1 . For people suffering from depression, there’s an all-natural treatment they should use — getting more exercise. It could help fight depression, even if people have a genetic risk, new research shows.

For the study, researchers collected information from nearly 8,000 people and found those with related genes were more likely to have depression over the next two years after examining them. But that was less likely for people who were more active at the study’s start, even if they had a family history of depression. Higher levels of physical activity helped protect even those with the highest genetic risk of depression.

Both high-intensity (高强度) exercise and low-intensity activities were associated with a reduced risk of depression. Adding four hours of exercise a week could lower the risk of a new episode (一段经历) of depression by 17%, according to the study. “Our findings strongly suggest that, when it comes to depression, being physically active has the potential to remove the added risk of future episodes in individuals who are genetically risky,” said lead author Karmel Choi. “On average, about 35 additional minutes of physical activity each day may help people to reduce their risk and protect against future depression episodes.”

Depression is a common mental illness globally, with more than 264 million people affected. “Depression is so ubiquitous, and that underlines the need for effective approaches that can impact as many people as possible,” Choi said. And mental health and primary care providers can use the findings to advise patients that there’s something meaningful they can do to lower their risk of depression.

2 . Yesterday, my daughter had to go to work earlier than usual. Since the gym where I work out is not far from her _________, I decided to take her to work and then go to the gym.

At quite an earlier hour, the gym was_________full of men and women of all ages, working out. I_________go to the gym at this early hour, and was_________to see so many people. It seems that many go to the gym before going to work. Some want to lose weight, others want to_________ their body, and a great number of people like to build their muscles (肌肉). I know how difficult it is for most people to start exercising. Most people know it is good for their body, _________they are too lazy to go to the gym, _________ in the morning. They_________to spend an extra hour in bed before starting their day. In the afternoon, they are too_________ after work, and want to stay at home or go out to meet friends.

If you’re one of them, you need to overcome (克服) your__________. If you__________going to the gym and exercising, you will start to like it. This usually __________when you see you’re losing weight, that your body is getting into a better shape, and that you feel stronger.

It is the same in every other area of life, when you study a foreign language, develop a new skill or a new habit and when you make up your mind to__________your dreams. It is__________at first. But when you start to see __________, everything becomes easier because you have great motivation.

4 . I have grown up in a football-loving family. My dad played until injury _________ him out. My elder sister Stevie _________ with Crewe Alexandra Girls for a year or two as a left back (后卫), just like our hero Jamie Carragher.

I remember the exact moment when I told my dad I was _________ in doing what my big sister did. I was watching the game with him in the living room and it just came out: “It makes me _________ that I can’t be a footballer.” He asked why not, and I answered, “Because I’m not a boy.”

He _________ responded by telling me that women’s football was “great” and that I could play if I wanted to. “Yeah, I suppose so,” I responded, “but no one _________ women’s football.” Looking back, I can see exactly why I felt like that.

At school, there was an unwritten _________ that sports like rugby and football were for the boys. I’d never seen a women’s football match on TV and the only _________ athletes I’d heard of were in the Olympics.

Today, the England Lionesses (母狮队) will _________ Scotland in the World Cup, and people across the world will watch it. __________ women’s football has turned out to be one of FIFA’s investments, the majority of female players in top tiers are earning under what anyone would consider a fair __________, and only £24 million prize money was awarded to the women’s World Cup victors in __________ with £315 million to the men’s. That’s a vast __________.

Maybe, the truth is: Investment is needed for female football to become more visible and become a(n) __________ respected game. It’ll mean talented, skillful female footballers being __________ by millions of homes and maybe, just maybe, a little girl believing that she can also be a Lioness one day.

6 . Teenagers’ fitness is now a major concern, to which physical exercise is very important. It reduces stress and improves fitness. Exercise makes your body strong, and helps you to keep the right body weight. Sports scientist Dr.Helen Lopez offers the following advice to teenagers: “Firstly, you need to find out your present level of fitness. Then you can design a programme that will help you become healthier.”

Dr Lopez suggests that there are three levels of fitness that need a change of lifestyle. “Overweight” means that the person gets very little exercise and often has a serious weight problem. “Inactive” means that the person does not join in many physical activities, but is not seriously overweight. “Active” refers to people who take part in sports and other physical activities, but do not have a high fitness level.

