Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-06-23
PROPER BREATHING.
THE NECESSARY USE OF THE Alb.
DOMINAL MUSCLES.
The Vicious Effects of Tight Lacing
on Health-Necessity Under
Evolutionary Practice.

on Health-Necessity Under
Evolutionary Practice.
Most persons, if asked how they initiate
the chest, would say, by drawing in air;
whereas it is just the other way; that is,
they draw in air by expanding the chest.
But they have a sense of suction, or the
result, and no sense of the muscular action
which Is the cause of the suction. They
have the cart before the horse, in their
consciousness. They are quite sure that
sucking in al is direct act on the air by
the mouth; although they would not be
able to explain just how the mouth does
it. Much less would they believe the
true explanation, to wit, that they
do it by the retraction of great
muscle down between the chest
and the abdomen, that they never
felt and perhaps never heard Of If in
duced to swell out the abdomen as promi-
nently as possible, they would be much
surprised to find the air rushing in through
the mouth, or through the nose if the
mouth was shut, without any conscious
''suction at all! In point of fact, there
would be simple substitution of volun-
tary and conscious action in abdominal
muscles little used in breathing, for the
unconscious action of chest muscles that
are so habitually used in breathing that
their action is never recognized, and the
effect, of air-suction, seems to be the real
act, which it is not.
The first lesson of a true teacher of sing
ing or elocution is to keep the abdomen
prominently expanded by voluntary excr-
ton OF is muscles, and to practice this I'M
til prOtuberance Of the abdomen, with re-
traction of the head and shoulders, becomes
the habitual posture in speaking or sing
ing, and the the actual agent of respiration,
all the time. Almost every pupil finds
the effort unnatural and tedious. The
neglected and flaccid abdominal muscles
almost Immediately feel weary, and beg to
be allowed to resign the bellows-blowing
to the chest muscles, which from habit
don't mind it in the least, or even feel it.
But until the abdominal organ blower gets
broken in to his duty, and performs it
faithfully, neither music nor speech can
be relied on; the limited scope of the
chest action alone will give out here and
there in a gasp, where long and mouth
filing clause or note demands plentiful re-
serve of air.
This reserve OF air is needful to be CON
stantly maintained, in speaking, singing, on
exercising, in order to practical success or
physiological benefit. Any one who has
ever worked a blacksmith's bellows but
for moment, will recall perfect illustra-
ton. The blacksmith's bellows breathes
with its abdomen; that is, with its lower
cavity; and sustains its steady blast by
constantly expanding that abdominal cav
ity to its uttermost, and so keeping
ample reserve of air within the chest. If
you should lift the under frame of the
bellows well up, expelling all the air in
one blast, keep it raised, and hurting is
motion to keep up 4 blowing in that
position, you would get a success
sion of gasps and puffs, alternately expell-
ing the air and drawing it back into the
bellows land the fire with it,; exactly as a
singer or speaker, unframed to abdominal
breathing, gets out of breath and gasps.
and pufis through a sustained passage. On
the other hand, the bellows-bIower. who
understands theuse of that organ. keeps It
expanded below, blowing always with a
full reserve, and the blast is as unfailing as
if the whole atmosphere were inside.
Now the reader who has an idea of the vital
Importance of these three things-copious
oxygenation of the blood, full expansion of
every nook and corner of the lungs, and
habitual activity in every muscle and
movable part of the abdomen-the latter
being, indeed, the grand specific for bo,h
prevention and cure of abdominal and fe-
male diseases, will at once see that among
all forms OF hygienlc exercise or gymnastic
training, abdominal breathing holds the
central place. And the reader who also
knows how this is in practice generally
will at once see that our little disgust
ton, elementary as it is, is as far as
possible from being trite or superfuous.
From our observation we Judge that not
one professor of vocal music or elocution in
hundred gives any just prominence to
abdominal breathing exercises, and that
comparatively few of them ever think of
such thing. And if thorough abdom-
inal breathing drill is included in auy
school or professional gympastic system.
we should be glad to hear of it and pub
lIsI II rs newS-news to us, at least, if not
N'A@NCio
If we had the framing of system of
physical culture for an institution. or for
any single boy or girl, we should place
abdominal breathing drill at the founda-
ton, and the first piece of superstructure
on that foundation should be q mastery
Development of the vocal powers in music
and elocution. Throat, chest and abdom-
mai diseases, compromising the princi-
pal cases of mortality, would be weil-nigh
abolished by such culture combined with
the usually accepted maxims of exercise
and diet. There is not an organ, muscle,
or channel of circulation, respiration, nu-
triton or elimination, that would not be
reinforced for resistance to the thousand
natural land unnatural) shocks that flesh
is heir to-
One of the most valuable of hygienic,
as well as musical and evolutionary exer-
cises, is to sing or declaim while walking,
with the abdomen constantly distended by
its muscles, and the head and shoulders
held back; the pace of both voice and
legs being adjusted according to ability,
and increased as ability increases.
At this point, it is impossible to over
look the fact that civilized women in gem
eral, with their habit of tight dressing
from childhood, and even in bed, move the
abdominal muscles and organs very little
in breathing, stagnate the blood below the
waist, and engender in themselves the
frightful host of female diseases that doc
tors now mainly subsist on, and that en-
gross the major part of current medi-
cal literature. A concientious teacher of
singing or elocution will not give lesson +.
to tightly-dressed girl. She must IN
lace and put on for the occasion at least !.
loose waist, or she cannot comply with the /
first requirement of proper vocal drill
Sanitary Era.