The Macfadden Monthly

The Macfadden Monthly October, 2009

2009-10-03T15:00:13Z

October, 2009

CONTENTS

Cosmotarianism

"To all who are weary-worn and suffering from the ills of the flesh and spirit; who have prayed and failed; who have tried the conventional way of healing and restoration, come and find this Cosmotarian Gospel the way of redemption and resoration." - Bernarr Macfadden

By 1944 Macfadden's influence as the health guru of the first half of the 20th century was beginning to wane. "It was perhaps with this waning influence in mind that Macfadden embarked on what may have been the strangest project of his amazing career. In 1944, he filed papers in Florida to start his own religion. He named this new creed Cosmotarianism." (Quoted from Mark Adams's recent biography of Macfadden, Mr. America.)

Indeed, Cosmotarianism was strange. However, Macfadden had always been very much the Physical Culture evangelist. Indeed, you could even say that health was his religion. When we look at his history, perhaps the tenets of the new religion had existed all along in Macfadden's thinking. Now, he was simply giving them a name.

Title page of a Cosmotarian publication. The title was certainly borrowed from Christian Science.
Notice the slogan at the top, "Sickness Is a Sin - Don't Be a Sinner"

The body is a temple

Macfadden's image of Jesus - "the strong man!"

The body has the ability to heal itself.

The Cosmotarian Gospel combined Christian beliefs with Macfadden's teachings
on diet, exercise, and natural treatment of ailments. In fact, it is in the Cosmotarian publications
that his theories are most concisely summarized.

(Continued next month)

Karen�s Raw Vegan Cauliflower Salad

Salad Ingredients

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1 head fresh organic cauliflower, cut into bite-size florets

1 organic red bell pepper, diced (yellow or green pepper may be substituted)

1 c organic grape tomatoes, halved

½ c raw pine nuts (optional � I love these and try to sneak them into everything)

Dressing ingredients:

½ c raw organic sesame tahini (keep refrigerated)

Juice of 1 lemon

1/8 t hot cayenne pepper (90 H.U. � you may actually want to start with less than 1/8 t if you use pepper with this many heat units)

Celtic sea salt or Himalayan pink salt, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Garnish:

½ bunch of fresh cilantro (most people either love or hate cilantro � if you hate it, by all means, substitute another fresh herb that you like, such as fresh chopped mint, basil, dill, tarragon, etc)

Directions:

Combine salad ingredients in a very large bowl.

Mix dressing ingredients in a separate, smaller bowl. I use a small whisk to blend the lemon juice into the thick tahini paste. I sometimes add the juice of an additional lemon or a little water to think the dressing just a bit more. The tahini, straight out of the jar, is thick, like dough or thick paste. You don�t want your dressing to be runny, but a thick creamy consistency.

Add cayenne (use caution), salt & pepper to taste. Blend well with small whisk or fork and pour over salad ingredients. Stir gently to distribute dressing evenly.

Sprinkle chopped cilantro (or other fresh herb) over the top of cauliflower salad. Yum.

The Vita-Mix machine
We Use Ours Everyday!
CLICK HERE for Details

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For State-of-the-Art Exercise Equipment!

All products mentioned here are ones that we use and enjoy ourselves.

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The Macfadden Monthly Addendum

2009-08-30T10:14:11Z

There is a video in this month's newsletter about making smoothies. For security reasons, your e-mail account may have blocked the video. If you would like to see it click on this link:

http://www.bernarrmacfadden.com/fruitsmoothie.html

Jim Bennett

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The Macfadden Monthly September, 2009

2009-08-30T09:25:58Z

September, 2009
"I love life!"

CONTENTS

Macfadden, the Aviator

Macfadden took an interest in avaition early in his career. He was a pioneer in the use of air travel for business and owned several airplanes during his lifetime. At first, he hired pilots to do the flying for him around the country. Later he got his pilot's license and did the piloting himself. He was quite proud of the fact that he could pass the physical even when he was past seventy. Although, a pioneer aviator, he was not an especially skilled pilot. His method of navigation relied on his being able to descend close enough to the ground to observe the terrain!

Below are several photographs showing Macfadden as an aviator. Most of these are self-explanatory. I want to thank Mr. Peter St. Phillip, grandson of Macfadden, for the wonderful pictures he provided of his grandfather's pilot's license.

The plaque in the center says, "Bernarr Macfadden and his Lockheed Vega airplane in which he visited the Republican and Democratic Conventions in Kansas City and Houston and had the pleasure of being the first man who attended the conventions to personally congratulate the successful candidates for Presidency." This airplane was named "Miss True Story."

With Walter Lees, a noted pilot of the day, who flew Macfadden to the conventions.

Another airplane and 2 friends

Macfadden's pilot's license signed by Orville Wright!

A racing airplane. I believe this must be the airplane which Macfadden sponsored to try to set a record crossing the Atlantic Ocean. Macfadden was not on board when the attempt was made, and it crashed at sea. The pilots were rescued, but the plane was lost.

In the cockpit of his Beechcraft airplane, which may have been his last airplane. From the looks of his hair, it must have been a windy day!

Parachuting at Dansville, NY, being greeted by his wife, Johnnie Lee. When he reached his eighties, he took up parachuting on his birthdays (something that the older President Bush has done on his recent birthdays).

Today smoothies are a popular food item, and Macfadden would have certainly approved!
See a Video Demo - How To Make a Fruit Smoothie

The Vita-Mix machine
We Use Ours Everyday!
CLICK HERE for Details

For the Exercise Solution on a Budget!

For State-of-the-Art Exercise Equipment!

All products mentioned here are ones that we use and enjoy ourselves.

Please e-mail us with questions and comments

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The Macfadden Monthly August, 2009

2009-07-21T22:22:32Z

August, 2009

CONTENTS

Rare Photos From Around 1910

Please Take a Moment and Visit This Advertiser -
The Ultimate Source for Home Exercise Equipment!

Rare Photos

(The following is a member's only preview of a soon-to-be-added section of my web site.)

