THE FIRST FOUR EXERCISES

1-4 These fundamental maneuvers start you on your way to a better shape and more energy for enjoying life

This is the beginning of a new way of life for you and your family. Bonnie Prudden's exercises have been designed for men, women and children, and it's more fun to do them as a family. In No. 3, for instance, family members can take turns holding each other's feet, instead of using chairs. For the first week exercise for a total of 10 minutes a day. Do the exercises in order, five repetitions each except where otherwise indicated. If you finish all four and still have time, repeat the cycle. Keep a record of your progress on the chart on pages 37 to 40. Next week add Exercise No. 5: THE SPINE-DOWN STRETCH.

1 ABDOMINAL SET
Get down on your hands and knees, keeping your elbows straight. Relax your abdomen and let it droop. Look at it. Then without moving anything except the abdominal muscles, tighten them and stay that way for a slow count of five.

2 PELVIC TILT, SUPINE
Lie on your back on the floor, with your arms outspread. Keeping your seat and shoulders down on the floor, arch your back as high as possible. Then press your spine down on the floor while tightening your abdominal and seat muscles.

3 SIT-UPS
Lie on your back on the floor, bend your knees, tuck your feet under a low chair and put your hands behind your neck. Then pull yourself up to a sitting position. If this is too difficult at first, begin by sitting up and slowly roll down.

4 HAMSTRING STRETCH
Standing with feet apart, hands behind back, head up, "bounce" your upper body toward floor. Then do it with head down and arms drooping. Do each exercise 15 times, five times looking straight ahead, five twisting to left, five to right.

EIGHT PHOTOS

RICHARD MEEK