2 . With the cold weather drawing nearer, few people will choose swimming as a daily or usual activity.     1     Here come the reasons.

Good for your brain.

Swimming is one of the best activities you can do all year round, which benefits your body and your mind. Swimming has been found to increase blood flow to the brain, which leads to more oxygen.     2    

Work your muscles.

Every time you swim, it is like doing a mini-resistance workout. Each kicks and pull works your muscles more than you could imagine, especially your arms, shoulders and gluteus — the muscles that are inactive all day when you’re sitting at your desk.     3     So along with building fitness, it is a wonderful full body exercise.

Lift your spirits.

    4     They can cause a positive feeling into your body which makes you happy. Swimming has been shown to reduce stress and tension. The repetition, movement and the breathing can help you to relax , and that’s why swimming is also regarded as a relaxing exercise.

    5    

While swimming is an individual sport, it is also very social. You can meet people from all walks of life when swimming. Have a chat in the lap pool, join a swimming club or get involved in social water sports to get to know people in your community. Besides, the great thing about swimming is that you can do it — rain or shine. Although your backyard pool, the river or beach cools down over winter, most inside swimming pools run heated pools year round, so you’ve got no excuse to stop swimming.

NOTICE

Student Union

4 . Much-loved 100-Word-Story Competition

Our much-loved 100-Word-Story Competition is back! Enter for the chance to win prizes of up to₤ 1,000.

Rules and prizes

Please ensure that submissions are original, not previously published and exactly 100 words long(not including title). Don’t forget to include your full name, address, email and phone number when filling in the form. We may use entries in all print and electronic media.

Terms and conditions:

There are three categories—one for adults and two categories for schools (one for children aged12-18 and one for children under 12).

● In the adults category, the winner will receive £ 1,000 and one runner-up will receive £250.

● In the 12-18s category, the winner will receive a £200 book voucher (代金券) or a Kindle Paperwhite and a ₤ 100 book voucher for their school, and the runner-up will receive a £100 book voucher.

● In the under-12 category, the winner will receive a £100 book voucher or a Kindle Paperwhite and a £50 book voucher for their school, and the runner-up will receive a £50 book voucher.

Please submit your stories by 5 pm on January 5, 2024 either online or by post addressed to:

Reader’s Digest

00 Word Story Competition

Warmers Group Publications

West Street, Bourne

PE10 9PH

The editorial team will pick a shortlist of entries, and the three best stories in each category will be posted online at readersdigest.co.uk on February 1, 2024. You can vote you’re your favourite, and the one with the most votes will win the top prize. Voting will close on February 29,2024 and the winning entries will be published in our May 2024 issue, and posted online on April 16, 2024.

6 . Are you preparing for a big test? If so, you may want to go playing some basketball in between hitting the books. Doctors are starting to find more and more information that suggests a connection between exercise and brain development. Judy Cameron, a scientist at Oregon Health and Science University, studies brain development. According to her research,   it seems that exercise can make blood vessels (血管),   including those in the brain, stronger and more fully developed. Dr Cameron is sure that this allows people who exercise to think better. As she says, “while we already know that exercise is good for the heart, exercise can actually cause physical changes in the   brain.”

The effects of exercise on brain development can even be seen in babies. Babies who do activities that require a lot of movement and physical activity show greater brain development than babies who are less physically active. Even a little movement can show big results. Margaret Barnes, a scientist, also believes in the importance of exercise. She thinks that many learning disabilities that children have in primary school or high school can result from a lack of movement as babies. “Babies need movement that encourages and excites their five senses. They need to set up a connection between motion and memory. In this way, as they get older, children will begin to connect physical activity with higher learning，” says Margaret.

Older people can develop their brains as well. Cornell University studied a group of seniors who have a short­term memory increase of up to 40 percent after exercising just three hours a week. The exercise does not have to be very difficult, but it does have to increase the heart rate. Also, just like the motion for babies   exercise for older people should not be too simple. Learning some new skills or actions, such as with yoga or tai­chi helps to open up memory paths in the brain that may not have been used for a long time. For most people, any type of physical activity that increases the heart rate is helpful. The main aim is to increase the brain’s flow of blood. And your brain can benefit from as little as two to three hours of exercise a week.

The Autumn Sports Meeting

9 . Do you like running enough to make it a habit? Tierney Wolfgram does; she has made running a lifelong career and isn't stopping.

In February, the 16-year-old from a high school, US, competed at the 2020 US Olympic Trials. She finished the marathon(42.195 km)with a time of 2:42:47 as the youngest competitor in the race and ranked 76th out of 390 runners. However, the cross-country(越野的)season was postponed to winter because of the COVID-19. So she jumped at the opportunity to train for another race-the Parkway Marathon in California. In November, Wolfgram broke the Women's American Junior marathon record with her time of 2:31:49. The old record was 2:34:32, which had stood since 1984.

“I'm completely stunned, ”said Wolfgram's coach.   “I knew she was going to break it, but she really showed out！”

During the run, Wolfgram once hit a wall pretty hard, but she overcame it to finish. “I guess I can say I gave it my all, ”she told Runner's World. “When I finished, all I was thinking was I felt super happy,” Wolfgram said This was only her third marathon. In 2018, when Wolfgram was 15 years old, she ran her first marathon just because she wanted to see if she had the ability to do it. “I believed that I would get faster as the distances got longer. . . I'm still glad that I did it. ”

When preparing for that first marathon, she ran up to 120 miles per week. Although her parents didn't have any background in running, they helped Wolfgram train. At first, her dad would take her out in the morning and run about 13 miles. The distance would gradually increase each day. On top of her runs in the morning, she would do cross-country practice after school.

Now Wolfgram will consider attending the Olympics Games in 2024 after it's scheduled.