Diocletian, also known as Dio Lewis, is a prominent figure in the history of modern physiology, often discussed in various branches of medical education. More notably, Dio champions numerous personal contributions to the methodologies surrounding physical training we see today, one of which is his once distinguished Lewis System. Dio spent much of his professional life inventing physical training equipment and educational curricula, as well as writing journals, textbooks, and other publications – many of which for furthering the understanding of physical health for men, women, and children. He was also famously known as the homeopathic physician of Lysander Spooner, the renowned American individualist, anarchist, and abolitionist. A strong proponent of the idea that vices are not crimes, Dio opposed prohibition and intellectually combatted it alongside his patient and friend, Lysander. 

Popularizing the unpopular 

After his studies at Harvard University, Dio began practicing homeopathy for several years. Over time, his medical focus extended to physiology, and while still working as a homeopathic physician, he grew fond of an unpopular idea at the time; that old, feeble and fat men, young boys, and women should all strive towards being physically healthy. After much dedication to cure his wife of tuberculosis, with victory, he began devoting his life to lecturing about the importance of physiology to a predominantly female audience, and pioneering exercises that could be used to obtain a greater level of physical health. Garnering major success through his lectures, Dio took his experiences and subsequently opened a school, focusing entirely on educating women about physiology and physical healthcare. His favourite axiom and said-to-be a reoccurring slogan in the school was

An ounce of prevention is a ton of cure.

Temperance and political philosophy

Dio’s unrelentless enthusiasm for physical health led him to advocate temperance across America's northwest. He and his mother began leading groups of fellow advocates into businesses, institutions, and religious establishments to warn of the dangers of alcohol consumption. His campaign against alcohol-use swiftly became one of the largest mass movements of women in recorded history, claiming to drive out 17,000 alcoholic establishments in Ohio alone. Throughout this cultural awakening and after, Dio maintained his conviction that vices are not crimes and that criminalizing the consumption of a substance is not only an ineffective method to stop or reduce use of any substance, but that it wholeheartedly infringes on individual liberties.

Everlasting legacy

Alongside his homeopathic background, Dio utilized many naturopathic treatment methods to heal his patients; notably pertaining to their diets. He expressed that eating the right food can help the body cure certain diseases without the need of pills or remedies, and stated that an ounce well digested, will give you more strength than ten ounces, viz: eating plain food in moderate quantities.

Throughout many of his treatment journals, his assertion that leading a healthy lifestyle is the best preventative of disease remains a fantastic reminder to this very day. Drinking sufficient water, eating healthy foods, exercising, absorbing sunlight, participating in activities and games, and avoiding the use of pills are repeated lifestyle choices exemplified in Dio’s various teachings.

By fostering many elements into his skillset, Dio’s work is also a magnificent example of the importance of recognizing that health is, in fact, holistic. It inspires healers of all kinds to take their understandings of healthcare further and encourages them to equip additional medical modalities and specialized therapies into their practice. Aside from his great odes to liberty, Dio’s legacy helps fortify the notion of keeping health intervention as natural as possible. 

References

1. A guide to the history of physical education. Leonard, Fred Eugene 1923 Lea & Febiger

2. Lewis, Dio. New Gymnastics: For Men, Women, and Children (Classic Reprint). Forgotten Books, 2018. 

3. Lewis, Dio. Prohibition a Failure: Or, the True Solution of the Temperance Question (Classic Reprint). Forgotten Books, 2018. 

4. Lewis, Dio. Weak Lungs, and How to Make Them Strong: Or Diseases of the Organs of the Chest, with Their... Home Treatment by the Movement Cure. Forgotten Books, 2018. 

5. The Pioneer of Genteel Gymnastics for Women, Fletcher 1965 Sports Illustrated.

6. Smith discusses Lewis’s rare insights on Spooner’s personal life, and his libertarian case against prohibition. George H. Smith, 2017

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