Sport As Exercise For Girls

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXI, 18 November 1937, Page 15

Sport As Exercise For Girls

JL > Javelin-throwing as an exercise for : girls was recommended by Dr. Fritz 1 Duras, Director of Physical Education at ■ Melbourne University, in a lecture to ; teachers at Sydney University. In Mcl- : bourne some school principals were against it, as being dangerous, said Dr. ; Duras. : "Javelin-throwing can be dangerous," ; he remarked, "but what cann'ot be dangi erous if we do it the wrong way? It is ■ a question of right handling of the class . by the physical education teacher. There , is then no danger, and the exercise is ■ splendid.” i Dr. Duras recommended the medicine ball as one of the best means of . strengthening the trunk muscles in par- ; ticular. It gave pleasure as well as fit- , ness, and this was important. The iron ball was of remarkable value in body training, said Dr. Duras. The ■ ball (for boys, weighing G, 8, 10 or 121b5.) was thrown from one hand to the other, 1 passing up and behind the body in vari- ; ous ways. This required exact adaptation of the body movements to the heavy ball, and was an excellent means of de- ' veloping muscular strength and elasti- ' city. "There should not be too much formal ■ exercising—not more, perhaps than five minutes in a lesson of 20-30 minutes.

butter, stir the mixture to a smool dough and set it aside in a warm plac for nearly an hour to allow it tu ris< c Cut the mixture into small rounds an c bake in a quick oven on a floured bakin sheet. Cut open the splits when ho ’> butter liberally, and add jam if liked, o I Beef Pasty.’ 3 Make a suet paste which will not (lake roll it out fairly thickly and cut it int rounds the size of a small dinner plate Cut into small pieces—do not mince—on i to two pounds of beef stc;ik —accordin £ to the number of persons to be servedi three large potatoes and one onion. Th - secret of pasty making is to use un 1 cooked meat. Mix the filling, season wit

Otherwise the work became boring , (which removed the psychological distinction between exercise and work). Other disadvantages were that it often created muscular tensions, instead of easy movements, and unequally developed parts of the body. Large, swinging movements improved the ‘tonus’ of the blood vessels of the brain, and of the upper part of the body. Rhythm was essential—mere timekeeping was mechanical; rhythm should characterise the living body. It was good and stimulating to finish the gymnastics lesson with a marching song. ‘‘Development of muscular strength in girls has been much neglected, and this is a mistake,” said Dr. Duras. “Lack of 'muscle power is often the reason for poor body posture in girls.” Sports for Girls. Dr. Duras outlined various exercises suitable to girls of 12 to 17 years. Running was more difficult for women than for men, he said, since the legs were shorter in proportion to the trunk, middle distances for women had been excluded from the Olympic Games, as

th pepper and salt, place it on one side ce the pastry round, fold the other h >e. over and pinch the edges together. ( id a hole in the top and bake in a qu ig oven, it, Icing- the Cake. Do not attempt to put heavy icing e, a delicate cake, or to use ornamen to icing on too soft a surface, and avi e. putting heavy ornaments on a th: ic icing unless it has a firm crust. If y lg can borrow a revolving cake decorati stand so much the better. A variety ae icing tubes are needed and it is simp a- to buy all the ornaments and to a th oneself with a good flexible palate kni

Javelin Throwing Recommended

tending to bad “body mechanics.” Rowing, discus-throwing, riding, foil fencing, jumping and skating were beneficial in various ways to girls. Skating was at the opposite end of the scale to swimming in expenditure of energy; it encouraged harmonious movement (through the ideal of "nice” movement). “The nation’s health is based on the fitnes of its girls more directly than on that of its boys,” said Dr. Duras. “Clean the Brain.” Moderate bodily exercises, after strenuous school lessons, could “clean the brain,” by stimulating the blood in its function of carrying away waste products. Research on fatigue in school work showed that a greater number of short lessons was better than fewer and longer lessons. Children (adults, too' found it difficult to concentrate attention for more than an hour. For children, between 8 and 10 years, the lesson time should be 40-45 minutes, followed by a 10-minute rest. For younger children, the lesson time should be shorter. The first two hours of the school day were the test for power of attention, and the more difficult subjects, such as mathematics, should be taken then. The more strenuous exercises should be given on afternoons free from other school work.