Included with the first editions of Macfadden's Encyclopedia of Physical Culture, was a set of charts which had duotone (black and orange) photographs showing Macfadden demonstrating several exercises. It is extremely difficult to find these charts today; in almost every case the charts have been removed from the encyclopedia. Fortunately, I was able to find the complete set in a used book store in Canada. I have selected seven poses. These show what Macfadden looked like around 1910. He would have been in his early forties.

The hair style in this and the following photos is different from the hair style in the previous photos.
Also, he is not wearing tights. This indicates that the photos were taken at two different times.

This is only a small selection of the exercise photos. If you would be interested in seeing the entire exercise routine in future issues, please let me know.

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The Macfadden Monthly July 2009

2009-06-27T11:41:18Z

July 2009

"Muscle building is surely the first step toward acquiring strength and the only means by which bodily perfection may be attained." -Bernarr Macfadden

CONTENTS

Early Macfadden Sanitariums Update to web site by Jim Bennett
Special Recipe by Karen Bennett

This edition has a lot of images. If it does not load, please CLICK HERE to see everything.

Please Take a Moment and Visit Our Newest Advertiser!

Early Macfadden Sanitariums

(The following is a member's only preview of a newly updated section of my web site.)

Throughout his career there was hardly ever a time when Macfadden did not operate at least one health home or sanitarium for the treatment of patients. These establishments provided opportunities for him to put his theories into practice and also for him to publicize the results as proof of the efficacy of his methods.

In 1900 he established his first health home in Hudson, New York, just 50 miles north of New York City. Within a few years he opened another home at Lake Ronkonkoma on Long Island.

When he opened Physical Culture City, Macfadden began building a facility to treat up to 100 patients. (See last month's newsletter for a photo of the building when it was near completion.)

In 1907, shortly before his conviction on obscenity charges, Macfadden leased a magnificent multi-story building in Battle Creek, Michigan, a community which had become the mecca for the natural health movement. This sanitarium could house 400 patients and competed very successfully with John Harvey Kellogg's famous sanitarium which was also in Battle Creek. It was here that the author, Upton Sinclair, came for treatrment and was thereafter a lifelong friend, supporter, and outspoken advocate for Macfadden's methods.

A magnificent building

The main portico

The porch

The parlor

The main lobby - notice the beautiful woodwork

Men's gym class

In 1909 Macfadden closed the sanitarium in Battle Creek (he complained that the rent he was paying was far too high) and bought an even more spacious building in Chicago which had previously been the home of the Lakeside Club, a prominent jewish club. He named this establishment the Bernarr Macfadden Healthatorium. This building housed both a sanitarium and his training school. Although in 1911 Macfadden officially dropped formal connection with the Healthatorium to avoid legal entanglements, the Healthatorium continued to operate successfully under the supervision of Mrs. Susie Wood until 1924 when the building was sold to a black church. Later that same year the building was burned to the ground by an arsonist.

Another truly magnificent building

The reading room

The gym - a large facility outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment

The 60-foot swimming pool

A letter signed by Macfadden on Healthatorium stationery
Notice the slogan, "Disease Cured Without Drugs"

During his long career Macfadden continued to operate numerous other treatment facilities both in the US and England (he once advocated setting up a health home near every major US city). However, it was really not until he purchased the Jackson Sanitarium (which he renamed the Physical Culture Hotel) in Dansville, NY in 1929 that he had an operation on as large a scale as either his sanitarium in Battle Creek or his Healthatorium in Chicago.

Karen's Portabella & Tomatoes over Zucchini Pasta
Recipe by Karen Bennett

This was a really easy dish to make. Measurements are not exact, but this is more or less how I made it
- simple and only used one appliance in addition to my knife:

INGREDIENTS
4 portabella mushrooms
2 large tomatoes
4 zucchini
1/4 Vidalia onion, sliced thinly and cut into smaller strips
a couple handfuls of pine nuts
8 - 10 fresh basil leaves, chopped (you can substitute 2 T dried basil, if necessary)

MARINADE
1/4 c organic first cold-pressed EVVO (not exactly raw)
1/8 c of Bragg's unpasteurized ACV
1/8 c of organic balsamic vinegar (not raw, but the I love the flavor -
(if anyone knows where I can get a raw version, please let me know)
a squirt of raw blue agave syrup To taste:
Nama Shoyu, or Celtic sea salt
fresh ground pepper
garlic powder
(probably very thinly sliced garlic cloves added to the marinade in the beginning would be even better,
but this is the way I made it the first time)

Here's what I did:
1 - Removed stem of mushrooms and brushed them clean w/ a mushroom brush (a
slightly damp paper towel can also be used.)
2 - Sliced mushrooms into 1/2 inch slices and then cut accross, making
cubes.
3 - Mixed marinade in 2-cup pyrex measuring cup
4 - Placed mushrooms & onion pieces in shallow dish and poured marinade over
5 - Stirred gently to coat mushrooms & onions, covered dish, and took a 30 min nap.
6 - Returned to kitchen, quartered tomatoes and, using the S blade, pulsed
them in food processor a few times
being careful not to cut them to small or turn them into sauce.
7 - Used spatula to remove tomato chunks and juices, adding them to mushroom
mixture.
8 - Stirred in raw pine nuts to mixture
9 - Using grater blade, processed 4 zucchini in food processor.
10 - Spread zucchini "noodle" on the bottom of an oblong baking dish (you
could do this on a large platter if
you're not going to transport it)
11 - Poured mushroom mixture over zucchini and gently spread to cover w/
spatula - you can add additional seasoning over all, at this point,
if you like or sprinkle additional pine nuts over top.

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The Macfadden Monthly June, 2009

2009-05-30T13:15:33Z

June 2009

"I am fully aware that many people think we are a lot of crazy fanatics, but if fanaticism builds the highest degree of mental and moral health, enables one to secure the best in life,...it is well worth cultivating." -Bernarr Macfadden

CONTENTS

Physical Culture City Update to web site by Jim Bennett
Simply Raw DVD Review
Recipe by Bernarr Macfadden

This edition has a lot of images. If it does not load, please CLICK HERE to see everything.

