Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1895-01-24
A Generous Diet.

at boxing or fencing.
A Generous Diet.
Early hours both in going to bed an&
getting up are enforced, and meals are
served with the regularity of clock
work. But they are by no means the
scant and attempting repasts of for
mer training tables. A great improve
ment in this respect has been made.
Of course the athlete of to-day does
not drink Manhattan cocktails before
breakfast or champagne at dinner nor
does he regale himself on lobster a la
Newburg and charlotte russo, but, on
the other hand, he isn't forced to
starve on small portions Of raw meat,
or taught to regard butter and sugar
as second in deleteriouS effects only
to strychine. He eats pretty much
what he pleaSeS, so long as it is plain
and wholesome, and he eats all he
wants, which is apt to be a great
deal. AS for drinks, he may drink ale
if he will, or cold tea, or even coffee,
if his trainer be indulgent, early in the.
season; but later he is held more
strictly to account in the matter of
liquids, and as he is pretty likely to
tire of ale soon, the beginning Of the
fall work is apt to find him combining
himself to good cold water.
If at any time he shows signs Of
becoming stale from entertaining, he
lays off for day or two and his diet.
restrictions are relaxed. Under this
treatment the athlete feels by the end
of summer as if he was capable of
almost anything. His muscles are
rounded and flexible, his whole body
is Timber and the flush and eXhilara-
ton of absolute health inspire every
movement that he makes and every
breath that he draws. He could go.
into a prize ring fit to put up the
fight Of his life. But fighting and.
football are two entirely separate
things, although there are those who
hold a different opinion. The summer
trained athlete, after his return to
college, has little practice at falling
on the ball and trying experiments
with a tackltng bag. He begins to,
feel a little lame about the time he
is called ON to come out and play his.
first practice game. 1t only lasts a.
few minutes, that first game, but When
it is over the unhappy player feels as
if he were a teleScOped railroad car.
He IS almost ready to give up football
and study for the ministry. Every
bone in his body aches; his flesh is
covered with bruises, he is scratched
and wrenched and torn and battered
and angry and sore, and he goes to
bed so swathed in bandages that a
nightshirt is entirely superfluous.
For day or two he moves about in
the manner Of a centenarian, but soon
his long weeks of steady living and
sturdy exercise begin to tel, and the
deep blue hue Of things in general
gets a shade lighter His second day
of play isn't half 50 bad, and within
a week he is able to stand up under
an hour Of punishment such as would
make most pugilists throw up the
sponge. At that point his training is
practically completed. All that he
-
hardening, and that he quickly got in
the rough contact Of play. His spirits
come back, he is hard as a rock and
strong as a lion, and, barring acci1-
ents, will go to the championship field
as fine piece of human machinery
as ever did the work Of a battering
ram for the humbling of his opponents
and the glory Of his alma mater.
For rowing, track athletics and base
ball the training is much the same,
but somewhat less rigid, and without
the hardening process. Baseball train
ing is the most similar to football, re-
quiring, as it does, a general activity
and strength, whereas rowing and
track athletics call for special train
ing and attention to certain muscles
or sets of muscles. But the great re-
quisite for every kind Of athletic sport
is unvarying patience in exercise and
unquestioning obedience to rules.