5 . Becoming a real runner

I would never use the word “athletic” to describe myself. To me, athletes are people who really enjoy working out. I remember crying in middle school when I had to run a mile during gym class. I huffed and puffed as I jogged. As I grew up, I would go to the gym, but I never enjoyed working out. That, I thought, was for real runners.

In June 2017, my friend sent me an email that would forever change my attitude towards running. He was training for a 200-mile relay (接力赛) and wanted me to be on his team. I would run three legs between four and six miles each over the course of two days. Figuring that I would never again have the chance to work with some top runners, I immediately agreed, and started running outside to prepare.

That first run was hard. I purposefully avoided Central Park in order to stay away from real runners. After a few blocks, I was already winded, and ran the rest of the way home. I called my mom, choked up, to say I had no hope at all of running this relay. But she encouraged me to keep at it, so I didn't quit. I went from running four miles a week to eight within one month before my advanced training began.

I was frightened going into the first training session with the team as everyone else was super “athletic”. We ran for five miles, and I was significantly slower. However, my teammates were so supportive that I felt the runner’s high, which I had never believed existed.

One day, about two weeks into training, my ankle gave out while I was running in Central Park. I was diagnosed with a stress fracture (应力性骨折). The doctor told me to stop running for two months. It took me a while to face the fact that I was out of the race. My doctor told me that he too had once been struck down with a stress fracture, and the following year, he beat his best running time in a half-marathon. That brought me hope.

I made it through the next two months by picturing myself running again. Just yesterday, for the first time since that fateful day, I took my outdoor run with my physical therapist. I mentioned that I might run a half-marathon the next year. Now I wake up excited for the days I get to run. Maybe I am a “real runner” after all.

6 . New events and changes of junior golf competition calendar

New events

Notah BegayⅢ Junior Golf National Championship

What does a junior golfer aim to pursue? One thing is to be noticed, ideally by a college coach. A remarkable opportunity will be offered by the Notah BegayⅢ Junior Golf National Championship to its participants: an event broadcast by Golf Channel. Players aged between eight and 18 can compete in the new event; information about where and when it will be held will be released later.

Barbasol Junior Championship

Beginning the career in the PGA Tour is something that a junior golfer tends to dream of. The Barbasol Junior Championship, which is scheduled to take place between June 29 and July 2 at Keene Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville, Kentucky, will provide such an opportunity. Boys under 19 years old will qualify for this new 54-hole event, and the winner will be awarded a spot at the PGA Tour's Barbasol Championship in July.

Changed events

Thunderbird International Junior

The dates of the AJGA's Thunderbird International Junior have to be changed since the NCAA Championships move to Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona, for the next three years. Generally, the Thunderbird is played at the end of May. However, this year it is scheduled on different dates for the first time, from April 9 to 12, which means, of course, that the finish date is on Masters Sunday.

Gator Invitational

Junior golf intends to prepare for the following college golf. If this is the case, then it is crucial to simulate the higher-level experience as much as possible. Because of that, the Gator Invitational, as a junior boys' event, has made a significant decision on becoming a 54-hole event by adding a round this year. The new version will be played from March 13 to 15 at The Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, Mississippi.

7 . These days, football is one of the most popular sports in the world.    1     It was then known as cuju, a game using a ball of animal skins with hair inside. Football as we know it today started in Great Britain, where the game was given new rules.

The basis of the popularity of football may be that it is such a simple game to play.     2     You don’t need expensive equipment; even the ball doesn’t have to cost much money. All over the world you can see kids playing to their hearts’ content with a ball made of plastic bags; just like Pele did when he was a boy.

    3     It is fun enough to attract millions of people. You do not have to be a fan to recognize the skill of professional players or to feel the excitement of a game ending with a surprising twist.

What’ more, football has become one of the best ways for people to communicate: it does not require words, but everyone understands it.    4     Take, for example, the famous football game on Christmas Day 1914. World War I had broken out months before, but British and German soldiers put down their guns and played football together—one moment of peace to remember during years of conflict.

    5     However, in the eyes of Bill Shankly, the famous footballer and manager, it is   much more important than that. This might sound funny, but one only has to think about the Earth to realise that our planet is shaped like a football.

8 . After moving into my mother’s home to look after her following an illness, I found myself thinking about my own _______. It was clear that I _______ to find something that would help me _______ the house more often.

I found my _______ while standing in line at the store checkout one sunny spring day. Red words on the cover of a magazine caught my _______, “Walk Off Weight!”

After _______ the advantages of walking, I knew I had found the perfect _______ that would not only make me spend more time outdoors, but would also help me keep _______.

I didn’t start walking four miles right away; I began _______. After a few weeks, I ________ from walking two miles every day to between four and six miles every day. My ________ increased from about three miles per hour to over four.

It wasn’t long before I began to notice the many ________ in both my physical and emotional (情绪的) health.

I lost ________. The extra (额外的) fat I’d been carrying around my stomach disappeared. My body was

The advantages to my emotional health were also great. My spirits lifted with each passing day. I could hardly ________ to get up each morning. With more self-confidence, I also found myself to be more sociable and that I began to ________ meeting new people.

________ my mother became less of a tiring task. Feeling ________, I was able to look after her with great enthusiasm (热情). I ________ her to try to become as healthy and as happy as I felt.

9 . Older women who walk a little over three kilometers each day might live longer than less active women of the same age, a new study suggests.

Many Americans hoping to stay healthy set a daily goal of 10, 000 steps, or about eight kilometers. They often have this goal because they are wearing electronic devices which set that target, note researchers in the United States. Their findings appeared recently in the publication JAMA Internal Medicine.

But it is not clear how much intensity(强度)or speed matter when counting the health benefits of every step, the researchers write. They add that 10,000 steps per day might not be the right goal for everyone.

For the study, researchers observed 17,000 women, all in their early 70s. They asked the women to wear accelerometers for at least four days. Accelerometers are small devices that measure the number of steps and the intensity of movement. The researchers followed up with the women much later, around 4. 3 years later, on average. Since the beginning of the study, 504 women had died. Compared to women who took no more than 2, 718 steps daily, the women who took at least 4,363 steps per day were 41 percent less likely to die.

“Even a modest amount of steps is associated with lower death rates, "said I-Min Lee, the lead writer of a report on the study. "The rate of stepping did not matter in these older women: it was the number of steps that mattered.

The study had a few limitations. For example, the researchers only measured women’s movements once, at the start of the study period. It is possible that the women’s behaviors changed over time. Still, the results are "good news for older adults who may have difficulty walking at faster paces, "said Keith Diaz, a researcher at Columbia University. He was not involved in the study.

“Any walking is better than nothing, " Diaz said by email. "With even small amounts of walking, your risk of death will be sharply reduced "For those who have difficulty walking, other research shows that any form of aerobic activity provides health benefits," he added. "Swimming, bicycling or any form of activity that is continuous in nature will provide health benefits.