1 . These days, are you spending more time feeling guilty about not working out than working out? If so, you’re probably the kind of lapsed boomer. You’ve joined the 4-in-10 adult Americans of all ages who admit they’re not physically active at all, according to the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.

Exercise experts like Richard Cotton and Cedric Bryant have heard it all before — busy boomers complaining that, between car pools and van pools and making ends meet, they hardly have time for a movie, much less regular exercise. Here are some of their best tips.

Plan your workout wardrobe so you’ll be comfortable. Consider the weather you will be walking in and decide: long pants, long sleeve, shorts, hat?

Which type? “If you are walking with the hope of jogging finally, buy running shoes,” says Cotton. If you plan to walk as your main exercise, get walking shoes.

“Do much less than you think you are able to,” Cotton suggests. Take a 10-minute walk if you’re newly back to workouts. It’s not enough, “but it’s a start.” Consider walking as a good way to get back to exercise.

If you can’t talk without difficulty as you walk or jog, you’re going too fast and trying to do too much, Bryant says.

That could help increase your faithfulness to your new habit. “An exercise partner is always nice”, Cotton says, “especially if you can get someone who already has the habit. That’s a free ride.”

You might notice looser waistbands but no difference on the scale. “As you get up into 35-, 40- or 45-minute walks, you can expect weight loss,” Cotton says. “But even if you do not lose a pound, you are healthier if you exercise.” And quite possibly, that might put you higher up on Bush’s invite list, should he host another run.

3 . Riding through the World

Ready to ride? The Hershey Harrisburg Region offers a variety of scenic pathways and rugged (崎岖的) trails for all skill levels in any season.

Enjoy 19 miles of family-friendly trail near Dauphin, PA. This peaceful trek through Stony Valley is part of the second largest roadless wilderness tract of land of Pennsylvania.

Trails: 1             Trail length: 19. 2 miles

Trail type: primitive       Difficulty: easy

Average time: 2. 5 hrs       Average trail grade: 1 degree

Enjoy 21 miles of beautiful scenery, historic architecture, and magnificent views of the river and Pennsylvania Capitol complex. Combining urban, wooded, and paved trails, the Greenbelt Trail System is also popular for hikes, walks and recreational biking.

Trails: 5             Trail length: 21. 89 miles

Trail type: paved and primitive       Difficulty: easy to moderate

Average time: 3. 5 hrs       Average trail grade: 1. 5 degrees

Ten miles of new trails wind their way through the Pean State University at the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center Campus. The trails are divided into two sections, with one side geared toward more challenging sides and the other hosting more: open and flowing pathways.

Trails: 10             Trail length: 9. 7 miles

Trail type: paved and primitive       Difficulty: moderate

Average time: 1. 5 hrs       Average trail grade: 2 degrees

Expert riders looking for a challenging track with varied terrain (地形) will love this trail. The Rattling Creek trail network covers over 20 miles of rugged singletrack terrain, as well as miles of tamer gravel (砾石) forest roads. The trail network comprises trails in the Weiser State Forest and in Lykens Borough.

Trails: 15             Trail length: 22. 3 miles

Trail typo: primitive and rocky       Difficulty: difficult

Average time: 3. 5 hrs       Average trail grade: 3 degrees

4 . The planet has a new world record for running the Zurich Marato Barcelona while pushing a wheelchair!

Eric Domingo Roldan of Barcelona, Spain, first tried to run a 26.2-mile race while _______ his mother Silvia back in 2020. When they _______ the mark by just 1 minute and 21 seconds, Eric vowed (发誓) to _______ in 2021 to win the title.

True to his _______ , Eric and Silvia have done just that! On November 7, 2021, Eric and Silvia crossed the finish line in 2 hours, 53 minutes and 28 seconds. The _______ record was 2: 58: 40, so they pulled off their _______ with time to spare!

Eric has a very special _______ for setting such a goal. Many people don’t know multiple sclerosis (多发性硬化) (MS). Eric runs to draw _______ to MS, which his mother has dealt with for more than 17 years. He also runs to raise money for MS. He _______ to collect more than €3, 000 before the marathon. All of the money was used to ________ MS research.

