Part 24

Third: A third and perhaps most important of all the benefits to be derived from exercise is the general increase in the circulation of the blood. The muscles form a larger proportion of the body-weight than any other group of organs. When general exercise involving the larger muscles is participated in, the demand for food material in this particular muscular tissue is so great as to cause a notable increase in the strength and in the rapidity of the heart beat, and consequent deep breathing. This acceleration of the circulation continues long after the exercise has ceased, thus replenishing and building up the muscles. As a result of the better circulation of the blood, all organs receive an increased blood-supply, and every part of the body shares in the general improvement. This explains why one can do better brain work, or digest food with greater ease after taking moderate exercise.

Exercise is constructive up to the point of fatigue, but beyond that point it is destructive. The waste products of all cell-metabolism are harmful and poisonous. When exercise is long continued, the waste matter accumulating therefrom weakens or poisons the cells that secrete them.

The products of cell-metabolism are of two classes, and each class has different effects. The first is due to oxidation. A runner, who falls exhausted from shortness of breath, has simply been suffocated by the excess of carbon dioxid in his muscles. After the breath is regained, or, in other words, after the body has had time to throw off the carbon dioxid, the runner is in nearly as good condition as before. A more lasting and serious form of exhaustion is due to the accumulation of nitrogenous decomposition products, which, not being in a gaseous form, cannot be thrown off from the lungs, and hence are not as rapidly or as easily removed from the tissues. The presence in the tissue of these waste-products is the cause of extreme weakness and fatigue.

The well-trained muscles contain only healthy protoplasm, and give off but a small percentage of nitrogenous decomposition products. Let the well-fed person who takes but little exercise, run half a mile, or play a simple game of ball, and the following day the muscles will be stiff and sore; this unusual exertion has caused the breaking down of much loosely organized tissue which could have been made firm and healthy by daily muscular activity.

Those subsisting upon a low nitrogenous diet, especially vegetarians, are affected much less by fatigue than meat eaters whose muscles contain larger quantities of unnecessary nitrogen and nitrogenous decomposition matter.

The common laws of health demand that sufficient motion be taken every day to prevent the accumulation of carbon dioxid or waste matter throughout the body. Both the production and the accumulation of waste matter depend very largely upon the diet. All animal flesh (food) is undergoing gradual decomposition, and adds its waste matter to that of the body, therefore meat eaters require a much greater amount of exercise to maintain a given standard of blood-purity than do vegetarians.

SYSTEMS OF PHYSICAL CULTURE

Numerous schools of physical culture and artificial methods of exercise have flourished in all civilized countries within the past few years. This fact emphasizes the pressing need for a general change in our methods of living.

The various systems of indoor exercise popularly taught are at the best weak substitutes for the more natural and wholesome forms of combined exercise and re-creation found in outdoor life and outdoor sport. Some of the methods referred to are as follows:

Tensing, which consists of slow movements in which opposite muscles are made to pull against each other. The student can easily grasp the principle involved in this system, and from his own ingenuity extend it as fully as he desires.

Vibratory exercises, which are somewhat similar to the tensing system; however, instead of slow movements, the arms or other portions of the body are moved with a rapidly vibrating motion. The effect produced is essentially the same as in the tensing system.

Heavy-weight exercises, consisting in the use of heavy dumb-bells or other apparatus in which the actual physical pull exerted by the body in moving the weights is sufficient to try the muscles to their maximum capacity. This system of exercise should be discouraged; while it may add to the mere lifting strength, it takes from the muscles their flexibility, and from the body its agile and supple activity.

Indoor exercise with light apparatus such as wooden dumb-bells, Indian clubs, wands, Swedish and Delsartic movements. These forms of exercise, which compose most physical culture drills, as given in schools and gymnasiums, are to be highly recommended. For adults, however, such exercises require considerable indulgence in order to gain much physical benefit therefrom.

Exercises of this nature are especially well adapted to school children. They depend upon the rhythm of the music, the good fellowship of their companions, and the pride of keeping up with the class to make them interesting. For this reason they are not suitable to the individual who must exercise alone in his room. Dancing can well be considered in this class, and could be highly recommended as an important exercise and re-creation, were it not so frequently associated with loss of sleep and other forms of intemperance.

All of the above systems are not only at the best imperfect, but poor substitutes for natural exercise, and not likely to be kept up by the ordinary sedative worker. Every individual should, so far as possible, indulge in some form of outdoor exercise, which gives all the advantages of the indoor systems, together with the added advantages of fresh air, mental pleasure, long range of vision, and the general exhilaration that comes from close contact with nature. However, for the city man outdoor exercises are too difficult to be practised with sufficient regularity to bring the desired results; therefore, it is best to adopt some definite daily program of vigorous muscular exercise which will keep the body in fair physical condition. Exercises of this kind should be made a regular daily habit, and though at times a little tiresome, can, by practise, be made to become the expected thing, so that the day will not seem complete until the daily exercises have been taken.

From long experience I have found that the following exercises give the greatest benefits with the least expenditure of time and labor. They are all especially designed to promote healthy action of the vital and the abdominal organs which are so much neglected by the average person.

PROGRAM FOR DAILY EXERCISE

Every morning, just after rising, and every night, just before retiring, take a glass or two of pure cool water and execute vigorously the following movements:

EXERCISE NO. 1

EXERCISE No. 1--Stand erect, feet about thirty inches apart. Extend arms above head; clasp the hands; hold elbows rigid, and inhale deeply. Bend toward the left and try to touch the floor with the clasped hands, as far from the foot, and as far to the rear as possible. Exhale while returning to position. Inhale deeply, reversing motion to the right. This movement should be repeated from 25 to 50 times.

EXERCISE NO. 2

EXERCISE NO. 2--Rest upon the tips of the toes and the palms of the hands. Move the body up and down as far as possible, bending only at the waist line. If the movement is too difficult in this position, the tension may be reduced by resting on the elbows, or on the knees, or on both. Inhale deeply, and exhaust the breath suddenly as if coughing, with the downward motion. This movement should be repeated from 20 to 30 times.

EXERCISE NO. 3

EXERCISE NO. 3--Rest the hands on the rim of a bathtub, or on two chairs placed about two feet apart. Assume position shown in cut. Lower the body until the chest touches the right knee; rise, and lower the body until the chest touches the left knee. Execute this movement rapidly as if running, rising first on one foot and then on the other, swinging the body from side to side with each step or movement.

This exercise is especially recommended for those suffering from torpidity of the liver, or from constipation. It should be executed from 100 to 500 times.

EXERCISE NO. 4

EXERCISE NO. 4--Stand erect, feet about thirty inches apart. Inhale deeply, and strike a blow toward the left with the right fist, passing the left fist behind the back. Alternate this movement, striking toward the right with the left fist, giving the body a swinging and twisting movement.

EXERCISE NO. 5