| Chapter 1: | The Uncorseted Bostonian: Health, Physical Culture, and Dress Reform for Women in Nineteenth-Century Boston |
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Lewis felt that building large muscle was not an indicator of overall health. He also considered the German models but found them too sober and restrained for his sensibilities. He declared, “The ordinary gymnasium offers little chance for girls, none for old people, but little for fat people of any age, and very little for small children of either sex.”49 Lewis had a persuasive and charismatic personality and recognized that his American system would have to be a pleasurable and personally engaging experience for a wide array of citizens. Fortuitously, Lewis' first opportunity to reach a broader audience came only a few months after arriving in Boston.
The American Institute of Instruction, a professional organization for educators, held its conference in Boston in 1860.50 Lewis made an unplanned presentation of his ideas and was enthusiastically endorsed by the attendees.51 Due to the unplanned nature of the endorsement and Lewis' recent arrival in Boston, he had no structure in place for training teachers in his new gymnastics. He had not generated any texts on his system, nor was anyone other than himself able to lead its activities. Despite these challenges, Lewis was able to open a teacher-training program through his gymnasium by November of 1860. His first text, The New Gymnastics for Men Women and Children, followed in 1862.
Lewis was an advocate of light weights used throughout a movement sequence to build strength and flexibility (see plate 3). Commenting on his use of light weights, Lewis remarked,