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Even you can read 50 books a year with these 4 proven tactics for every type of reader

“You know those hours that most people watch TV? That’s when I’m in my chair reading.”

Let's get page turning, people.

Everyone says they "want" to read more, yet when free time arrives, suddenly everything else seems more appealing—playing Solitaire on your phone (with ads, ugh), watching a half-interesting TV series, or scrolling social media for hours. Ernest Hemingway once said, "There is no friend as loyal as a book." Despite this truth, Pew Research found that in 2021, roughly a quarter of American adults (23%) hadn't read a single book in over a year.

For some reason, it’s becoming harder to read. Which is why a person on the subreddit, r/books posed the following question:


reading, audiobooks, books, reddit, schedule“For those that read 50+ books a year, what is your reading schedule?” they implore.Screenshot, Reddit

During vacation, the OP became unexpectedly absorbed in a book. "The experience was different from how I remember it. I lost track of time," they write. This rekindled their love of reading.

“I love the fact that I am reading a little every day. I love that I am losing myself. Previously a part of me know I was reading and it was a struggle,” they share. “But I’ve been reading for 3-4 days and I have only read about 100 pages.”

They turned to the Internet for help, seeking general tips and insights into other people's reading processes. But reading habits aren't one-size-fits-all. They're deeply personal, reflecting our lifestyle, personality, and values in surprisingly profound ways. That's why we've identified four distinct tactics for reading 50+ books per year, each tailored to a specific personality type.

Why aim for 50+ books? Data analyst Alex Birkett explains it best in a 2015 blog post: "I like the number 50. It's about one book per week. It's a good round number, and it sounds impressive (better than 30, or even 40)."

Plus, if you're reading 200-page books (roughly the length of Animal Farm, Fahrenheit 451, or The Great Gatsby), by the end of the year, you'll have read approximately 10,000 pages. And as Birkett puts it, "10,000 pages equal a lot of words, and some of those words are going to help you out."

METHOD #1: For people who love using project management software outside of work

For Reagan Rose, reading 50+ books in a year wasn't about "finding the right time"—he needed to find the right software. "At first, I tried using Goodreads to track my reading, but I just couldn't get into it," he explains on his blog, Redeeming Productivity. "So instead, I put the goal in my Notion goal tracker. Each time I finished a book, I added it to a numbered list. Seeing the number go up encouraged me to keep going." He also checked what week of the year it was to quickly gauge his overall progress.

notion, schedule, reading, productivity, booksTracking his progress helped Rose read more. Credit: Reagan Rose from Redeeming Productivity

METHOD 2: For number-crunchers

College professor John Spencer breaks down the math for us on his blog: “Most people read somewhere between 200-250 words per minute. Let’s go on the safe side and go with 200 words per minute,” he writes. “Most books are around 50,000 words. So, each book takes about 250 minutes to read. So, that’s 12,500 minutes. If we assume you are reading around 357 days a year, then that puts you at about 35 minutes per day. If you read at a faster pace (250 words per minute) you’ll end up closer to 27 or 28 minutes per day.”

From there, he gets even more granular, presenting two models for achieving this level of reading per day:

“One approach would be to carve out 35 minutes per day for reading. It might be your lunch break or it might be an activity you do to unwind each evening,” he writes. “Or you might take two 20-minute chunks and devote them to reading. You could even put those times on your calendar and treat them like meetings. This approach allows you to get into the flow of reading and spend time with more focused concentration on the text.”

reading, graphic, books, productivity, trackingSpencer's plan for reading 50+ books in a year. Credit: John Spencer


METHOD #3: For people who don’t want to make this complicated

Over the past three years, writer and editor Rebecca Deczynski has read 174 books and counting—while balancing a full-time job and a social life. Her advice isn’t fancy, just three simple guidelines:

  1. Diversify your selection, both in length and genre.
  2. Stick to one book at a time.
  3. Get a strong head start. “I’ve found that getting through as many pages as possible in your first reading session makes it helpful to get into the story and finish reading faster,” she writes. “For example, if a book is 250 pages long, I’ll try to read, ideally, at least 40 pages the first time I sit down with it. This helps me invest in the story so that the next time I pick it up, I feel more propelled toward its finish.”

woman, reading, books, lifestyle, goalsSometimes, the simplest solution is best. Photo credit: Canva


METHOD #4: For social butterflies

If you’re the type of person who craves reading for the social element it can bring, Janssen Bradshaw from every-dayreading recommends Goodreads, writing: “You might use it a LOT and be very active on the platform and very social, or you might use it for a very specific single purpose like tracking your books you’ve read, following specific authors you love, or managing your To-Be-Read list. There’s no one right way to do it!” The platform lets you catalog books, share reviews, and connect with friends to see what they're reading. Signing up could be the perfect way to launch your 50+ book journey.

