【推荐1】It’s easy to talk yourself out of exercising. Even when you have the best intentions to work out, excuses are so easy to find — “I’m too tired”, “I’m busy” or “The weather is bad”. Don’t worry!     1    

※ Take baby steps.

You’ll never try to run 10 miles just in a single day, right? When you do too much too soon, you’ll end up injured and discouraged. Take it easy as you get stated. Maybe you only run a quarter of a mile during your first week.     2    

※ Show the clock who is boss.

Health experts say that you should aim for at least 150 minutes of exercise a week, plus weight training at least twice a week. If you work too late to get to a gym, keep a set of weights at home. If you can’t do 30 minutes at once, break it up into 10 or 15 minutes’ sections.

※    3    

Your workout should be just as much a habit as brushing your teeth or eating breakfast. When it’s part of your routine, you won’t even have to think about it. In a few months, fitness can be regular in your day.

※ Keep it real.

You’re not going to shake off 30 pounds in a week.     4     Gradually, you should increase your workout schedule from 2 to 3 days a week, or exercise for 15more minutes each time.

※Celebrate.

It takes weeks to see real changes. Therefore, even a pound of weight loss or a pound of muscle gain is the reason to reward yourself.

    5    

A．Do it for yourself.

B．Try to get used to it.

C．Go out with friends or buy a pair of jeans.

D．Keep a fitness journal to record your progress.

E．Aim for something that is realistic as a first step.

F．The following tricks can keep your fitness routine on track.

G．When it gets easy for you, you’ll surely make it more challenging.

【推荐2】Memories are important, but as we age our memory declines. The good news is that scientists have been learning more about our brain’s amazing ability to change and grow, even in old age.     1    

Learn something new.

Memory strength is like muscular strength. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. But you can’t lift the same size weight every day and expect to get stronger. You’ll need to keep your brain constantly challenged.     2    

Repeat and retrieve(找回).

When you learn new information, you’re more likely to record that information if it’s repeated. Repeat what you hear out loud.     3     Write it down and read it aloud. But the work doesn’t stop there. You’ll need to try to retrieve the information without looking at it later. Testing yourself to retrieve the information is better than repeated studying.

Drink water.

Water acts as a shock absorber for the brain.     4     A small amount of dehydration(脱水) can have disastrous (灾难性的) effects. Mild dehydration has been shown to cause brain shrinkage and memory damage. Aim for at least eight to ten glasses per day.

    5    

Another common mistake is relying on the GPS every time you drive. Researchers found relying on response techniques for navigation shrinks a part of our brain. Try to get to your destination using your brain. Perhaps use GPS to get there, but use your brain to get back home. Your brain will thank you for the extra challenge.

A．Lose the GPS.

B．Try using it in a sentence.

C．Don’t turn to Google right away.

D．It helps our brain cells use nutrients.

E．Learning a new skill is an excellent way.

F．Research shows that repetition is an ineffective learning tool.

G．The following are some effective methods for improving memory.

【推荐3】What’s the most important thing in a piece of writing? Is it the story, the characters, the description, or the style? Obviously, you can’t choose only one. A great work succeeds in combining all of them in a great mix, producing a wonderful work.

In most cases, you’re better at one writing element over the rest, and working on your strengths will work to your advantage. Building characters, however, is important to your writing. It’s not to be ignored no matter what your case is. So, how do you achieve that?

Make Them Real

This is probably one of the most common pieces of writing advice: make your characters believable. What does it really mean? It means that your characters need to be there for a reason, not just for pushing the story forward. He/She has a real life, with his/her own fears and dreams, and you have to show this. Your characters don’t need to be typical to be believable. The unusual ones are even more interesting, but it’s your job to make your readers relate to them.

Understand Human Psychology

To build great characters, you’ll need to understand people’s psychology: what are they thinking about, what are they feeling and experiencing, and why are they doing what they are doing? Get behind the obvious. Be in the backstage with them. Sit them in a chair and let them talk away. If you truly listen, you will learn.

Be your character

When you immerse (使沉浸) yourself in your writing, you get lost in that world and you start living in it. This is when the magic happens and you become your character. By putting yourself in your character’s shoes, you allow yourself to experience what you’re writing about first-hand. The more it feels real to you, the more the readers will feel the same, too.

1. According to the author, what makes a great work?

A．Being skilled at description.	B．Having some unusual characters.
C．Using some special writing styles.	D．Combining related things in a great way.

2. According to Paragraph 4, a good writer should be good at ________.

A．knowing others’ minds	B．writing down the obvious points
C．thinking differently from others	D．starting conversations with others

3. To build a great character, you should ________.

A．write according to true events	B．pretend you’re the character
C．talk to others about your character	D．forget about your fears and dreams