8. Questions & Answers

When a person is very weak from a long history of erroneous living, I fail to see how exercise could possibly benefit that person. Can you clarify this for me?

I will do my best. That's a good question. In extremely weak persons, exercise might properly be contra-indicated. A fast with complete bed rest might be in order for a time. However, remember that most ill persons have lived a sedentary life. Healing and repair will not be possible until their wounded sick cells have their toxic load removed and they then receive the nutritive materials they require for reparative and healing purposes. By exercising specific areas that is exactly what we encourage: the directing of the lymph and blood to the areas most in need of cleansing and feeding by free-flowing fluids.

How do you know when it is time to introduce exercise?

That's an easy question. You try out a few passive exercises and observe the response. If the patient soon exhibits fatigue, you stop, wait for a suitable resting phase and then you try again.

Why is the lymph so difficult to activate?

The lymph flows first into the lymph nodes and has to be squeezed out by the contraction and relaxation of the musculature in that section of the body where the lymph nodes are located. By this squeezing action, the lymph is sent forth into the lymphatic channels and thence into the bloodsteam. As you see, therefore, without exercise, this lymphatic flow is minimal.

Why are feelings so important in healing?

The mind gives a clear picture actually of the body. When the mind is sad, the whole body is sad, also.
All the metabolic activities throughout the entire body are similarly depressed. When fear grips us in the thought body, it also grips body action via the autonomic nervous system. It can even stop digestion entirely. We have all degrees of feelings. As they fluctuate from happy to sad, so does our body activity. Illness traps our feelings in depression, sometimes quite deep. A healthy state imparts a happy state, not only to the mind but actually throughout the entire body, a state revealed by systemic harmony. George S. Weger, M.D. was the first person, I believe, to note the importance of mental poise to health. His views were supported by J. H. Tilden and, in later years by much research.

I like the tension exercises. Why do you especially recommend them for ill people. Would they not be good for everyone?

Certainly. As you perform them, you will probably notice that you will use muscles you have not used for some time. You will note that, if you perform each exercise in sequence, that you will have exercised just about every part of your body. And all this without needlessly wasting your vital force as so many people do without understanding the purpose of exercise, which is to encourage circulatory flow of fluids to accomplish two purposes: 1. to remove toxins and 2. to bring food to the cells. Do we need hours of exercise to accomplish that purpose? Let's use our heads!
As for the first part of your question. They are especially good for ill people just because they do not call for any undue expenditure of vital force. Also, the number of reps can be adjusted to individual strengths as well as the depth of the exercises being used.