Daily Exercises and Home Development [1922]: Part 1 - Intro + Bridging

The four exercises following should be taken every morning by everybody regardless of age, preferably in the open air or if that is not possible, by an open window so that fresh air can be breathed into the lungs. Each of these exercises properly done takes only five minutes. If this is too long cut each exercise in half and take two and a half minutes, but if possible get the full benefit by taking the full time.

If these exercises are faithfully observed every day they will keep any man in excellent condition and will not take from his vitality of the day. He will not go to work or school feeling tired, but fresh and vigorous.

These four exercises are the best that have ever been presented for muscle, for bodily health and for the retention of youthful agility and sense of orientation, and also the training and coordination of brain and muscle.

Before starting them please do one thing: Determine upon regular routine exercise. Get the habit.

Bridging

Select a bed with a fairly hard mattress or a lounge or a couch, or place a pillow on the floor, giving a comfortable place for the head to rest.

Lie flat on your back. Raise the weight of your body from the bed or floor by means of throwing the chin up in the air (as in Figs. 1 and 2). The hands can be placed either at the waist or on both sides of the jaw. Lower your body again so that the shoulders touch the bed or floor and then raise it again. This is called bridging and is known to wrestlers. You will find that when the weight of your body is raised from the bed or floor that the only points of contact will be the back of your head and your heels or the sides of your feet.

This exercise increases the strength of the neck and the muscles of the back tremendously.

Bridging. Lie flat on your back. Raise weight of the body by throwing the chin up in the air.

Lower body again till the shoulders touch the floor; then raise it again.

NOTE: The writer performs this exercise 50 times every morning and finds it most beneficial. He would suggest commencing this exercise very gradually, working up to a convenient number of times with the utmost caution, as these muscles are seldom used by anyone except wrestlers, and are consequently not strong and easily strained.

Front Bridging

Turn on the stomach, place your forehead on the pillow or mattress with your toes up against the bottom of the bed or the wall (if performing this exercise on the floor, as in Fig. 3). Raise the weight of your body from the floor or the bed, allowing only the point of contact of your forehead and your toes to support your body (as in Fig. 4). Permit the weight of your body to be lowered until the stomach touches the bed or the floor and then raise it again in the manner described. Hands behind the back. This will cause the front muscles of the neck and the front part of the body to be well tensioned and will strengthen the muscles of the abdomen and neck wonderfully.

Front Bridging. Turn on the stomach. Place for head on the pillow or mattress with toes up against the wall. Race weight of the body, allowing only the point of contact of your forehead and toes to support the weight.

Lower body until stomach touches the floor, then raise again.

NOTE: We believe this to be one of the most beneficial exercises for reducing fat around the stomach. Execute this exercise a sufficient number of times. It can be performed as many as 50 times When one becomes fairly expert.