The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-03-31
SENATOR T|LLMAN NOW |SA WELL MAN Has Special Exercise Rules
 of His Own EXERCISES IN THE BED Famous South Carolina Senator Was Given Up As Physical Wreck but
 Is Just as Pitchforky
 as Ever
By SIDNEY EPsEY

l WdSDlHS lOut hIdICn - WV
 or three years ago Senator Benjamin R
 Ti1lman. the picturesque "Pitchfork' sen ator from South Carolina, suffered phy- sical and nervous breakdown whcf
 caused his friends to believe that he would
 never recover his health. He was obliged
 to remain away from the Senate for near | y year. and it was predicted that he | would never be able to return to the ac- | tivlties of public life, but that he would
 retire to die at the end of his present
 term.
 Today the South Carolina senator Is a well man, as robust and healthy as the | average man of his years, and he is stead 1 fly gaining in vlgor. He not only intends
 to return to the Senate, but expects to continue in active public service for many years. The story of the manner in which he recovered his health is interesting, as told by himself in Tillmanesque style. lt is story of physical culture and deep breathing as practiced by himself and gov erned by certain rules which he has writ ten out and given to some of his close as- sooiates and friends.
 Here are the original Tnlman health exercise lessons:
 1. Before getting up in the morning take the head off the pillow and stretch out, exhaling all the air from the lungs; then draw in all the air possible and hold it between movements. Kick briskly, first with one foot and then the other, 10 to 15 minutes.
 2 Draw up the knees with heels on the
 bed. Throw the knees far apart and swing together vigorously, so as to strain muscles of thighs
 B. Throw one foot, then the other to- ward head of bed; kick headboard If pos sible. still lying on back, kick upwards at least 15 times.
 l. Kick upwards with both feet and throw feet apart vigorously. If properly done this will bring into play muscles or dinarily little used.
 D. Stretch hands out so as to give lever age; put them behind spine, then throw
 both feet toward headboard. also using abdominal muscles to pull up lower eX- tremties; repeat up and down so as to strengthen such muscles five or six times, or as much as can be done with one
 breath This reduces the. paunch and changes fat into muscle and hardens ao- domnal muscles
 G. Grasp head of bed and throw up feet,
 pulling up body so as to stand as near on
 the head as possible. Throw feet up and down five six times. This develops l chest and shoulder muscles.
 | T. Fasten feet to foot of bed q use a cot which has d cross piece) and put trunk of body up to a sitting posture 1 dropping back and repeating four or five 1 times
 s. Throw back the head and draw UT | q hOItr ,Ia of h. | bed so that the shoulders do not touch. | Two or three times is enough for this | movement This completes the exercise | in bed.
 g. Get out of bed. take a cold bath and | rub down briskly. Put an undershirt
 and get light pair of dumb bells (mine
 are three and one-half pounds. l only use
 them to give momentum to the move-
 ments which are necessary to exercise the muscles of the arms and upper parts of the body) Standing flat footed and grasp
 ing the dumb bells, throw the arms down to the thighs barckward and return, swinging backward and forward as far as possible. l do this 15 times and then, continuing the same motion, bend the trunk forward and let the dumb bells swing down by the feet on each side, going near the floor as l can, five or | six times at least.
 | 10 Keep the knees strengthened, try to punch each great toe with each hand, strengthening up between each effort and coming back at 1t as though you meant | business. This stretches the muscles of | the calf and also the muscles of the back. | Il. Throw the head back and bend the neck as far as possible. looking at the | ceiling. Then stoop forward and touch | the floor in front of you if you can. This
 movement is to loosen the muscles of the 1 spine like working a rusty hinge. | 12 Using the dumb bells, swing them | backwards and forward, to the right and to | the left, one arm going by the belly while
 the other extends upward above the head as far as possible. As one goes down ele-
 vate the other This will lubricate and 1 losen the joints of the shoulders. 13 Extend the arms in front with the
 dumb bells clasped tightly. Throw both
 hands behind the back so as to bring | them as near together as possible, still | holding the dumb bells. Do this 10 times | A. Throw one hand to the rear and the
 other to the front Twist the spine, first ! looking over one shoulder and then the l other. Do this to loosen the spinal col
 umn and make the vertebrae twist, each i ticed sitting in chair with the face to-
 ward the back, but I think 1t is peter tc | do it standing, because the dumb bells as
 sist in making the twist more effective,
 15 Grasp the dumb bells tightly and
 swing forward first six times, then back
 ward six times, with each arm.
 16. Discard the dumb bells. straghter
 up and elevate the hands above the head | then drop the arm and bend the body un- l til you can touch the floor with the knees
 stiff. strengthening up and going down 2
 little lower each time. The first time tried this l got my head down as far as
 my knees, but now I can go to the fiool
 without much trouble. Take hold of tho bed or chair and squat as low as vol
 can: then straighten up and squat agair | six or eight times This will strengthen
 the calves. It has enabled me to rid,
 horseback and to mount the horse iron the ground
 These exercises Senator Tillman prac tices each morning before breakfast anC | at night before going to bed
 | The South Carolina senator has worked | out these exercises for himself and ha: followed the rules which he has laid down | AMID CC AnnD pETn