Physical Culture City

(The following is a member's only preview of the newly updated section of my web site.)
In 1903, inspired by people such as John Alexander Dowey who had established "utopian" communities, Macfadden wrote in Physical Culture magazine that he wanted to set up a community where "physical culturists could live the kind of life they could not find out in the rest of the world" - where a natural foods diet and outdoor exercise were the norm - a community that was "free from the saloon, drug store, and other vices!"

Macfadden's publishing business was booming. With the money he was making he was able to purchase in 1905 nearly 2000 acres of undeveloped land in Spotswood, New Jersey. (near Helmetta and also called Outcalt.) The location was ideal - about 40 miles from New York City and 50 miles from Philadelphia. 200 hardy and dedicated physical culturists joined Macfadden and began clearing land, putting in streets, and erecting buildings. Macfadden planned to move all his enterprises including publishing, teaching, and sanitariums to this location. He named the community "Physical Culture City."

A new railroad station was built to accommodate the shipments that would come into and go out of the community.

This photo shows the Macfadden Institute building on the left and the publishing facility on the right.

The Institute building with tents in the background. In the beginning, most of the citizens had to live in tents.
The institute was where physical culture students had their classes (when they were not working clearing the land.)

The staff of the Bernarr Macfadden Institute.

The Physical Culture Publishing Company building (before the name was emblazoned on the front.) The printing and distribution of all magazines and books was moved to this location. Notice the railroad car parked next to the building and the bicycles in front.

This is the building where food was served. The man on the left looks like Macfadden.
I believe this building was located behind the publishing building.

A large health home was built. It could accommodate 100 patients.

An example of a small experimental "fresh air" house at Physical Culture City.

There was a lake on the property. It was named Lake Marguerite after Macfadden's wife. The lake was the used for boating, swimming, and other athletic activities. People bathed in the overflow at the dam below the lake.

Some of the citizens of PC City are gathered by Lake Marguerite.

Physical Culture City lasted just about three years. One of the problems was the widespread notoriety that the community was getting from the people who lived in the surrounding area. Several of the PC City residents were arrested for "immodest attire" when they ventured outside the confines of their community wearing bathing suits! Passengers on trains passing through would leer out the windows trying to get a glimpse of the "nudists."

Another problem was the lack of organization. Although Macfadden was a crusader with a vision, the enterprise was not adequately organized. There was squabbling among the residents. People objected to Mrs. Macfadden's meddling. Many people felt they were being overworked.

The biggest problem and the reason that PC City failed was the legal problems that Macfadden was encountering. There were several lawsuits against him for sending illegal materials through the mails. In 1907, he was arrested and convicted of publishing a sexually explicit story in Physical Culture magazine. His legal battles forced him to abandon the project, move his publishing company to the Flat Iron building in New York City and his sanitarium to Chicago. In all, he lost over $100,000.

Above is a copy of the original layout for Physical Culture City

(Courtesy of Chris & Linda Bowen)

The top of the drawing is south and the bottom is north.

Below is a map of the area today. The numbered streets and lettered avenues as well as

North Shore Blvd. and South Shore Blvd. are still there. Lake Marguerite is gone

because the dam broke and was not rebuilt, but the area where the lake existed

can still be seen on the map. The stream is still there (the broken line). There is a VFW building

in the general location of Macfadden's publishing building and restaurant. The VFW

building is possibly the old PC City restaurant building.

To see a Google Maps street view of Physical Culture City today CLICK HERE.
The VFW building is on the right. The bridge crossing the stream is ahead.

The Simply Raw DVD
Macfadden advocated eating raw foods, the benefits of which are today being validated. This amazing documentary is about the health effects of a raw food diet and how it can reverse diabetes (and other health problems).

This DVD is an absolute "must see" for anyone who is interested in the effects of diet on health. The documentary chronicles six Americans with diabetes who switch to a diet consisting entirely of vegan, organic, uncooked food in order to reverse disease without pharmaceutical medication. The six are challenged to give up meat, dairy, sugar, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, soda, junk food, fast food, processed food, packaged food, and even cooked food for 30 days. The film follows each participant's remarkable journey and captures the medical, physical, and emotional transformations brought on by this radical diet and lifestyle change. We witness moments of struggle, support, and hope as what is revealed, with startling clarity, is that diet can reverse disease and change lives.

The film highlights each of the six before they begin the program and we first meet them in their home environment with their families. Each participant speaks candidly about their struggle to manage their diabetes and how it has affected every aspect of their life, from work to home to their relationships.

To see the trailer click on the banner below.

Recipe
My Favorite Spaghetti Bernarr Macfadden

Simmer (but do not boil) multi-grain or whole grain spaghetti noodles in just enough water so the noodles will absorb all of it as they cook. You should not have to pour off any water before serving, although you may have to add a little as the pasta cooks. This retains all the nutrients. Add a pinch of salt to the water. (I like to break up the spaghetti into short lengths - JB.)
As the pasta is cooking, add 1 to 2 chopped fresh onions and chopped parsley and/or spinach. Add herbs such as basil and oregano if desired.
When the pasta is done, add 1 to 2 chopped fresh tomatoes and olive oil. Mix together. Grate cheese on top. Enjoy!

The Vita-Mix machine - One of the Best Ways to Get All the Nutrients You Need - CLICK HERE for More Information

For the Exercise Solution...

All products mentioned here are ones that we use and enjoy ourselves.

