Two recent interests have led me to the above source, and I’ll be developing these ideas in further posts. First, I’ve been struck over the past year or so about how important it is to keep your core muscles—your abdominals—pulled in. I realized at some point that I had gotten into the horrible habit of going around with my stomach pooching out. As soon as you allow that to happen, your whole body goes out of alignment. The stomach sticks out, the spine curves too much, the hips (ahem) stick out, and the shoulders and head poke forward. We tend to think that good posture involves throwing our shoulders back, but in reality our shoulders will just hang naturally straight if the rest of the body is carried properly. (And of course last week’s “Happier” podcast with Gretchen Rubin and Liz Craft was all about . . . posture. Once again the stars have aligned. Be sure and listen to that episode; I will just say that I have no intention of doing the exercises they recommend because I have a routine that works for me, but you may find their ideas helpful.)
So I’d been planning to do some videos showing the exercise routine I do and emphasizing the importance of the core and suddenly remembered that when I was in college as a speech major I was required to read a book titled Your Carriage, Madam! I was kind of struck with how clearly I recalled some of its ideas and decided to get hold of a copy. It was first published in 1934; thus the title of this post. While its main emphasis is on posture, the author also has a few ideas on weight control which are surprisingly timely. Have you heard the idea going the rounds these days that it was easier to be thin 50 years ago than it is now? That somehow life in the 2000s is more fattening than it was in the 1970s and earlier? Well, in a word . . . nonsense! We certainly have more temptations these days, but, as I’m fond of saying, the laws of physics have not changed. Nor have the principles of physiology.
Here’s what the estimable Janet Lane, the author of the book, has to say. (Sadly I haven’t been able to find out a thing about her.)
But if, after eliminating the figure protuberances that are due to poor posture habits, and allowing for your over-all length [I think she means “height”] and the cut of your jib [referring to frame size], you still look and feel overfed, then it’s time to go into the matter of diet.
Normally it’s enough to cut down on starch and sugar [and where have you heard that before?] and go easy on fats. It’s up to you whether you want to eat your cake or have your figure. [It’s all about choice, in other words.] And look out, most particularly, for the surreptitious nibbles. They’re the reason why home-keepers tend to put on more weight than business women. The little try-cake [?] fresh from the oven, the left-over cream, the dab of dessert not worth saving—you’d be surprised how they’d count up if your insides rang up calories as a cash-register does dollars. The mid-shopping “chocolate-malteds,” too, and the “I know I shouldn’t” afternoon repasts—you’ll notice it’s always the pound-makers the dieter cheats on, never the crust of bran bread and the left-over soup! And then, having stowed away in private the caloric content of a man-size meal, she sits sadly over her string beans at dinner, wondering why on earth she keeps on gaining when she really hardly eats a thing.
All that is just common sense, and everybody knows at heart when it’s really over-eating and under-exercise that are rolling up the weight score. (from the 2013 reprint, pp. 76-77)
I’d love to keep quoting her, but the above section is already over 200 words, so I don’t want to impinge on the principle of fair use. I’d encourage you to read the whole book; I bought a copy, but you can probably find it through your library system. The only out-of-date information in the quotation above is this idea that being a “home-keeper” exposes one to more food temptations than being a “business woman.” I guess vending machines and office birthday parties, complete with fancy cupcakes, weren’t a thing back then.
I especially like her image of one’s “insides” ringing up calories as a cash register does dollars. We lose sight of how much we’re taking in because we don’t have that capability. I’m fond of saying, and I’m sure I’ve said before on this very blog, that there are no “free” calories. Your body has to do something with every single thing you eat: burn it, eliminate it, or store it. Those blasted “surreptitious calories”! They’ll get you every time!
Well, I’ll leave it at that for now. Have you tried any baby kale yet, by the way? My lunch today will be a baby kale Caesar salad, with homemade croutons, lots of Parmesan cheese, homemade salad dressing, and a hard-boiled egg. Yummy! (Do you lie in bed in the morning thinking about what you’re going to eat that day? I do!)