According to Dr Lopez, overweight teenagers should keep active to keep healthy. Ride a bike, play volleyball or basketball for a while, and go for a twenty-minute walk each day. All these will help to burn up calories. Inactive teenagers should do similar activities, but add some bending and stretching exercises, such as push-ups and sit-ups, starting with twenty of each a day. “Inactive people can take a little more exercise than overweight people because their bodies are stronger,” said Dr Lopez. The same principle applies to active teenagers.

Dr Lopez suggests one hour a week or more on running and other forms of intensive exercise, together with fifteen minutes a day spent on stretching and bending activities. “These are really important in order to prevent injuries,” Dr Lopez said. Some weight-training and other body-strengthening exercises could also be planned in the programme in order to increase the personˈs strength.

8 . I’m nine years old now, but I have been_________competitively since I was six. I love it, because it makes me feel good. I have a lot of_________and I can do it by just moving my legs.

One recent Sunday morning, my mum drove me to a 5km race in Minnesota. The starting line was _________because there was also a 10km race. That morning, I was running confidently and feeling_________. Then I came to a fork on the course. A woman who was directing us_________the route I thought I was meant to take and told me to go the other way. I was_________, but I had to follow her_________.

After a while I saw route directions for the 10km race. I was worried, thinking I was_________, but I had to keep going. My body started to get_________. I said to myself, “You’re almost there. Just keep__________.”

__________ I saw the finish line. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t even know I was running 10km and I __________it. I didn’t do this on purpose. It was a __________. I felt happy and proud. It was the first time that I had run such a(n) __________. It has made me want to compete in more 10km races. I hope my story can __________other people to run too.

9 . “Being a sports fan is a very psychologically healthy activity,” says Daniel Warm, professor at Murray State University whose research program centers on the psychology of sport fandom(运动迷). Fandom connects us to other like-minded people, which satisfies our human need for belonging, he says.

These relationships are significant: People who identify as sports fans have higher levels of self-esteem, lower levels of loneliness and tend to be more satisfied with their lives compared to those who aren’t interested in sports, Wann says. Fans tend to have more access to social support, help and resources as well. Research suggests that when people have support from their communities, they have better health.

Beyond bonding, fans get to enjoy the psychological benefits of winning, even if they have nothing to do with the players or games.

Of course, teams sometimes lose. Prior to a sporting event, there’s at least a 50-50 chance that you’re going to be disappointed in your outcome.

So, why do people continue to put their faith behind teams that tend to lose? People who feel a strong psychological connection to a team are more likely to root for a team when they’re having a losing season.

“Sports random has nothing to do with the outcome of a game,” Warm says. For example, if a pizza restaurant continually got your order wrong, you’d likely switch to a more reliable parlor(店铺). But because being a fan is so central to people’s identities, people are willing to accept defeat and continue to be loyal to a team.

Being part of a fan community can also help people cope with losses. A 2019 study found that watching a football game with other fans helps to relieve the negative psychological effects of losing. For fans of the losing team, sharing the pain may have protected them from losing self-esteem.

“There are other things that random brings with it above and beyond the ability to enjoy the team’s successes,” Warm says. Watching sports can be a way to relieve stress, or spend time with family, he says.

To that end, some surveys suggest that activities like March Madness pools can reduce productivity. Any sort of fandom can be distracting, but Warm says that talking about sports at work and spending time with people who share a common interest can make people more excited to go to work.

However, if you find you’re consuming so much sports content that your work is suffering, or it’s impacting your interpersonal relationships, then it can be a sign you should tone it down, he adds.

10 . Exercise and I had never had a good relationship due to my fear of sports. From a young age, my dad _______ me into a dozen sports. I didn’t like any of them, _______.

When I entered the University of Regina, my dad _______ telling me “You have to find a way to stay _______.” or “You don’t want to get the Freshman 15, do you?” So I _______ to give swimming a shot, but I _______ managed to go to the pool twice during the fall semester (学期). Worse still, I was _______ to convince myself that’s OK.

The spring semester came. A friend of mine _______ me if I wanted to try Zumba (尊巴) with her. All I knew about Zumba was that it was basically a kind of exercise: dancing to Latin pop songs. It didn’t sound too bad, but I couldn’t be _______.

I went, and that was it. Zumba became my ________ of tea. The instructor would always say, “Don’t worry about the steps. Have fun. Do your own thing.” That removed my ________ of sports. I didn’t have to be ________. I didn’t even have to be good. I just needed to ________ the music and move. Zumba did ________ me from the Freshman 15, and it also did so much more. It let me make ________ with my unpleasant past about physical exercise, and enjoy staying healthy.