Keeping Fit All the Way, Walter Camp [best mobile ebook reader .TXT] 📗
- Author: Walter Camp
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Book online «Keeping Fit All the Way, Walter Camp [best mobile ebook reader .TXT] 📗». Author Walter Camp
If you have a stake in life, it is worth playing the game for all there is in it.
The man who gets things is the one who pulls up his belt a hole tighter and goes out after them.
If you will save your smoke till after luncheon, you'll never have smoker's heart.
A bath, cold if you please, hot if you must, with a good rub, starts the day right.
CHAPTER XIGrind: (The order is "Shoulder Grind. Ready—Cross. Balance Turn. Grind!") Assume the "Cross"[2] position. (See Fig. 2, Chapter V.) The palms are then turned up, with the backs of the hands down and the arms forced back as far as possible. (See Fig. 4.)
Then to a measured counting—"One, two, three, four, five," up to ten—circles of twelve-inch diameter are described with the finger tips, the latter moving forward and upward, the arms remaining stiff and pivoting from the shoulders. On the backward movement of the circle the arms should be forced back to the limit. A complete circle should be described at each count. Then reverse, going through the same process, the circles being described in the opposite direction.
In the "Grind" exercises special precaution should be taken not to let the center of the circle, that the hands are making, come in front of the shoulders; it should be straight out in the horizontal position; moreover, as the arm goes backward an attempt should be made to make the shoulder-blades almost meet. This is particularly necessary on the reverse—that is, when the hands are coming forward—for here the tendency, unless men keep the shoulders back, is to contract the chest.
Grate: (The order is "Shoulder Grate. Ready—Cross. Grate!") Assume the "Cross" position. Then at a count of "One" the arms are slowly raised, as a deep inhalation is taken, to an angle of forty-five degrees from horizontal; at the same time the heels are raised till the weight of the body rests on the balls of the feet. (See Fig. 5.)
Another fault in this exercise is letting the head come forward. The neck should be kept back all the time
At "Two" the arms are slowly returned to "Cross" as all air is exhaled and the heels are lowered to a normal position. Care should be taken to see that the arms are not allowed to drop below the level of the shoulders or to rise more than forty-five degrees. The arms should be raised and lowered ten times.
FIG. 5 A.—SECOND POSITION OF GRATE FIG. 5 A.—SECOND POSITION OF GRATE
The caution in the "Grate" position is not to let the arms drop, even a fraction of an inch, below the horizontal, and not to let them go up above the angle of forty-five degrees, for in either of these cases there is a distinct rest given to the shoulder muscles. Most of the ordinary exercises of this kind carry the arms above the head; this always releases the effort of the shoulder muscle and is therefore nearly valueless as an exercise for these members.
Another fault in this exercise is letting the head come forward. The neck should be kept back all the time.
Grasp: (The order is "Head Grasp. Ready—Cross. Grasp!") Assume the "Cross" position. Then place the hands behind the head. With head up and eyes front, and in time with the counting, "One, two, three, four," the body is bent forward from the waist as far as possible. (See Fig. 6.)
The body is returned to the upright in the same number of counts, and at an unusually slow "One" it is bent as far back as comfortable only from the waist, being returned to the upright at "Two." Care should be taken to see that this motion is slow and not jerky. The entire movement should be repeated five times.
In the "Grasp" position it is not necessary to go to an extreme on the backward movement; only so far as is really comfortable. In the forward movement the body should come down practically at right angles to the hips, but the head should not be allowed to drop forward. The head should be kept up, with the elbows back and the eyes looking to the front.
Vacillation and doubt are poison to the nerves.
Fear is the forerunner of illness.
"Eyes in the boat" is as good a maxim at drill as in a shell.
When drinking a glass of water stand erect and take a full breath first; then drink with chest out and hips back and head up.
The men who chase the golf-ball don't have to pursue the doctor.
Two hours of outdoor exercise by the master never yet made him over-critical of the cook.
Nature never punished a man for getting his legs tired. She has punished many for getting their nerves exhausted.
The best record in golf is the record she has made of restored health to the middle-aged.
See how high you can hold your head and deeply you can breathe whenever you are out of doors.
Six to eight glasses of water a day, none with meals, will make you free of doctors.
[2]
On the "Cross" position, the arms should be straight out horizontally from the body, with the elbows locked. At the same time every resistance should be placed against the head and neck coming forward at all. These should be held in exactly the same position as at "Attention." The tendency is either to let the arms bend a little, or to let them drop a little below the horizontal, or even to hold them slightly above the level.
CHAPTER XIICrawl: (The order is "Crawl. Ready—Cross. Crawl!") Assume the "Cross" position. The left palm is then turned up, and on a count of "One, two, three, four" the left arm is raised and the right arm is lowered laterally until at "Four" the right arm should be in a position of "Hands," while the left arm should be extended straight up, with the palm to the right. (See Fig. 7.)
Then on the count of "One, two, three, four" the body is slowly bent sideways from the waist, the right hand slipping down the right leg to or beyond the knee, and the left arm bending in a half-circle over the head until the fingers touch the right ear. (See Fig. 8.) At "Four" the position of "Cross" is quickly resumed, and at "Two" of the next counting the right palm is turned up and the exercise is completed in the opposite direction.
In the "Crawl" position it is not necessary, in the beginning of the exercise, to slide the hand down the hip any farther than is perfectly comfortable. But this distance should be gradually increased, and it will be found quite easy to do this as the muscles of the side become more and more supple.
Curl: (The order is "Curl. Ready—Cross. Curl!") Assume the "Cross" position. In this movement, at "Cross" the feet are spread until the heels are about twelve inches apart. The left foot remains stationary, the right foot being moved to accomplish this. On a count of "One, two, three, four," at the same time inhaling slowly, the fists and lower arms are bent down from the elbows, which are kept pressed back, and the fists are slowly curled up into the armpits. This position should be reached at "Three," when the head and shoulders should be forced back rather strongly, reaching the limit of motion at "Four." (See Fig. 9.) Again on the count of "One, two, three, four," at "One" the arms are extended straight forward from the shoulders, with the palms down, and exhalation is begun.
At "Two" the arms begin to fall and the body bends forward from the waist, head up and eyes front, until, at "Four," the
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