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The Macfadden Monthly May, 2009

2009-04-30T15:54:31Z

May 2009

"I am fully aware that many people think we are a lot of crazy fanatics, but if fanaticism builds the highest degree of mental and moral health, enables one to secure the best in life,...it is well worth cultivating." -Bernarr Macfadden

CONTENTS

Influenza - Symptoms & Treatment by Bernarr Macfadden
Blood and Vitality (Part 2) by Bernarr Macfadden
Macfadden's Nose Humor by Jim Bennett

Influenza - Symptoms & Treatment
by Bernarr Macfadden

Editor's Note: As this issue "goes to press," the biggest stories in the news are reports of the outbreak and spread of swine flu. We are being warned that a pandemic is possible. Appropriately, this month's feature article is on the subject of influenza - a reprint of an article from Macfadden's Encyclopedia of Health. To me the most interesting statement in the article is Macfadden's bold assertion that those who live the physical culture life need have no fear of catching the flu. Following the feature article is part 2 of "Blood and Vitality." This article, continued from last month, explains in detail the reasons that Macfadden believed the person who is truly fit will be protected against diseases such as the flu.
(DISCLAIMER: this information is provided for historical interest only and is not intended to be used for the diagnosis or treatment of any disease.)

INFLUENZA (Grip; La Grippe).-An acute eliminative crisis which somewhat resembles a severe cold but is supposed to be due to a specific bacillus. It often occurs in epidemics. Isolated cases occur, however, so that the development of epidemics does not depend merely upon the presence of any germ which may be associated with the symptoms. These symptoms merely indicate the eliminative character of the reaction and show that the fundamental cause is an accumulation of toxins in the body, which can result only from wrong habits of living.

Those who live the physical culture life, therefore, need not fear that they will develop the disease in an epidemic and those who take the natural treatment after having been careless and allowed the disease to develop, need not fear a severe illness nor any of the ordinary complications (pneumonia, nephritis, or chronic bronchitis), which so frequently follow improper treatment.

Symptoms: There is an incubation period of two to five days. The symptoms vary according to the type of the disease, of which there are four recognized varieties. These are (1) The fever type; (2) the respiratory type; (3) the nervous type; and (4) the gastrointestinal type. In the first type the onset is sudden. There are severe headache, pain on moving the eyes, pain in the back and in the bones, coated tongue, offensive breath, congested eyes, cough, bronchitis, great general weakness, chills, and fever, which may be high and last for three to five days under rational treatment. Relapses are common.

In the second type there is severe bronchitis, with large quantities of sputum which may appear purulent in character. There may be a complicating pleurisy, which may run on into empyema or a severe and serious form of bronchopneumonia.

In the third type nervous symptoms are markedly developed, often headache, insomnia, great prostration and even delirium.

In the fourth type, which is not very common, there are abdominal pain and diarrhea and there may be nausea and vomiting. There also may be some jaundice, but no respiratory sYmptoms.

In influenza the heart may become affected; if so, it generally is serious, with rapid and irregular pulse and a tendency to dilatation. Some epidemics are severe and fatal. Fatal cases are more likely to be those of the second type, the cause of death usually being bronchopneumonia. Cases in any form of the disease may be mild or severe, of short duration or prolonged by complications.

Treatment: The treatment of influenza is not a matter of giving drugs to combat the fever, dull the pain and "support" the heart but simply of assisting the body in the cleansing effort it is making. In the beginning influenza resembles a severe cold; so if prompt treatment of the proper kind is taken it may never amount to more than this, for all diseases, especially the acute eliminative crises, are essentially the same. The first thing to do, of course, is to stop all feeding. When no food is taken the body can devote its entire time to elimination. A Complete Fast should be used, drinking hot or cool water freely and taking full warm, or a series of cool enemas daily. Complete bed rest is advisable when any fever exists. Plenty of fresh air is necessary. It is essential that the patient be kept warm.

On the first day a full hot immersion bath of 98 degrees gradually increased to 105 degrees F. may be taken for fifteen minutes to an hour to induce free perspiration. Several glasses of hot water should be drunk while in this bath. A cold towel should be kept on the head. On the following day the immersion bath may be repeated if fever continues, or a cold wet-sheet pack may be given for one to two hours. Either treatment may be repeated each day until the fever is gone, though if the patient seems weak a cold abdominal pack may be given instead. If the symptoms are most marked in the chest, a cold chest pack instead of the abdominal pack may be given. If there is much pain in the back, hot spinal compresses may- be administered for thirty minutes sometime during the day, but not within four or five hours of giving the pack. Warm or hot abdominal packs may be used for chilly or anemic patients. Feeble patients should have no water treatments except enemas.

The fast should be continued until a day after the fever is gone, though in the case of young children it would be permissible to add to the drinking water unsweetened grapefruit or orange juice as desired after a day or two of the complete fast. In any case, it is best that the fast be broken with orange or grapefruit juice for a day or two, followed by one day on the entire fruit, that is, the juice and the pulp. After this a Milk Diet should be used until there is full recuperation. Grapefruit may be used instead of or in addition to oranges while on the milk diet. The packs may be discontinued after the fever is gone, but the hot spinal compresses may be continued. Special Manual Treatments should be included after starting on the milk diet. At this time also a general vitality-building routine suited to the strength of the patient should be adopted and changed to a more strenuous one as the strength increases. ·When this plan is carefully followed there will be no relapse or complication and the patient will .be the better for having had the extra elimination. Bedside sunlight therapy has proved useful in this disorder.

BLOOD AND VITALITY (Part 2)
By Bernarr Macafadden
THE PURER THE BLOOD, THE GREATER THE VITALITY OF THE BODY

The most important of all functional processes begins in the stomach. There is where the blood-making process commences, and, since a man is what the blood makes of him, you can realize the tremendous importance of this particular function. If the digestion is carried on properly, and the blood is made rich in those elements that add to life, health and strength, then the functions of the stomach are being properly performed. Strength of this organ, therefore, is absolutely indispensable in vitality building.
This blood-making work is then continued by the small intestines, where a large part of the elements of nourishment essential to life are assimilated, taken up and carried to the portal circulation, thence to the lungs and heart, and finally throughout the entire body. It is absolutely impossible for one to enjoy the possession of a high degree of vitality, or of the general good health upon which vitality depends, unless the intestinal tract is in a healthy and vigorous condition, so that the functions of this particular part of the body- machine may be performed without a flaw. The entire digestive system may be compared to a boiler supplying the energy by which the engine does its work.

