1 . Race walking shares many fitness benefits with running, research shows, while most likely contributing to fewer injuries. It does, however, have its own problem.

Race walkers are conditioned athletes. The longest track and field event at the Summer Olympics is the 50-kilometer race walk, which is about five miles longer than the marathon. But the sport’s rules require that a race walker’s knees stay straight through most of the leg swing and one foot remain in contact (接触) with the ground at all times. It’s this strange form that makes race walking such an attractive activity, however, says Jaclyn Norberg, an assistant professor of exercise science at Salem State University in Salem, Mass.

Like running, race walking is physically demanding, she says, According to most calculations, race walkers moving at a pace of six miles per hour would burn about 800 calories(卡路里) per hour, which is approximately twice as many as they would burn walking, although fewer than running, which would probably burn about 1,000 or more calories per hour.

However, race walking does not pound the body as much as running does, Dr. Norberg says. According to her research, runners hit the ground with as much as four times their body weight per step, while race walkers, who do not leave the ground, create only about 1.4 times their body weight with each step.

As a result, she says, some of the injuries associated with running, such as runner’s knee, are uncommon among race walkers. But the sport’s strange form does place considerable stress on the ankles and hips, so people with a history of such injuries might want to be cautious in adopting the sport. In fact, anyone wishing to try race walking should probably first consult a coach or experienced racer to learn proper technique, she says. It takes some practice.

2 . The Upside to Being Outside

Research shows that being in nature makes people feel good, whether they’re roughing it in the wilderness for days or just hanging out at a local park for a while. One study was conducted in the city of Birmingham, Alabama. Researchers found that most participants’ mood and well-being improved significantly when they spent time in urban parks, even though the average visit was only around half an hour.

    1     For example, scientists in the United Kingdom studied the impact of the “30 Days Wild” campaign. It challenged people to interact with nature for 30 days by enjoying earthy activities like feeding birds and planting flowers. Participants were measurably happier and healthier throughout the challenge…and for months afterwards, too.    2    

How does nature boost people’s happiness? Scientists say that spending time in natural settings reduces stress and anxiety, which benefits mental and physical health. Research shows our brains are more relaxed in natural settings.

To most people, it’s not news that nature can be calming. But multiple studies have found that spending time in nature also has some more surprising benefits, like improving creativity and problem-solving.     3     Another found that exposure to nature helped people score better on tests. That’s more proof that going outside is a smart move!

What accounts for the connection with cognition and creativity? It could be that a good dose of nature acts as a cure to information overload. Everyday life involves a lot of multitasking. Some scientists theorize that spending time in nature enables our brains to rest and recover from mental tiredness.     4    

Naturally, scientific studies don’t cover everything that’s great about the great outdoors.     5     From recreation and exercise to happiness and creativity, there are lots of upsides to getting outside.

Is there a Chinese soccer team at the Qatar 2022 World Cup? No. But one can’t miss Chinese elements in and around the stadiums there. One can drink water from ponds,     1    (dig) by Chinese engineers,take a nap in a“mobile hotel”, built by Chinese engineers,    2    take a shuttle imported from China to move between hotels and stadiums.

Did we forget something?Yes,even some stadiums are built by Chinese construction    3    (company),while the souvenirs one can buy there, too,     4    (make) in China.

That’s     5    China has participated in this world Cup and earlier tournaments, and may do so in the upcoming ones too, thus     6    (impress) the world with its technology and products. While “Made in China” has left its stamp on     7    (early) soccer World Cup World Cups and other sports events , what makes the Qatar     8     unique one is the kind of technology China is providing. For example, the Stadium 974, built by Chinese enterprises, is the first     9    (move) “green stadium” that can recycle rainwater for future use and make the garbage collected from the stadium into fertilizer.

I think the reason why Chinese firms perform well in the World Cup is that China has registered good economic     10    (grow) during a global recession.

5 . Running is often tiring and a lot of hard work, but nothing beats the feeling you get after finishing a long workout around the track.

But while it’s long been believed that endorphins (内啡肽) —chemicals in the body that cause happiness—are behind the so-called “runner’s high”, a study suggested that there may be more to this phenomenon than we previously knew.

According to a recent study published by a group of scientists from several German universities, a group of chemicals called endocannabinoids (内源性大麻素) may actually be responsible for this familiar great feeling.

To test this theory, the scientists turned to mice. Both mice and humans release high levels of endorphins and endocannabinoids after exercise. After exercising on running wheels, the mice seemed happy and relaxed and displayed no signs of anxiety. But after being given a drug to block their endorphins, the mice’s behavior didn’t seem to change. However, when their endocannabinoids were blocked with a different drug, their runners’ high symptoms seemed to fade.

