Full Bloom?

I. Lee: As people grow older, they often lose motivation and confidence. When people experience this, if they simply resign themselves to it, it progresses. Then it’s possible for the aging process to occur even faster. But the thing to keep in mind is that one has the ability to slow or even stop certain phenomena, and furthermore, to become healthier than before. That depends on how you operate your brain. So the message I hope to communicate through this book is that, rather than give up, you can choose to exercise your brain. You can choose to use the tremendous inner strength you already possess and make your life better.

J. Jones: Being a professor of health science and specializing in gerontology, I investigate the predictors of aging. I became involved with the activities of brain education and saw what it was doing for me, and I realized I wanted to share this with other older adults, because I could see how it would impact the quality of their lives.

Q: Why is the brain so important to aging—or, as you make the case, staying young?

I. Lee: Understanding the brain, and knowing the brain, is really understanding and knowing your life. When we know and understand our brain, we realize the three principles of making the most out of the brain. First, “If you choose it, it happens.” Second, “Good news makes a good brain.” And third, “Always be awake.” Miracles really do happen when you use your brain well. I’ve experienced that a lot.

J. Jones: The brain is the center of all actions, feelings, judgments, passions, and dreams. If older people can realize this and can enhance their brain function, it’s going to enhance their lives. And it doesn’t matter how old you are. Your brain continues to blossom…if you work at it.

Q: Why do you think so many people misunderstand the brain’s relationship to aging?

I. Lee: None of us like to think about losing our memory or our ability to think and reason as we age. Yet that is precisely what most of us believe will happen no matter what we do. So we passively accept the notion of becoming forgetful and assume it’s inevitable. It’s the mindset of “we are what we are.” However, we are not powerless. We all have the power to take control of our aging process through the lifelong choices we make.

J. Jones: People do not fully understand the way that physical activity impacts the brain. Until recently, scientists believed that the positive effects of exercise were limited to increased oxygen flow to the brain. The complete picture is more interesting. It appears that exercise may produce more cells and stimulate more neural connections in the brain. It’s just so important to get up and get active.

Q:What do you want people to take away from this book?

I. Lee: I want people to know that you can live your life as the master of your brain and as the master of your life.

J. Jones: If I could direct one message to readers it would be this: knowing how to take control of your brain and developing your brain to its fullest potential will improve the quality of your life—not only your physical and mental health, but also your spiritual health. It’s going to enhance the meaning of your life.

►About the Book
►Author Q&A
►8 Weeks to A Younger You
►Book Tour Kickoff Lecture
►Buy the Book

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