Then consider the heart itself. One cannot underestimate the functional importance of this organ. It is commonly regarded as the most vital spot in the body, the very center of life-indeed the poets have made it the seat of love and the emotions in general. If anything, the brain and nervous system should be regarded as the real center of life, but the function of the heart, the marvelous muscle-pump, is so vital and indispensable that the world is accustomed to thinking of it as the organ of first importance. And so it is. Should it cease its efforts for a few moments even, life becomes extinct, and you are no longer an animate being. A strong heart, therefore, is if anything even more important than a strong stomach. But you must remember that the strength of the heart to a large extent depends upon the cooperation of a strong stomach, or at least upon the proper digestion of food. For the muscles and tissues of the heart, like those of all other organs of the body, are fed by the blood, which depends for its life-giving and life- sustaining qualities upon the food, which is first acted upon by the stomach and thus made available for use by the cell structures in all parts of the body. The heart is truly a wonderful organ, the one set of muscles which apparently never rest, but work on night and day, year after year, throughout our entire life.

Furthermore, the part played by the lungs in the maintenance of life and health cannot be underestimated. Impaired functioning of the lungs has an immediate and vital effect upon every other part of the body. It is through this channel that we secure the oxygen, without which the processes of life would terminate almost instantaneously. It is through this channel also that the elimination of carbonic acid gas is accomplished. Without the continuous and thorough elimination of carbonic acid our tissues would become choked up and poisoned in such a way that all cell activity and bodily function would come to an abrupt end. If the lungs are sound and healthy in every respect the supply of oxygen is abundant, and the elimination of carbonic acid, which may be regarded as the "smoke" of the human system, is carried on perfectly. Breathing is only one of the various functions that must be continuously carried on, but it is of such importance as to require special attention in building vitality.

In the work of eliminating impurities and keeping the system clean the kidneys are to be classed with the lungs, although they have to do with poisonous wastes of a different type. Insufficient functioning of the kidneys is not so immediately fatal as the failure of the lungs to do their work, but proper action of the kidneys is none the less important. If the poisons which are normally eradicated from the system in this way are allowed to remain or to accumulate, they poison the body as truly as any external toxic element that could be introduced. Insufficient activity of the kidneys leads to the accumulation of those poisons, bringing on convulsions of the most serious nature, and unless the condition is relieved there will be fatal results. The requirements of health, therefore, demand that the kidneys should be strong and active, and that their functional capacity should be maintained at the highest degree of efficiency.

In supplementing the work of the kidneys and the lungs, the excretory function of the skin is only secondary in importance. The skin has various functions. It is one of our chief organs of sense, the sense of touch being hardly second to those of sight and hearing. It is likewise a wonderful protective structure, and at the same time is a channel of elimination which cannot be ignored with impunity. To interfere with the eliminative function of the skin by absolutely clogging the pores for a period of several hours means death. One may say that we really breathe through the skin.

The importance of all these functions of elimination is vital. Pure blood depends upon the perfect and continuous excretion of the wastes formed in the body through the processes of life, and without keeping the blood pure in this manner the body rapidly becomes poisoned by its own waste products, with the result that health, vitality and even life are lost. Health is entirely a question of pure blood, and, while the blood depends first upon the building material supplied through the digestive system, it also depends equally as much upon functional activity in the matter of elimination.

The liver, which enjoys the distinction of being the largest organ in the body, is designed for the performance of a multiplicity of functions. It not only produces the bile, which has such an important part to play in the work of digestion, but it has a very important work in the changing of foods absorbed into such material as may be assimilated or used by the cells of the various tissues throughout the body. For instance, it is part of the function of the liver to bring about chemical changes in albuminous foods which make it possible for the tissues to assimilate these. It also has much to do with bringing about certain chemical changes in sugar or dextrose. Furthermore, the liver has an important function in connection with the excretion of broken-down bodily tissue, converting this dead matter into a form in which it can be filtered out of the blood by the kidneys. Failure of the liver to perform its work satisfactorily will upset the digestive and functional system, or may lead to an accumulation of uric acid in the body, possibly resulting in rheumatism, gout, neuralgia, disturbances of circulation and other evils. When your liver "goes on strike" you may expect trouble in general. A normal condition of the entire body depends upon perfect and continuous functioning of the liver in cooperation with all the other vital organs. The same may be said of the pancreas, spleen, the thyroid gland and other organs which have a special function to perform. The body is really a combination of all these various parts and functions, and without strength and activity in all of them, simultaneous and harmonious, not one of these interdependent parts could do its work, and the body as a whole would be thrown into a state of disease. Strength of the internal organs is infinitely more important than mere muscular strength, if one could properly make a comparison.

How, therefore, shall we build this internal, functional strength? Can our organs be made to function more satisfactorily? How may we promote their greater activity?
The vital organs can be strengthened and the sum total of one's vitality thereby increased. It is true that internal strength is more important than external muscular strength, but the fact is that they go together. As a general thing, by building muscular strength one is able at the same time to develop internal strength. The influence of exercise in purifying the blood and in promoting activity in all the internal organs really strengthens the "department of the interior" at the same time that it develops the muscles concerned. Muscular stagnation means organic stagnation, to a very large degree. To be thoroughly alive and to enjoy the possession of unlimited vitality it is necessary to be both muscularly and functionally active. The requirements of Nature, or what are more commonly termed the "laws of Nature," in reference to all these bodily functions must be strictly observed, for it is only under such conditions that life and health can be maintained at their best.

The body may be regarded as a machine. Why not make it a strong machine, and as perfect as possible? Its efficiency means everything. If you had an engine, a motorcycle, a sewing machine or a printing press that was a very poor machine, you would like to exchange it for a better one, would you not? You would even spend large sums of money to secure a better machine to take the place of the poor one. But if your body is imperfect, inefficient, weak, rusty and clogged up with grit, dirt and all the waste products due to the "wear" in the bodily structures, you seem nevertheless entirely satisfied. You go on from day to day and from year to year without thinking of the possibility of getting a better physical equipment. But why not consider the body in the same light as any other machine that is of value to you. Your body is the thing that keeps you alive. If it is a poor instrument, then it is more important that you should get a better one than that you should buy a new engine or new printing-press or new sewing-machine. The only difference is, that it is within your power to get a better body machine by building up the one that you have. You can repair it, you can add to its vitality, you can strengthen the functional system, you can make it more perfect and efficient. You can make it a high-power machine that will be of real value in any undertaking that you may wish to carry out. You can make it strong instead of weak, and you can thus enjoy that superabundant vitality without which life is hardly worth the living.

