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About The Oregon daily journal. (Portland, Or.) 1902-1972 | View Entire Issue (June 27, 1915)
Government warns that . weare becoming a sed entary nation and that the death before the age of forty has materially .in creased. If you take no other form of ex ercise you should walk five miles a day. By DELIA AUSTRIAN. ALK, walk, walk," says Uncle Sam In a recent govern ment bulletin.' This comes not merely as a word of warn- " lng to the American men and women It la almost an imperative command. You must , walk if you would maintain your health and prolong' your life. tuu iiinj ue Buipriaeu io learn mat we death rate after the age of 40 is rapidly on the Increase, notwithstanding the fact that the average length of life has been In creased ten or fifteen years In the last twenty-five years. This is being caused, says our-official health bureau, by our in creased sedentary practices, which lead to -hardening of the arteries, high blood , pres sure and other diseases of degeneration. -' ' True, our mode of living- as a great deal ' more sanitary than it was thirty years ago and greater protection has been secured against communicable diseases. Counter- ' acting these measures, however, Is the fact ' that most of us' are occupied with mora-. sedentary work than were our parents and grandparents. Hither we work at home or in the office from seven to ten hours a day. , The average worker feels that because he is Interested in his work little harm Dr. William S. Sadler D R. -VVIIiMAM S. SADLER, one of I . ... . ; America's leading nerve specialists, is a firm believer in walking, and plenty of it. He says: . - walking is a great aia in tne manage ment of nervousness. It Improves the cir culation, not to mention the, digestion. It helps the neurasthenic to sweep away his mental cobwebs. I have found walking especially helpful in case it' can be carried on in groups in congenial company, but In the lesser, forms of neurasthenia even the lone cross-country walk is found diverting, If it can be indulged in in the spirit of James Whltcomb Riley's 'A Country Path way': :. C?55863 Bays Uncle Sam In muscles, arteries and other organs as a re-; day. Now, If one does housework, walks to JJ - - - " i WvJlNt V I T jFtVi recent eovern- BUlt sedentary occupation are weakening. and from the office, climbs stairs or engages v , I .WWS lAf A Ift 1 a . Ton should be Instinct be fond of walk- In any other line of work calling Into us I S P rli rni iiirTll "The Daily Ride io and From Work JHay in Many Cases Be Changed; With Profit, to a Daily Walk. There 'Are Few Men and Women Who Are Leaving Home in the . Morning for the Office Who Could Not Do Twenty to Forty City Blocks With the ' Utmost Ease." . .. rect. The scientific facts are that 'the muscles, arteries and other organs as a re-; suit of sedentary, occupation are weakening. Tou should be Instinct be fond of walk lng, because It is the most primitive and therefore the most natural exercise. Long before there were motor cars, trains or car riages men and women walked. Their only : other means of conveyance were horses, and riding is not such a bad exercise In itself. : Our ancestors, the cave man and care woman, had no tennis, golf, no rowing matches. Their only sport was walking and swimming, though occasionally they may have used the skull and bone for hockey or a similar game. Those who do not have to walk now because they have motor canf and street cars at their command should take as much exercise as possible. If you walk erectly the upper muscles of your body are energized, while the lower1 extremities are alternately contracted and "relaxed. The muscles of the chest are also contracted and strengthened. In walk ing you increase your respiratory action and this actually tends to increase as well as facilitate the burning up of poisonous tissues. ;' W';'.; - ,;-- By exchanging .pure air for foul air the appetite Is Increased, digestion promoted and the flow of the blood to the brain is stimulated. This means not better physical condition alone' but a better Quality of mental work. , ' 1 Advocate of Walking I com upon it suddenly, alone 1 ' A little pathtoav winding in the weeds That fringe the roedtide,'and vAtH dreamt ' ' my own t' -' I wander as it leads - ' FuU wistfully along the slender way; Through summer ran of freckled shade and shine, I take the path thTtt leads me as it mow Its every choice is mine. And though it needs must lure me mile on mile ' . Out of the publio highway, still I go. My thoughts, far in advance in Indian file, . . Allure me even so. The daily, ride to and -from work may In many cases be " changed ,with profit to a dally walk. . There are few men and women who are leaving home In the morning for the office, or In 'the evening -from the office -for home, who could not do twenty to forty xlty blocks with the ut most ease and with , the use of very little more time than Is con sumed In waiting on the corner for street .cars, and In the slow : journey of ; the trolley r through traffic-crowded streets. "The . amount ' of dally ' exer else required has been, the sub ject .. of