This would a slam dunk for a high school history paper. For a cyclist physician with an interest in health, fitness, and history it's a gem.

Published 1899 by New Amsterdam book company. The scan quality is excellent in this short book but you can download an OCRd ePub too (has errors).

Reading this book I feel as though our understanding of health, diet and exercise regressed between 1899 and 1969, perhaps due to the rise of the automobile and cheap cigarettes.

Don't miss the training regimen! Ten miles twice a day with massage, rest, and more. It sounds delightfully lazy, though the the book also mentions the 6 day races and routine 100 mile rides of the era.

It's a short read and very well written. I'd have liked to have met Dr Neesen.

PS. The main difference between the bikes shown in this book and the 12K carbon sled of today is those bikes didn't have brakes and I think they were all fixies (no freewheel) -- so "coasting" was high risk.