(Excerpts from �Building Vital Power� and �Vitality Supreme�)

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For the Exercise Solution...

Macfadden's Nose
Humor by Jim Bennett

Macfadden had a rather prominent, hooked nose -a fact which apparently bothered him enough that he had his nose magically straightened in pictures. There was a problem - the "doctoring" of photographs was just a tad inconsistent over the years. Below is a selection of photos taken of Macfadden at different ages. I find it funny that his nose seems to shrink (image 2) and grow (4 & 5) and then shrink again (6).

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The Macfadden Monthly - April 2009

2009-03-25T18:52:53Z

April 2009

CONTENTS

An Interview with Mark Adams, author of "Mr. America," the new, best-selling biography of Bernarr Macfadden
Blood and Vitality (Part 1) by Bernarr Macfadden
Helpful Hints for Walkers by Bernarr macfadden
Comparing Food Pyramids by Jim Bennett
Parsley Smoothy - Recipe of the Month

A Macfadden Monthly Interview: Mark Adams
Author of "Mr. America," the new, best-selling biography of Bernarr Macfadden

MM: I think most people would like to know what triggered your interest in Macfadden. How and when did you first get the idea that you would write a book about him?

MA: I was fascinated by Macfadden�s story from the first time I picked up a copy of �Physical Culture� around 1997, but I didn�t start thinking seriously about a book until around 2002. I read Robert Ernst�s fine Macfadden biography, of course, so the idea that a fresh look at Macfadden was needed didn�t occur to me. Then coincidentally I was wasting time surfing the internet at work one day and found a copy of Mary Macfadden�s �Dumbbells and Carrot Strips� for sale. I started reading it while flying to Indianapolis to write a story for the New
York Times Magazine, and somewhere over, let�s say Cincinnati, I realized that Macfadden�s life might make a good book for a modern audience.

MM: You've mentioned that you wrote the book in your spare time and it took much longer to complete than you had anticipated. How long did it actually take?

MA: Wow, did I underestimate how long it would take. I�d originally guessed that I could get it done in two years. I have a day job as a magazine editor, so I was basically limited to writing in the wee morning hours, at lunch, on weekends and over vacations. There are coffee shops all over midtown Manhattan where the staff probably remembers me as the weirdo with a laptop and a stack of old magazines filled with pictures of half-naked men. I signed to do t he book in the spring of 2003 and finished it in January 2008. Harper Collins was
extremely patient.

MM: Since you work in New York yourself, were you able to visit any of the places where Macfadden lived and worked? Any discoveries?

MA: It was a huge geographic advantage. I think it was the great historian Barbara Tuchman who said you need to walk the battlefields to understand a war, so to be able to stroll past the places where Macfadden once walked barefoot was a huge help in wrapping my head around him as a character. New York City is a small town in a lot of ways�the guy who designed my website just told me he�s working with a high-end chocolatier whose street address sounded fami liar. It turned out to be located in the old New York Evening Graphic building. I don�t think BM would have approved. I was also able to drive up to Dansville, New York, where the shell of the old Physical Culture Hotel still overlooks the town. Getting inside the �Castle on the Hillside� was like stepping into a time machine.

MM:You wrote that talking with Brewster Macfadden caused a change in the mental image of Macfadden that you had previously formed while you were researching information for the book. I'm guessing that what changed was your understanding of the human side of Macfadden. Would that be correct? Care to try to describe his human side?

MA: Absolutely. Macfadden is such a huge and cartoonish character, and he left so few personal papers behind, that I found it hard to imagine him as a father or husband. I�d imagined him as the Shiva the Destroyer of natural health, laying waste to evil doctors and white- bread purveyors. But when Bruce and his wife Peg described having Thanksgiving dinner with him in New Jersey, I suddenly had insight into the man as a mortal, too. I think he was essential ly a very well-intentioned individual who let his crusades blind him to some of the
needs of his family. That said, Bruce had almost nothing but nice things to say about his �Pop,� as he called him.

MM: When Macfadden started out early in his career giving lecture tours and forming Physical Culture clubs, it is my understanding that the public response to his message and to him personally was phenomenal. Can you comment on this?

MA: That was one of the more intriguing aspects of his story. Remember, he started �Physical Culture� from scratch in 1899, working alone. Within a few years he was selling 100,000 copies per month. He was also selling out lecture tours and writing books by the armload. His first bodybuilding show at Madison Square Garden in 1903 was a sellout, and the fire marshals had to turn away would-be spectators at the second one in 1905. He obviously tapped into a d eep vein of interest in health and fitness.

MM: Since very few if any of his ideas about health were original, what do you think were his major contributions?

MA: Macfadden was the Elvis Presley of American fitness and alternative health. He didn�t invent most of his ideas, but through his charisma and presentation he was able to make them palatable for a mass audience. I think he�s absolutely the father of weight training in the USA. His ideas on avoiding refined and processed foods are more popular than ever; he was the godfather of what came to be known as �health food.� He made exercise an American obsession. And he did more than anyone else, including other major figures such as John Harvey Kellogg and Charles Atlas, to popularize the idea of �wellness,� or maintaining your health through diet and exercise rather than visiting the doctor when something goes wrong.

MM: How historically significant do you do you think were Macfadden's battles against obscenity charges?

MA: That�s a hard one to answer. A lot of people were fighting that battle in different ways, such as Margaret Sanger, the birth control activist (whom BM was secretly sending money to). But because he had a platform in �Physical Culture� he was able to help bring sex out of the bedroom and into the mainstream culture. I do think Americans in general have a sort of myopic view that sex began with �Playboy� and the Kinsey Report, but that�s simply untrue.