much . discussion a In scientific 'circles. It Is lmpos- Bible to . offer . definite rules. Everything depends upon-the in- , dividual, his strength, 'the con-' dltlon of his muscles, etc ' It is ' my opinion that for; the average healthy' man or woman the daily amount of exercise which, would keep the twdy strong and healthy la represented by a five or six mile walk In the open air,: arms -1 THE OREGON SUNDAY JOU RNAL, PORTLAND; SUNDAY M ORNING, JUNE swinging, chest well expanded. muscles rotund, the spinal curve well main tained in fact, the whole body thoroughly energized. ' "It must be remembered that this rep-. resents the sum total of exercise for one day. Now, if one does housework, walks to and from the office, climbs stairs or engages In any other line of work calling into use various muscles of the body this work must be subtracted from the six-mile walk. This walk is suggested as representing- an agreeable form of exercise. .- - "Walking on a level surface at the rate of three miles : an hour ; represents an amount of physical work equal to lifting one-twentieth of the body weight; through the distance walked; that is, a man weigh ing 150 pounds walking six miles has done physical work equivalent ' to transporting'', seven and one-half pounds over the distance : walked1 six miles. " 1 , ' " , - "Stair climbing can be made to serve the place of mountain climbing."' In order to perform the exercise of lifting 150 tons one foot high (the daily required exercise for - the average healthy personequivalent to walking six ' miles ) , it would be necessary ; to go up and: down an ordinary flight of stairs -150 times during the day. .4. "A good form of Indoor exercise is .'run ning In place' such as taught at the gym Coach Stagg Says "Walk More, Ride Less" ALONZO STAGG, professor and director of departments of physical culture and athletics at the University of Chicago, ap proves of the statement made by the public . health service and by ; Dr. Sadler. ? As he puts it, "Walk more and ride less, rrown on the auto car no-less than the street tcar when you have a chance to wallL'? Walking . Is decidedly good ; it Is the best general ex ercise. It gives movements to all the parts of the Jtody. except the arms. If you hold yourself straight you giveplenty of play to the muscles of the back. ? The propelling , movement gives play to the abdominal and leg muscles. If you swing the arms with vigor you give play to the muscles of the arm, the superficial muscles of the thorax and the intercostal muscles. "By InBaling properly you put plenty of fresh air into the lungs" to drive out the impure air,- and develop the chest. The muscles of the dlaphram are given their share of exercise and grow strong. . The average person should find his even rait in walking and try - to keep it. ' A certain amount of running is good, because It con tracts the abdominalmusclea, develops the muscles of the legs and brings the poison ous secretions to the surface. . For this rea son it Is a good form of exercise for the man or woman wanting to reduce. . . "Young children should do their, share of walking and running every day. These are their chief exercises and they develop the muscles of the arms and - legs as well as those - of the chest.' As - they grow ; older they commence to have their games and their Indoor sports. If they go in for base- . ball and football, tennis," golf ; and swim ming they need to walk and run less. Though they do all this they should be made to walk to and rom school. Under no circumstances should they be allowed to' use . an : auto car or - street car instead of their tvsjD legs. It Is a painful' sight these . days to see the children of the rich riding '"to and from school In auto cars and the ? children of the middle classes In street cars. ' One reason why -golf is-such a splendid ex--j ercise Is it forces men and women to walk bdondfial Xrrf X I wN bs i " lr nasium. Heel raising' Is an other good form of exercise. Rising on the toes (raising ' heel . two Inches each - time) fifteen hundred times Is equal to walking one mile, or (in . case of person - weighing 200 . pounds) i lifting twenty-five tons one foot high. - ' . "Some hearty Individuals when threatened with a cold are able to abort It by taking - " a long walk in the open air. This is a good Idea, provided ' 4 there V no fever and the cold Is taken early." In the case 4 of weakened or only moder ately strong persons, -and" where the cold has ' had - a good start; It would certainly be unwise to at tempt to break it up by such measures.'-'' . over a. great area without any conscious ef fort. If you can .plky eighteen holes of ' golf and feel refreshed you ought to get the ' same pleasure and. recreation from a five-" mile walk. . ' . r "Walking is a splendid exercise for old people, because it keeps the blood quickened and the muscles : relaxed .without putting -any special strain on the vital organs of the body.' Ton will get benefit from walkv ing at all times.. 