=The strongest pressure= is exerted when the fingers and hands are used as forcefully as possible. =A moderate pressure= is one which is midway between no real pressure and the most forceful. =A strong pressure= is then somewhat more forcible than the moderate. A powerful pressure with the hands will of course give a more effective massage and make the movements of the body and limbs more vigorous, thus influencing the entire body to a greater degree than will a light pressure. However, this does not mean that it is necessary or most practical to utilize the strongest pressure possible, although even that may be done without causing harm, since the massaging of the muscles will automatically prevent any stiffness or ill effects. It must be remembered that by the strongest pressure is meant the strongest that one is able to exert upon oneself. Let us take, for example, two persons of widely different physical strength, such as a powerful wrestler and a little girl of about ten years of age. If the wrestler uses the strongest pressure possible for him to exert, that pressure would not be harmful to him (provided, of course, that he has had no recent injuries), since his body is proportionately strong. The little girl, however, cannot endure the pressure that the wrestler is able to exert on his body, but she will not be able to press so forcibly. She will, however, be able to endure the strongest pressure that she can exert, because its strength will be in proportion to the strength of her body. If it is a question as to whether each exercise should be practiced a lesser number of times with the strongest pressure or a greater number of times with a moderate or strong pressure, the latter method is not only advisable but preferable. Therefore, in most instances a moderate or strong pressure should be used when the same pressure is exerted throughout one performance. =Using different degrees of pressure= for one exercise is not only quite practical, but also as effective as using the same pressure for one performance. For instance, if an exercise is practiced five times, the first time a light pressure may be exerted, the second time a moderate, the third time a strong, the fourth also a strong and the fifth a moderate pressure. If an exercise is done ten times the different degrees of pressure can, of course, be accomplished with more variation. In other words, a changing pressure may be utilized by gradually increasing it each time, until the exercise has been executed five or six times, then gradually decreasing for each of the remaining four or five times. If the exercise is practiced fifteen times, increase the pressure until the seventh or eighth time, decreasing it for each of the remaining times, and so forth. THE DEGREE OF EXERTION