MM: There were a lot of pictures of nude and semi-nude men on the covers and inside Physical Culture Magazine. One reviewer of your book said he wished you had explored in more depth the "homoeroticism that inflects so many issues of Physical Culture." My view is Macfadden simply idealized nudity and the perfection of the human physique in much the same way that the Ancient Greeks did. Would you care to comment on the subject?

MA: It would have mortified Macfadden to think that his favorite magazine had homoerotic appeal, but looked at today it�s a little hard to miss. (You may have noticed that if you search on Ebay for old issues, sellers often tag copies of �Physical Culture� for their �Gay Appeal.�) But you�re right, he simply worshipped the sculpted human form. I laughed out loud when I read the �Physical Culture� story in which the writer describes Macfadden caressing Rudol ph Valentino�s beautiful thighs like an art historian might run his hands over Michelangelo�s David. One of the most enduring sections in �Physical Culture� was �The Body Beautiful,� comprised of photos that readers� male and female�sent in of themselves flaunting their impressive physiques.

MM: The AMA really campaigned hard against Macfadden. It appears that for a time at least they won the battle, but now people seem to be "rediscovering" Macafadden and responding very positively to what they are learning about his message. I know you can't speak for the medical profession, but in the process of writing the book did you see
evidence of the AMA's attitude toward Macfadden today?

MA: I don�t think the AMA has any opinion of Macfadden today, but over time the group has definitely accepted a lot of the ideas he championed against their strident opposition. For example, in the 1920s, the AMA mobilized forces to crush chiropractors and osteopaths, whom they lumped together with snake-oil quacks of all stripes. Nowadays your doctor is likely to refer you to a chiropractor or osteopath.

MM: In what areas do you think Macfadden's ideas about health were correct and in which areas do you feel that he went too far? In other words, what of value can we learn from him and is there anything we need to be cautious about?

MA: It�s easy to boil Macfadden�s core message down to its essence: if you eat less and exercise more, and let nature guide your health, you will feel better and live longer. I think that�s pretty unassailable advice, and has been proven time and again over the last 2500 years. At the same time, that complete faith in the healing powers of nature led him to refuse to believe in vaccination, surgery and pharmaceutical intervention of any kind. It may h ave cost the life of one of his children. So I think the lesson to take away is to think of Macfadden�s system of Physcultopathy as preventive medicine. And if an organic apple a day can�t keep the doctor away, make an appointment with your physician.

Click Here for the lowest prices for Mark's book

BLOOD AND VITALITY (Part 1)
By Bernarr Macafadden
THE PURER THE BLOOD, THE GREATER THE VITALITY OF THE BODY
"The blood has been called the life of the body from the fact that upon it depends our bodily existence."- Albert F. Blaisdell, M.D.

Just as life is impossible without vitalized blood, so is health impossible without blood that possesses a fair degree of health. And it follows just as logically that one's vitality will be in exact ratio to the vitality of his blood.

All of the tissues of our flesh and bones are made up of infinitely small cells-so small, in fact, that hundreds of them, if massed, would be invisible across the table. Each cell is born, lives and dies by itself. As fast as a cell dies-and some of them live but a few minutes, or a. few hours-a new cell is supplied to take its place.

Exercise, even of the slightest, such as opening or closing the hand, destroys a multitude of cells. Even thinking causes the death of cells, and Nature imme¬diately supplies new cells to take the place of those that are defunct. One of the important benefits of bodily exercise is that it causes the destruction ¬� death - of many all but exhausted cells, which, in turn, are replaced by cells that are full of life vitality.

But the cells die, too, in a body that is actually without motion, in a body whose brain is in a state of complete lethargy. The only difference is that in the inactive body the cells do not die as soon as they should, nor are the new cells by which they are re¬placed as healthy as they should be.

All of this repair work in the body is done by the blood. That fluid carries to all of the tissues of the body the fresh matter that is to build up new, vital¬ized cells in the place of those that are dying. This repair material is secreted from the food that is di¬gested in the stomach and in the intestines. Hence the need of the most nourishing of foods. Improper food furnishes but poor repair material. That which goes into the stomach and is digested becomes the actual, living body. In this connection I cannot help but refer once more to the value of adopting, if not wholly, then partly, an uncooked or natural diet. Indeed, cooking de¬stroys to a great extent and sometimes entirely, the cell-life of the food intended to nourish the body.

It is reasonable then that this devitalized or dead cell matter will never furnish material of a suitable kind for building up or even repairing the body. WE ARE JUST WHAT WE MAKE OURSELVES THROUGH THE ACT OF EATING.

But the blood does more than this. From the air that is breathed into the lungs the blood takes oxygen, and carries it through all the parts of the body. Wherever the gas encounters. dead cell-matter it burns it up, and the results of the combustion are car¬ried by the blood to the lungs, there to be eliminated from the body.

Now, you will easily understand why the blood must be pure and rich. At the very foundation of increased vitality must come a radical improvement in the quality of the blood.

While food is the basis of the tissue-building power of the blood, a generous amount of water is needed to maintain the fluids of the body in a proper con¬dition so that they may flow freely. Deep, full breathing of pure air must be had in order that the dead cells may be burned up as fully as is possible.

Exercise plays an important part in the bodily pro-cesses just related, also increases the powers of digestion by giving greater muscular activity to the stomach and intestines, while the heavier, more frequent breathing caused by muscular effort forces the heart into more rapid action, and sends the blood coursing through the body on its repair and purify¬ing mission at an increased speed.
From this brief statement the reader will be able to understand fully that vitality depends upon the blood, and that the purity of the blood is contingent on the selection and digestion of the right foods, exer¬cise, breathing, and the drinking of sufficient quanti¬ties of water. (Part 2, next month)
(Excerpts from �Building Vital Power� and �Vitality Supreme�)

HELPFUL HINTS FOR WALKERS
by Bernarr Macfadden

The more I study the matter, the more thoroughly convinced I am that walking affords the best of all possible exercises for the improvement of the health, and for overcoming all chronic diseases. Only recently, several cases of'. tuberculosis that were in a well-advanced stage of the disease have come to my notice, in which absolute cures have been recorded, after examination by physicians thoroughly qualified to pass judgment in these matters.

