Hints on Exercise by Dudley A. Sargent

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Feb 25, 1886

Hints on Exercise.

By Dudley A. Sargent

WE have often heard it said that any physical exercise to be of benefit must be interesting and enjoyable. But many persons are greatly improved by exercises that are by no means either attractive or pleasurable, such as the manipulation of dumb-bells or the lifting of heavy weights. In fact, our daily life is made up of exercises that are dull, monotonous, and uninteresting in themselves; and yet what man is prepared to say that these exercises do not contribute to the welfare of both mind and body?

What, then, is the meaning of this assertion which has furnished the drones and sluggards of the world an excuse for idleness and inactivity? Do you see that man walking leisurely along, with his eyes fixed upon the ground, and his hands glued to his pockets? His feet are scarcely raised, his steps are unequal, and he stumbles about like a person intoxicated. Contrast this man’s walk with that of the man opposite. There the head is erect, the shoulders thrown back, the arms swinging like piston rods, and the feet moving with regularity and exactness.

I happen to know that neither of these persons enjoys walking. Both of them are walking for exercise. The former, who is an inventor by profession, is thinking over some intricate problem and is simply lost in it. He has not the slightest idea where he is this moment, or what he is doing. The latter is a man of business; he has finished his work for the day, and he has left his office with its trials and annoyances behind him. For the time being he is giving himself up to walking as a means of physical exercise and development.

In one case the muscles are contracting feebly for want of nerve stimulus, the blood is circulating slowly, the lungs are taking but a trifle more air than they would if the person were in a sitting posture, and the whole machinery of the system is slowed down to support the activity of the brain.

In the other case the muscles are under the immediate control of the brain as well as the central nervous system. The function of the heart and the lungs is greatly increased, and the blood is coursing rapidly through its channels, carrying life and animation with it. Here an exercise which is largely local in its effects becomes general through the energy and vigor given to it by the mind.

Remember that there can be no muscular action without nervous stimulus. Paralyze the nerves, and you incapacitate the muscles. Stimulate the nerves, and you increase the strength of the muscles accordingly. The mind furnishes the natural stimulus for the muscles.

The object in view, the result to be obtained, the good to be reached, furnish most of us a motive for action. No matter how disagreeable the exercise may be in itself, if you have sufficient force of character to give it your attention it will do you good. If you have not, exercise will accomplish but little for you, though it be made ever so interesting and attractive.

If you are suffering from nervous prostration, and need relaxation or mental rest, that is another thing. But if you are in search of physical vigor and muscular strength, do not make yourself ill pining for a horse, a boat, a bicycle, or a gymnasium, because you think that nothing else will interest you. Make the best of the opportunities you have. Get thoroughly interested in your physical welfare, and put your mind into your muscles in whatever you have to do. Elevate yourself above your circumstances, and make play of work—not work of play. Try this for a while, and you will be astonished to see how much lifting boxes, rolling barrels, handling iron, climbing stairs, running errands, and other disagreeable duties, can contribute to your physical strength and development.—Prof. D. A. Sargent, M. D., in Congregationalist.