"As one grows older, either constant improvement or deterioration takes place. There is no standing still in life; life is motion, and one cannot stand still and yet remain in motion. The very forces which keep you alive depend upon activity. We sometimes hear persons speak of preserving their present condition, physically, but in reality there is nothing you can do to preserve a certain degree of health, strength or development. When such a condition is apparently taking place, it is necessary to strive constantly to improve in order to hold a certain standard; otherwise you are really slipping, even though slightly. Up to maturity, providing no condition of disease is present, one should continue to improve physically, and having reached that stage, the average man begins to deteriorate. The wise individual takes steps to continue improving and to prolong the age of actual and inevitable decline. Each of us has some sort of "before" and "after" history. At maturity, we are either better or worse physically than we were in our youth. In middle age, we have either improved or deteriorated. You will hear average men speak of how good they were "before" and how badly they have gone back "after." However, among physical culturists, the average story is just the reverse, and it is far from uncommon to hear almost unbelievable tales of how much improvement has taken place between "before" and "after". It resolves mainly into the manner in which your life is conducted. Each person holds within himself the power for improving; by following certain known rules, and living in a sensible manner, any person who is not suffering serious disease may realize the joys of a strong, enduring, vital life of health." - Mark H. Berry This is a 6" by 9" original version, restored and re-formatted edition of Mark Berry's 1930 classic with almost 500 pages. Visit our website and see our many books at PhysicalCultureBooks.com