“The long-held notion of endorphins being responsible for the runner’s high is false. Endorphins are effective pain relievers, but only when it comes to the pain in your body and muscles you feel after working out,” Patrick Lucas Austin wrote on science blog Lifchacker.

Similar studies are yet to be carried out on humans, but it’s already known that exercise is a highly effective way to get rid of stress or anxiety. The UK’s National Health Service even prescribes (开药 方) exercise to patients who are suffering from depression. “Being depressed can leave you feeling low in energy, which might put you off being more active. Regular exercise can improve your mood if you have depression, and its especially useful for people with mild to moderate (中等的) depression,” it wrote on its website.

It seems like nothing can beat that feeling we get after a good workout, even if we don’t fully understand where it comes from. At least if we’re feeling down, we know that all we have to do is to put on our running shoes.

6 . In the sport of track and field, athletes compete not only with one another but against themselves, and with each race they try to ______ a new personal best.

As a student in Omaha Burke High School, Blake Cerveny was running in a race. Aiming to ______ his own personal record, after a fast start, he continued to ______ himself hard. With less than 400 meters to go, Cerveny's legs cramped（抽筋）up and ______ him. Determined to finish, Cerveny rose from the ground and continued on, only to ______ again after another 150 meters.

______ , his coach asked him if he wanted to stop. He didn’t. With great ______ Cerveny pulled himself up and with a（n） ______ pace, moved forward for one final push. ______ , it wasn’t enough. Less than 100 meters from the finish line, he lay curled on the ground. His legs had simply ______ .

Before Cerveny's coach could ______ him, Brandon Schutt was at his side to offer a helping hand. His first ______ to get Cerveny up failed, but like Cerveny, he ______ to quit, too. With a second pull, Cerveny was ______ .

At a measured jog, with Cerveny holding Schutt for ______ , the two completed the final 75 meters of the ______ together. Schutt even made sure the injured runner crossed the finish line first, ______ his opponent a faster time.

In today’s ______ world in which the emphasis in athletics is so often put on breaking records, it was ______ to see that for an athlete like Schutt, the value of true ______ still had legs.

My 11-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, started to talk about quitting swimming, which broke my heart because she loves swimming. So when the swim season began, I cut a deal with her. She would practice three times a week and try really hard. I wouldn't make her compete in the swim meets. Elizabeth does not like swim meets. She gets horribly nervous but not because she wants to win. She doesn't care if she wins.

Recently, Elizabeth's team announced a special swim night： Members 11 and older would swim a timed 50 meters relay. It wasn't exactly a meet, because it would involve only team members. That was my view. Elizabeth argued that it absolutely was a meet because there would be races. I told Elizabeth I really wanted her to go. She fought back angrily but finally agreed.

When the day of the special swim night arrived Elizabeth was nervous. She was the youngest person and shorter by at least a foot than most of the other kids. She panicked when it was time for the T-shirt relay. The relay works like this： One person from each relay team puts on a T-shirt, a pair of socks» and a swim cap； swims 50 meters; and gets out of the pool. She takes off the clothes and puts them on the next person, who then swims 50 meters. This continues until everyone on the team has completed a lap.

Then it was Elizabeth's turn to swim. She seemed to swim faster in the T-shirt and socks than she did when she wasn't wearing them. Approaching the halfway mark, Elizabeth was in the lead. Suddenly, somebody noticed that one of Elizabeth's socks had fallen off and was floating （漂）in the pool. "She has to get that sock on before the end of the race," a swimming official told Elizabeth's team, ^“or you will be disqualified.^”

Everybody on her team started screaming ^“Elizabeth! Get the sock!”

On the ride home, she shared her moment of winning again and again.

9 . I always wanted to look like the slim girls on TV even though I knew that it was impossible. I worried about my _______ and tried every new diet I read about online. I tried low-fat, no-fat, only bananas, no bananas — I almost went bananas, too.

Then I read an article that said _______ asking “Am I fat?”, I should be asking “Am I _______?” I had no _______ a letter could make such a _______! Once I started thinking about fitness rather than weight, things began to _______. Instead of saying “I want to lose three kilos”, I would say “I want to _______ two kilometers in eight minutes” or “I want to be able to do 30 push-ups”. Rather than _______ the foods I enjoyed, I added healthy foods to my meals. I could _______ have a burger now and then, but I would ________ a salad or an apple.

Finally, I stopped ________ myself with actresses and models and ________ things that were wrong with my face or body. Instead, I made a list of the things I ________ about myself. By being ________ about myself and my body, I became both happier and ________.