1 . Physical education, or PE, isn’t required for all high school students. In some schools, it isn’t offered for some different reasons. But should high school students have physical education? The answer is certainly “yes”.

Today many people don’t do sports. But as is known to all, doing sports is very important for an adult. Teaching teens the importance of a healthy lifestyle and making fitness plans now can help teens put exercise in the first place as an adult.

High school isn’t that easy. Many students are under a lot of stress. Stress can be harmful to a student’s study and life. Doing sports can help them deal with stress better, helping them live a happier life at school.

The American Heart Association says that 10 million kids and teens suffer from obesity (肥胖症). Teens should get 60 minutes of physical activity per day to control their weight and to help their bones get stronger. The increase in activities that don’t get teens to move around, such as video games and computer activities, means many teens don’t get their required exercise. PE classes act as a public health measure to encourage physical activities and help teens have healthy weights.

Not doing sports increases teens’ risk of developing many diseases. An active lifestyle offers a good way of protection from these health problems. As much as 75 percent of health-care spending goes toward treating medical conditions that can be hindered by lifestyle changes,according to the American College of Sports Medicine.

According to the President’s Council on Fitness,Sports and Nutrition (PCFSN), students who performed five hours of physical activity each week improved their academic (学业的) performance. Students from programs with no physical activity, who used the extra time for classroom study, did not perform better on tests than those who gave up some study time in support of physical education.

2 . Years ago, I could not stick to exercising until I bought a CD called I Enjoy Exercise. I listened to it every day. I bought the CD because I wanted to run in a race and hopefully win!

I had assured my 10-year-old son Todd that I would run in a race with him. Unfortunately, however, when that race came, his left leg was hurt in a car accident. Without him running with me, although I took part in that race, I didn’t do quite well in it.

While Todd couldn’t run together with me because of his injury (受伤), he never forgot the promise I made for him. He was always asking me whether I would keep my promise when he recovered in the future. So I decided I was going to train and go all out to win the next race. What I needed was motivation (动力). It happened that one of my friends mentioned the CD which he liked very much, saying that he got a lot from the music in it when feeling down. So I bought it and listened to it while exercising every day.

What happened to my thinking was amazing as I listened to it daily. I started to think about the repeated words on the CD — “I enjoy exercise”. Instead of dreading exercise, I was thinking, “I enjoy exercise.”

I found out how important words are that we play in our minds every day. I went from a person who seldom exercised to someone who started to exercise daily. Just think how our lives will improve if we reflect on the uplifting words of the famous works. I have found the positive messages have greatly inspired me and then changed my life.

How did I do in that race, you might be thinking? I actually became the champion in my age group.

Nikhil Kumar is one of the best young table tennis     1    (player)in the United States. Less than a month after Kumar won the right     2    (compete)in them,the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games     3    (put)off until 2021. Like so many other Olympic athletes, he is now trying to stay sharp and in shape.

    4    is different are all the details of his training. All things considered, he says, everything seems to be working. “For my sport, a little lucky that we’re able to have everything indoors, and it’s not taking up too much space and everything,” Kumar said. “Not many sports are as lucky as ours are right now, to be able to have the opportunity to continue playing     5    a daily basis.”

The coronavirus pandemic(新冠病毒)has forced many athletes to be     6    (create)as they try to continue their training. But in some Olympic sports, working from home is fairly common. Kumar has been able to play table tennis with a robot     7    shoots balls at him.

Many competitors are facing tough issues during the pandemic.     8    , some have been lucky. Weightlifter Kate Nye trains at home in her garage. She said, “Everything kind of started shutting down, which     9    (affect)our lives in other ways—but weightlifting wasn’t one of them. I’ve just been going as    10    (plan).”

Long running has a lot of benefits. First, it will help you    1    and prevent diseases. Like any exercise, running    2    the flow of blood and oxygen to your brain. It makes your heart stronger and allows more blood to flow around your body. It also    3    your immune system and reduces the risk of serious health problems. Besides, anybody who is feeling down can go for a run to    4    . A thirty-minute run can provide relief from aches or tension that one may be suffering    5    stress. But remember to    6    and cool down properly before and after running. Such kind of warm-down    7    your body.

Knowing you show great interests in Tai Chi and want to find a master to learn it from, and I’m quite sure I can give you a hand.

Tai Chi not only was an ancient martial art, but has been wide acknowledged as an effective kind of health exercise. Famous for its graceful and well-balanced movements. Tai Chi provides amazed mental relaxation and physical fitness.

Considering you choice of location and instructor, I recommend you the best school and the best coach in our city. Actually, my uncle is the master of Tai Chi whom is always invited to instruct others. So you can rely on it that I would introduce you to my uncle.

Hope you will enjoy your learning of Tai Chi in China.

7 . First it was jogging. Then aerobics (有氧运动). Not too long ago, Americans discovered race walking.

Now Americans are into a new fitness craze. They’re taking up bicycling. Over hills and down mountainsides and across quiet country roads, Americans are busily rolling along.

The number of adults who ride for fitness is around 17 million, an increase of 70 percent over four years ago. Twice as many women as men are coming to the sport. Americans are falling in love with biking because it has speed, the benefits of jogging and beautiful scenery.

Bicycling is a very appropriate sport, which is important to people who injured their knees while jogging or whose joints are aching from aerobics. And biking is a real awakening for people who have been into race walking in the past. Race walking is as dull as watching paint dry.

The most popular kind of bicycle for people who are new to the sport is the mountain bike, which has a fixed frame with wide tires and upright handles.

Mountain bikes also have many gears (齿轮) to make it easier to climb hills. About 5 million Americans ride mountain bikes, compared with 200, 000 who rode them only five years ago.

Costs range from about $130 for a bottom-of-the-line bicycle to more than $2,700 for an expensive bicycle.

Mountain biking has attracted some people who race down the sides of mountains like a bat out of hell. But most riders ride slowly and they rarely venture far from home.

The biking craze has brought an unexpected profit (盈利) to clothing and bicycle accessory (附属品) makers. Last year, bikers paid $630 million for biking clothes and accessories.

Bicycling seems likely to continue its fantastic growth.

In the 2016 World Triathlon Series in Mexico, when Alistair came round the corner, he saw his brother about     1     (fall) onto the track. He ran towards Jonny, caught him and     2     (start) pulling him towards the finish line. The move put Jonny in second place and Alistair     3     (he) in third. It was     4     unexpected end to the race, but Alistair did not want to discuss it     5     the media. He just wanted to see his younger brother,     6     had been rushed to the medical area.

Despite     7     (argument) over “stupid things” now and then, Alistair agrees that     8     (have) a brother is an advantage.

    9     (watch) by millions, the ending to the race has divided opinions: should the brothers have been disqualified or     10     (high) praised for their actions? But for Alistair, this decision was easy to explain: At that moment, he was no longer an athlete aiming for a medal—he was just a brother.