The son said achieving the world record means even more to them, because it encourages them to go on after they went through the hardest time of their life. ________ her MS, his mother is still recovering from a battle with COVID-19 back in August.

While she was ________ about the race, Silvia was all smiles in her wheelchair as Eric ran. She loved the feeling of the wind in her hair as her son pushed them both toward the finish line.

“It was a dream come true,” Eric added. “I was often looking at my watch to check if we were ________ , and the last 195m were the ________ seconds of my life. To cross that line meant that we finally did what we ________.”

5 . In 1965, three fathers in Washington faced a dilemma familiar to beleaguered (被困扰的) parents in 2021: How to keep their restless children entertained. They threw together wooden paddles, a badminton net and a plastic ball. The sport “pickleball” was born, with its name — according to one legend — originating from a dog named Pickle, which kept running away with the ball.

Today, pickleball, which is a hybrid (混合物) of tennis, badminton and ping-pong, is the fastest-growing sport in America. In the five years to the end of 2019, pickleball participation grew by more than 7%, while Americans’ overall activity level stayed flat, according to the Sport & Fitness Industry Association. And the sport has picked up more swing definitely, thanks to COVID-19 in 2020. Last March, when quarantines (隔离期) went into effect and gyms were closed, portable pickleball nets temporarily sold out. Players set up courts, which are half the size of tennis courts, in driveways.

The 3.5 million Americans who play pickleball are about one-tenth the number who golf and one-fifth the number who play tennis. Yet there are reasons to bet on the sport’s spread. Like many outdoor activities, pickleball is social, but it is easier to learn than tennis and faster and less expensive than golf. Country clubs and recreation centers across the country are changing some of their tennis courts into pickleball courts to meet demand. The more places there are to play, the more players will try the sport.

“Pickleball was seen as a threat in the tennis community,” says Stu Upson of USA Pickleball, the sport’s national governing body, who used to work for the International Tennis Hall of Fame. But now, he insists, it is viewed as an opportunity. Tennis pros are adding pickleball lessons to their list. As more people take up the sport, demand for televised matches and sponsorships will increase. “It’s reasonable that pickleball could become an Olympic sport. But to be recognized by the International Olympic Committee, we need at least 70 countries with pickleball federations (联合会), so it’s not going to be in the next four or eight years,” says Mr. Upson.

6 . Standing at the finish line, 70-year-old Bob Long spent a while reflecting on the achievement he’d just made. Behind him was the wild, endless Mongolian grassland extending into the distance. This American had just become the oldest person ever to complete and win the Mongol Derby, the world’s longest horse race.

Long, a rider all his life, entered the race after being inspired by All the Wild Horses, a movie based on the grueling event.

Fearing that he wouldn’t be able to complete it, he set about preparing his mind and body for this “hardest, toughest, most demanding thing you can do on a horse”, an annual 1,000-kilometer race that was recognized as the world’s longest horse race by The Guinness Book of Records in 2011.

Although Long had been riding horses for many years, the hardship and uncertainty of the task pushed him to his limit and forced him to depend entirely on his own will. The race organizers had provided an extensive support network to keep an eye on the participants from afar. Despite that, the physical strain of riding such a long distance made simple things like squatting (蹲) down at the end of the day almost impossible.

Along the vast race course there were unpredictable circumstances beyond Long’s control, however well prepared he’d been. Weather was one of them, which could switch from heavy rain to burning sun unexpectedly.

Above all else, the biggest obstacle was the state of mind. Without a living soul in sight, Long was desperate for interaction, guidance, and comfort. This feeling of loneliness accounted for his hope that one of his fellow competitors would catch up.

Regardless of the hardship, Long felt a sort of spiritual adventure while traveling through the wilderness. He was provided with some memorable moments while connecting with nature. Still holding the passion for riding, Long never dismisses the idea of competing in another Mongol Derby.