Part 4

Par in vitality Par in energy Par in good looks

We spoke pretty sternly to a certain Mrs. Plenteous. Now let us give thought to Mrs. Plenteous’ sister-under-the-skin-and-bones, Miss Gaunt.

For months Miss Gaunt’s overstuffed friends may have fawned on her figure:

“You’re so slender, my dear!” Now “slender” is indeed a flattering word. But any good dictionary will list some sinister synonyms: spare, lank, skinny, scrawny, scraggly, and spindly, to name a few. Some day the remark will be: “You’re so skin—er—slender, my dear!”—and Miss Gaunt will feel flattened—not flattered.

And perhaps she’ll take a good long look at herself, noting certain hollows in the cheek, certain knobs in the elbows, a certain chronic weariness, (not to mention crossness) and she’ll think: “Maybe I should try to build up a little.” When that time comes, we do hope that Mrs. Plenteous lends her this booklet.

FIGURE IT OUT

Many over or underweight people love to blame their figures on their ancestors. (If they’re perfect 36’s, of course, they take all the credit themselves.) “My dear grandmother weighed 200 pounds, so there’s not a thing I can do about it,” beams Mrs. Plenteous, splashing the third lump of sugar in her coffee. “My family tree was a beanpole,” sighs Miss Gaunt. “No thanks—no sugar or cream.”

The truth is that, according to anthropologists, there are in general three types of body build: the stout, the medium, and the lean. You may possibly have inherited your grandmother’s type of figure, just as you may also have inherited her house. But there’s no law against remodeling the house—or the figure. Surely the smart thing is to make the house the best possible house of its type, one which you’ll enjoy living in; and the figure the best possible figure of its type—one you’ll enjoy living with.

IT SHOULD BE DONE

Perhaps we’ve dwelt overmuch on the good looks angle. But surely the right angle on good looks is good health. To be under par is to be caught short on the reserves which, if you have them, do so much to cushion the bumps of hectic modern living, and ward off the illnesses that pounce so gleefully on the tired, the rundown, the undernourished human frame.

IT CAN BE DONE

A wise nutritionist has said, “There are two ways of building up, just as there are two ways of getting rich. One is to cut down on your expenses, the other is to increase your income.”

The “expenses” are energy, and you can decrease them by taking more rest, less violent exercise, more sleep, and by keeping calm. The “income” is food. And the thing to do with it is to eat more of it—and more choosily of it! For though music may be the food of love, the food of growth is groceries!

Too often have we heard languid creatures wail, “But I’m not hungry—I can’t swallow a thing!” To them from us goes a simple but hearty “Nonsense!”

Swallowing is an ordinary mechanical act which almost anybody can perform, providing there is no foreign body in the throat (in which case hang by your heels or call your doctor). The hitch is that most people who claim that they can’t eat are waiting for appetite to say when. Now your appetite is a fickle counselor and often does not have your best interest at heart. Just look what it does to Mrs. Plenteous! Our advice is this: Ignore it and eat anyhow. Chances are that appetite, surprised and stimulated by regular shipments of body-building food, will come to life and get back on the job.

Other non-eaters insist that their stomachs are too small. Well, stomachs are timid creatures. If they don’t get much they quit expecting much. And they shrink. But they are flexible organs and adapt well to inflation. Start feeding them more, and they’ll take it—and like it. Start gradually, though, and give them time to adjust. Eat oftener and less at a time. And at regular times! Increase your calories by 500 to 1,000 a day (see pages 30 to 35). But don’t just pile them on. Team them up with their right partners—the PROTEINS, VITAMINS, MINERALS. And of course don’t take our word for anything without checking with your doctor!

MRS. PLENTEOUS SHOULDN’T PEEK

The next few pages may be a little hard on Mrs. Plenteous, so we hope she left us on page 20. For from here on in we get just voracious about food. “Help yourself,” Miss Gaunt—

NOT to a cup of bouillon—BUT to a brimming bowl of cream soup

NOT to lettuce leaves and lemon juice—BUT to a salad bowl, tangy with cheese and dressing

NOT to a dry rye crisp—BUT to those warm rolls and butter

NOT to just wafers of lean meat—BUT to a thick pork chop sometimes—with gravy

NOT to a modest glass of milk twice a day—BUT to an extra glass or a double chocolate malted maybe.

WHO SAID MILK

Milk? Ah, now there’s a beverage both Mrs. P. and Miss G. can sip with sociability. For milk is the menu’s best builder-upper and is essential whether you’re headed UP or DOWN. But while Mrs. Plenteous should stick to plain, whole milk, (with such companions as cottage cheese, American cheese, plain ice cream, and some butter) Miss Gaunt may let herself go on parts of milk that will stick to her—cream, butter, and cream cheeses.

Milk has many virtues: It adds to the food income without cramming bulk into those small stomachs previously noted. And it is the world’s best mixer, combining graciously with hundreds of other foods, enhancing and enriching them.

Consider a few of the forms milk can assume. Every one is a boost for Miss Gaunt as she goes up, up, UP that scale:

cereals cooked with milk eggs poached in milk vegetables anointed with butter cheese souffles potatoes, scalloped, mashed, or creamed custards and custard sauces oyster stew—half and half cakes, cookies, tarts—with ice cream strawberries, peaches and cream cantaloupe à la mode, pie à la mode—