Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1866-12-05
HOW TO TAKE EXERCISE.

The following from the Philadelphia
Ledger will be read with interest by
many of our sickly, dyspeptic business
men, who pay too little attention to
health
Half the ailments of our best writer's
indeed, of nearly all literary men,
merchants and their clerks, lawyers
ministers and even doctors-arise from
want of sufficient exercise of the right
sort. Most of the crimes they commit
as men, and their pranks as students, are
preliminary from this cause, while nearly
all their Incidence and apathy arise from
the same source. Many, perhaps most
of them, we're brought up as lads in the
country, ON farm, accustomed TO hard
work, and gave tokens of unusual bright
ness. But, coming to city, and con-
fined to intellectual studies and work,
many of these have found their health
give way at once, and most find they
cannot take the exercise they ssed, and
do not relish that they take. They have
not time for long walks, fishing or shoot
ing, or even farm work, and few hours
of such exertion incapacitates them for
mental occupation for the rest of the
day.
DIR. Winship says that the exercise for
literary men should be short, sharp and
exciting If long continued, it will
diminish the power for mental exertion,
by using up the vital force and the phos-
pilates, which are too heavily drawn
upon already by regular duties In fine,
he proposes that such men shall take ex-
ercise enough in ten minutes for one or
two days, but of the right kind. The
great cause of a want OF action Of the
liver, with constipation, and a whole
train of ills to mind and body, is not the
want of long continued exercise so much
as exciting, vigorous and universal exer-
ton. A dry, long-continued walk will
not start the secretions in an hour as
much as FIVE minutes of brisk effort with
an object, of all the muscles success
sively There must be something ex.
citing and decisive; just as one sharp,
strong blow with an ak will split log of
wood that a dozen feeble efforts will not
open. To do this without ever over
straining, and so injuring the system in
some particular, is the great difficulty.
The exercise which at first would be quite
overwhelming and break man down, is
one perhaps which few weeks of grad
ually increasing exertiop would bring
man ND to, and far beyond, With the
greatest facility. Any one almost can
double his lifting power in three months
with great ease, and improvement to
health and mental power, under o grad
nal system. But IL is never in any other
way than by slow degrees of increased
effort that this is to be done.
Men who have not time for prolonged
hours of exercise, nor the disposition to
continne in il, will become interested by
not exerting themselves too much at first,
but feeling that they are slowly, nsiHral-
" and steadily improving every day or
week 10 keep tho system ib order is
not difficult iai::"s' nor ons requiring
much attention, when a "an has o"ss
learned the danger of neglectlhs u's ~
ties in that respect But to thoroughly
recover from long-continued dyspepsia,
or any one of the numerous diseases
cIassed under that head, requires q skill
full and gentle use OF means, and per
severance with discretion, which thou
sands never succeed in attaining. Diet,
exercise, alterations of exertion aud
repose, all have to be considered, and
the cheerful and relaxing conversation
of a wise friend or affectionate wife will
generally prove more efiectnal than the
Skill Of the sbest physician without these
adiuncts. In the Insane Asylum the
patients are now using machines for ex
ercising and testing physical power, and
in colleges all over the land not only arc
gymnasia being generally employed, but
either military or athletic exercises are
being generally praclieed And il is re-
marked that 10 proportion as the young
men are thoroughly drilled spd interested
in these exertions, not only is the health
better, but all sorts Of irregularities and
disturbances become lees frequent