And perhaps she’ll take a good long look at herself, noting certain hollows in the cheek, certain knobs in the elbows, a certain chronic weariness, (not to mention crossness) and she’ll think: “Maybe I should try to build up a little.” When that time comes, we do hope that Mrs. Plenteous lends her this booklet.
FIGURE IT OUT
Many over or underweight people love to blame their figures on their ancestors. (If they’re perfect 36’s, of course, they take all the credit themselves.) “My dear grandmother weighed 200 pounds, so there’s not a thing I can do about it,” beams Mrs. Plenteous, splashing the third lump of sugar in her coffee. “My family tree was a beanpole,” sighs Miss Gaunt. “No thanks—no sugar or cream.”
The truth is that, according to anthropologists, there are in general three types of body build: the stout, the medium, and the lean. You may possibly have inherited your grandmother’s type of figure, just as you may also have inherited her house. But there’s no law against remodeling the house—or the figure. Surely the smart thing is to make the house the best possible house of its type, one which you’ll enjoy living in; and the figure the best possible figure of its type—one you’ll enjoy living with.
IT SHOULD BE DONE
Perhaps we’ve dwelt overmuch on the good looks angle. But surely the right angle on good looks is good health. To be under par is to be caught short on the reserves which, if you have them, do so much to cushion the bumps of hectic modern living, and ward off the illnesses that pounce so gleefully on the tired, the rundown, the undernourished human frame.
IT CAN BE DONE
A wise nutritionist has said, “There are two ways of building up, just as there are two ways of getting rich. One is to cut down on your expenses, the other is to increase your income.”
The “expenses” are energy, and you can decrease them by taking more rest, less violent exercise, more sleep, and by keeping calm. The “income” is food. And the thing to do with it is to eat more of it—and more choosily of it! For though music may be the food of love, the food of growth is groceries!