Therefore, I insist that for all those who are seeking health, or who may be suffering from some grave chronic disease, there is no exercise quite so valuable as walking, especially when combined with deep breathing, though deep breathing should be avoided or taken with great care if suffering from consumption. More especially is walking valuable because of the fact that it is almost impossible to overdo it. All you need to do is to stop when you are tired out, and nothing but benefit can come from it.

I do not mean by this that you should stop walking and take a street car or a train home again at the first sign of fatigue, for you should experience a little feeling of this nature; otherwise the cells of the body cannot be considered to have been sufficiently stimulated. You do not need to carry the exercise to the point of exhaustion in order to make it beneficial, but you should be able to go home and sleep the sleep of the just, because of the fact that you have earned your rest by a judicious employment of your walking muscles during the day.

MY METHOD OF WALKING

One's walking style must, to a certain extent, be individual. It must be natural. The method natural to me is to incline my body somewhat forward in walking. For I hold that walking should be a continual fall forward, exactly as in running. You take each step forward to save yourself from a fall, the body being always inclined sufficiently well forward to insure a continuance of this forward falling movement.

The body itself should be held straight with the shoulders thrown back and down, the head on a line with the body, and the chest placed so as to receive the "largest possible intake of air with the least expenditure of energy on your part.

I believe that if you will cultivate this particular style of walking you will be able to cover more ground and cover it with greater ease than you have ever before been able to succeed in doing. And you will be surprised how soon this attitude will become the natural and accustomed attitude for you.

DO NOT MAKE YOUR STEPS CONFORM WITH THOSE OF YOUR COMPANION

One point I especially wish to impress upon you is that while walking for long distances with anyone much taller or shorter than yourself-one who takes longer or shorter steps than you do-you should make no attempt to conform to his stride.

To take either shorter or longer steps than it is natural for you to take is quickly fatiguing, because of the very fact that it is an unnatural use of the muscles for you. Also, you should avoid walking in a jerky, nervous, impulsive manner, because such walking steps are devoid of rhythm. The. same amount of energy put into a longer, more swinging step will make it possible for you to cover more ground, and with much greater ease and less expenditure of nervous force, hence less fatigue.

For ordinary walking a military stride of about thirty inches, with 120 paces per minute, is right for the average man. This is based upon long experience in estimating fatigue results with marching troops .

DO NOT HESITATE TO VISIT A CHIROPODIST

If you have not been accustomed to walking, or if you have long been inactive in this particular exercise, you will note that the feet become tender and blister very readily as the result of any unusual amount of walking. Rubbing and slapping the skin will toughen the feet, yet leave them soft and pliable. This will not be necessary, however, if one starts with a short walk and gradually lengthens the distance. It would not be a bad idea, either, for you to visit a skillful chiropodist, so that any embryonic corn or bunion may be removed or properly attended to. Also, the nails should be so trimmed that the great toe will not wear a hole in the stocking, although care should be taken not to cut the nails too close at the sides of the toes, as this tends to cause ingrowing toe nails. If there should be any evidence of ingrowing toe nails developing, it might be well for you to lift the edge of the nail just a trifle, and gently force under the nail a very small pledget of cotton, which will take the weight off the flesh and prevent the nail from growmgm.

To overcome thirst there is nothing better than pure spring water, although an occasional glass of milk may be taken along the road. I have found that a little lemon or lime juice in the water is very beneficial, as it serves to cool the stomach and helps to alkalinize the blood.

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COMPARING FOOD PYRAMIDS
by Jim Bennett

Several years ago the USDA began promoting its famous food pyramid with the four food groups: 1. fats, oils, and sweets. 2. Dairy, meat, poultry, eggs, and nuts. 3 Vegetables and fruit. 4. Bread, cereal, rice, and pasta.

Anyone with a modicum of knowledge of nutrition could see that this pyramid had some good points but also had some serious problems. The main problems had to do with the foods listed at the top and at the bottom of the pyramid. There was no distinction made between good and bad oils or the good grains and the bad ones. You don't have to be a nutritionist to know there's a huge difference between whole grain breads, cereals, and pasta, and products made from refined, white flour.

Apparently the "experts" at the FDA could see the problems too, and in 2005 they revised their pyramid. In addition to the new USDA pyramid, we have a second pyramid worth considering. Each of these has its good and bad points. There are similarities as well as differences.
CLICK HERE for information on the new revised USDA pyramid.
CLICK HERE to learn about the Healing Foods Pyramid from the University of Michigan.

Having looked at the different food pyramids, I wonder what kind of pyramid Macfadden would have proposed? I think it might look something like this...

The key to Macfadden's diet is that all foods should be as close to natural as possible. Processed or refined foods are never permitted, and raw is always better than cooked. Foods should be chewed thoroughly and never washed down with a liquid. Lots of fresh, pure water should be drunk during the day.

Recipe: Parsley Smoothie
All ingredients are organic and raw:
1/2 c filtered water
1/2 cucumber
1 banana
1 stalk celery
1 in piece of organic ginger (no need to peel if it's organic)
1 c (packed) flat-leaf parsley
1/2 apple
1 pear
1 T Nutiva Naturals hemp protein powder (optional)

Add all ingredients to Vitamix and start on slowest speed, increasing
variable speed dial to highest speed. Flip the speed lever up to high and
blend at highest speed for about 20 seconds. I keep one hand on the side of
the container and turn it off immediately if it starts to get warm. Be
careful - you can wind up cooking your ingredients if you let it run on high
for too long.

Finally, after turning Vitamix down to lowest speed again, I add about a cup
of ice cubes and increase speed as necessary to chop them up finely. Again,
don't blend too long on high or you'll melt the ice completely and your
mixture will turn warm again.

Pour out into glasses and enjoy immediately.

VARIATION: If you don't love ginger, consider substituting some fresh mint
leaves, or a pinch of cayenne.

CLICK HERE for more information about the Vita-Mix machine

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