Reading 50+ books in a year may feel insurmountable at first, but sometimes all you need is a little inspiration. With these four different approaches, you can start building your own toolkit for a reading-focused lifestyle.

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Cigna 2017

In 1996, Tomasa Macapinlac was in her early 30s, very successful, and working for one of the tech world's biggest companies. She was also extremely exhausted.

15 years of grinding it out in corporate America had taken its toll. "I was working my butt off. I had two small toddler daughters. I was married at the time, so I had a lot of stuff going on," remembers Macapinlac.

No doubt, many Americans have felt these same burnout feelings, which can have real impacts on physical health. In fact, stressful jobs are a known cause of high blood pressure.


Image via iStock.

In Macapinlac's case, it was the severe exhaustion that hit her, and over time, she fell ill — so ill, in fact, that she could barely climb out of bed.

"I didn't know what was wrong with me," says Macapinlac. "I'm pretty strong immune system-wise, health-wise, and I could usually kick things out. But this time, I couldn't."

So Macapinlac went to a doctor and was told to get three days of bed rest. But even after that, nothing changed. "I got back up and I was still not well," she adds. "I wasn't well for a while."

Macapinlac knew she needed to make a change and start taking better care of herself.

She was on the lookout for solutions that would help her feel better. So when a co-worker approached her and suggested she visit a holistic practitioner, it piqued her interest, and she decided to check it out.

Image via iStock.

Once there, she got up on a table and immediately received some hands-on healing. "It's very similar to acupressure," describes Macapinlac. "It's like being a jumper cable and recharging someone."

When it was over, Macapinlac already felt better. "I said, 'I don't know what you did, but I'm coming back,'" she remembers. And that, she says, was just the beginning of her whole journey of self-care.

Since then, Macapinlac has taken the time to create a self-care ritual that works for her.

Image via Tomasa Macapinlac, used with permission.

Of course, everyone is different and self-care is going to vary from person to person. For some, it's about following a thorough daily routine. For others, it's as simple as not missing preventive care annual doctor visits to keep an eye on the four health numbers — blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and body mass index (BMI) — so they can take control of their health and hopefully prevent disease before they get sick. For Macapinlac, it was about finding ways to destress and eat well.

To do that, she adjusted her work hours, she followed some ancient healing practices, and she eliminated packaged, processed foods from her diet. She also gets in regular exercise by doing things she loves. "I jazz and hip-hop dance, and then I'll hike every day because I love being in nature," she says.

Image via iStock.

Her key finding was that balance in everything she does — from work to sleeping to working out — is crucial to her feeling healthy and happy.

Her daily rituals helped her get rid of her chronic body pain, fatigue, and nagging health issues, such as asthma and allergies. She also stopped losing energy early in the day and had much more time to be there for her daughters. (In fact, Macapinlac's rituals have inspired them to prioritize their own self-care.)

Image via iStock.

"I'm going to be 54 this year, and if you take a look at my latest pictures, I feel that I look much younger than I did in my 30s," Macapinlac explains with a chuckle. "A lot of people want to know where I get my energy from."

That's why Macapinlac continues her practice by helping others get through their own self-care challenges.

In fact, she eventually left the corporate world and became a holistic practitioner herself.

Image via Tomasa Macapinlac, used with permission.

"What I began to realize was that I'm really all about people taking care of themselves," she explains. "Because the truth is, when you take of yourself, then your glass is half-full, instead of half-empty."

"Then you can be there 100% for other people or whatever it is you want to focus on."

Today, she practices her own blend of ancient healing arts and she wrote a book entitled "30 Days to a Vibrant, Healthier, Younger You." Today, she is known to many as the "Self-Care Queen."

Image via Tomasa Macapinlac, used with permission.

Yes, different things will work for different people. But taking time to care for yourself — no matter how you do it — can help improve your health.

And if you don't know where to get started, you can always talk to a health care professional near you. Even something as simple as getting a health check to know your key health numbers can give you a good starting place when it comes to developing a self-care plan that works for you.

"I encourage everyone to find what’s right for them," says Macapinlac. Because that's what it's all about: taking the time to find a self-care ritual that works for you so that you can improve your health and well-being.

Image via iStock.

Learn more about how to take control of your health at Cigna.com/TakeControl.