【推荐1】This must be universally acknowledged: Exercise is good for your body. The question of how much exercise is best, though, is open to debate. The answer often depends on your goals. For heart health, sessions four to five times weekly might be ideal. For mental health? As The Independent reports, scientists believe there’s a pretty specific prescription (处方): Exercising for 45 minutes three to five times a week.

The data comes from a new and expansive observational study published in The Lancet Psychiatry and conducted by researchers at Yale and the University of Oxford. The study examined 1.2 million subjects who filled out the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey at two-year intervals (间隔) between 2011 and 2015. Subjects who didn’t exercise at all had an average of three-and-a-half days per month when they felt mentally unwell—stressed, depressed, or otherwise burdened by emotional problems—while those who exercised regularly reported an average of just two days.

The study found that having three to five 45-minute sessions a week was best for reducing the reported instances of feeling stressed or depressed. Exercising for longer periods—some subjects reported over 90 minutes in the gym—was associated with a drop-off in mental health benefits. Subjects who spent three hours at a time exercising actually reported an increase in depressive symptoms (症状).

Researchers also found that the kind of exercise undertaken made a difference. While all varieties helped, people who participated in team sports promoting social interaction and gym classes like cycling described greater self-satisfaction with mental health.

Because the study involved self-reported outcomes and exercise wasn’t monitored, it’s possible that the participants could have misinterpreted the volume of exercise performed. The study, however, makes a convincing case for a popular notion: If exercise were a pill, doctors everywhere would be prescribing it.

1. What decides the ideal amount of exercise for an individual according to the text?

A．His exercise routine.

B．His physical condition.

C．What sports he prefers.

D．What he expects to improve.

2. How did the subjects participate in the study?

A．By filling out a survey.

B．By attending gym classes.

C．By interviewing researchers.

D．By reading about health benefits.

3. What effect was demonstrated by exercising for over 90 minutes?

A．No change in mental health.

B．Improved mental health benefits.

C．A drop-off in mental health benefits.

D．Increased physical health benefits.

4. What limitation of the study was mentioned in the text?

A．Exercise process wasn’t monitored.

B．Only one type of exercise was studied.

C．The study did not include any real subjects.

D．Subjects could have misreported exercise amounts.

【推荐2】Cold weather during winter months may keep many people from leaving home and running in the open air. However, a new study shows that the drop in temperature is a good reason to run.    1    

Many people say running in winter can be difficult. One reason is the low temperature.     2     Yet many runners might find it easier than running in hot weather. That could be because lower temperatures reduce stress on the body. When you run in cold weather, your heart rate and the body’s dehydration（脱水）levels are lower than in warmer conditions.    3    

This information comes from John Brewer, who is a professor of applied sports science at St. Mary’s University. For this study，he and other researchers put a group of people into a special room. The researchers then recreated summer and winter weather conditions in the room.     4     Brewer says he and his team recorded biological measurements of the runners.

He says that the most important thing for people who run in cold conditions is to wear the right clothing. Wear gloves on your hands.     5     And especially, wear more than one layer of clothing to keep sweat away from your skin.

A．The other reason is the bitter winds.

B．We have good reasons to run in winter.

C．Wear shoes that will keep you from falling.

D．Don’t be nervous when you run in cold weather.

E．The body needs less water on a cold day than in warm weather.

F．In fact, running in cold weather helps improve one’s performance.

G．The test subjects were asked to run 10, 000 meters under both conditions each.

【推荐3】This is new to me and I don’t know what I will say really so I’m just giving it a try. I was always a runner and in pretty good shape for most of my life. Then I hit a bad patch and each day just couldn’t get myself out there to run. I put on weight, which just made me feel worse about myself.

I finally got the running back again after a few years but it was much harder than it used to be and I struggled to get through even the shortest, slowest jog.

I was out in a run the other day and I had almost convinced (说服) myself to give up when I heard someone say, “You can do it! It’s hard, but you can do it!” There was a lady walking the other way and had the biggest smile on her face.

Those words of encouragement at a time when I was ready to give up were like a perfect intervention (干预). I finished my run and now every time I feel like quitting I will hear her words in my head and they give me motivation (动力) and encouragement.

I’ve never seen her again so I’ve never been able to thank her and let her know the effect something as simple as a few words of encouragement from a stranger had and still has on me. It always encourages me in my life and has great influence on my life. I will never forget it and place it in my heart. I will tell it to others and make others believe encouragement is very important to us.

1. What was the author like before putting on weight?

A．He was very tall.	B．He was in good shape.
C．He was very thin.	D．He was in poor health.

2. What does the underlined sentence mean in the first paragraph?

A．The author had trouble in life.	B．The author’s clothes were worn out.
C．The author was very lucky.	D．The author was in good spirits.

3. What made the author not give up running?

A．His own hard work.	B．A strange lady’s encouraging words.
C．His friends’ encouragement.	D．His parents’ encouragement.

4. What’s the main idea of the passage?

A．An exciting experience.	B．A story about losing weight.
C．Kind words from a stranger.	D．The importance of determination.