'j -?Tha early morning Is a very good time ' to walk, because it stimulates the body. It makes, you wide awake and creates a feel-, , ln' of hunger. - Walking In the evening is also good if done in moderation, because , it relaxes and refreshes the tired muscles -and the contracted parts of the body. - If you cannot get up enough enthusiasm to do'' your share of walking alone Join a walking ; club. Others will teach you to get pleasure from walking if you" cannot learn this alone." If yon hare ever visited the foremost sanitariums"' and hospitals in this country and 'Europe you have found out that physi- dans are making more and more use of exercise, fresh air and water. , When ;; It Why Uncle Sam f HERB is no country which carries I 1 so large a pension list In proportion to the size of its' army as the United States., The pension system was started early in the life of our nation and was en larged tremendously: by the civil war and the late Spanish-American war. ' ' In the year 1866,' immediately following the close of the civil war,' the appropriation by " Congress for ; the payment of pensions amounted to a little more than 115,000,000.' In 1911, - at :. forty-five"; years later, ' the ' amountpaid out on account was $157,325, .160.35a Annual pension payments on ' ac-count- of the civil war have Increased ten fold fifty years after the close of the war ' and continue . on : an ascending scale.' Since the close of the war In 1865 pension payments o , account - of service. In . that war aggregate upward of S4,00( 000,000. "r - When' pensions were first provided for In this country, they ' were supposed to 27, 191 J. .- ; 'f. - How to Walls ' Coinrecftlly t0 GET the most from walking, you should learn to walk erectly. . X Be sure' to hold your chest and head high. . Keep your arms to your side or let them swing modestly. . You should have an energized carriage and the right way to get ft is to get your movement from the hips." Walk with your legs, not by a swing or swaying of the whole body. - ; : I Step into the length and do not turn the knees out so much. See how smoothly you can glide along and take natural deep breaths as you move. ..'' This will give you the feeling that you are being wafted through space instead of laboriously treading oh hard earth. Tip the upper part, of your body slightly forward to partly cover your feet. Try to forget your feet and create a desire to attract attention to yourhead instead. .' " . ' ; v .. Stnke down with the heel, but let the weight slip to the outer and -fore part of the foot and this will break the jar on the sole of the foot and lessen the strain on the arch. v. r ' 5 . , If you are not a walking, enthusiast, begin your regime gradually. - Start to cover, a, mile, then; two and gradually work up to five or sijc. Any man or woman should be able to walk five miles and even sue or eight without feeling any bad effects. ' , ' " - comes to the treating of lung, diseases and nervous troubles they use fresh air and ex- ; ercise more than anything else." A part of Pays $157,325,160 in Pensions preach the '.real veterans who were dls-abled- through wounds or disease. - As years went by: the resourcefulness of the pension list was Increased to Include the , deserter, so long . as be did not leave his . . command --while in, the presence of the -., enemy. " ' , ' - ' The V short ., Spanish-American -:'. war i swelled our- pension list greatly .The re-: - port of the . commissioner . of ' pensions shows that between 4uly, 1801, and Jane ; 13, ' 1900, invalid pensions were allowed tinder the general law" to 55655 volun ; teers; and under the act of June 27, 1890, to 45131, a' total of 1,007.786. During the period from July 1, 1861, to Jan. 1, 1901, ; pensions were fallowed - to 80263 regulars, " . including the wounded and invalided men of more than, thirty years ol almost con' tant Indian warfare. "" To make the comparison Intelligible, - the total number of volunteers who en "listed In the dvll war,' reduced to a basis .'"of three years service, Is 224,516 men." - The total' number of men on the rolls of ZOUR CoslameTJas Much to Do With Pleasant Walk ing. Make Yourself 'Comfortable First, Then Strike Out: the treatment Is to rest In the open, to work ; and walk in the open. Take a hint from these patients and keep well by walking. the- regular armr during the Vhole period ; from 1801 to 1901 is 077,000, Including re enlistments. Vp to June SO, 1900, 1,007,786 volun teers out of 224516 were In receipt of pensions,' while only 30,266 regulars out of 577,000 were recipients of such bounty. This shows that the regulars have been ' singularly free 4 m pension ' seeking, and the 'volunteers have not. The Increase of expense ''tor short-term - volunteers arises not only from censiona but from waste and. injury of public prop erty.'' Washington observed such , condl tions'at the very beginning of the revolu tionary war, when he wrote 'from' Harlem , Heights on Sept. 24," 1776. the following: ,"It becomes evident to me that as this contest is not likely to be the work of a day, as the war must be carried on system atically, and to do it you - must have good officers, there are no possible means to obtain them but by establishing your army upon a'permanent;footlng,' and glr " lng your oficers good pay," '