1 . When you think of how much you do with your hands all day, from making yourself fried eggs in the morning to folding laundry in the evening, it becomes clear how vital skillfulness is to daily life.     1     You need it to play sports, for example, or use a remote or a video game controller.

For some specific tips on improving skillfulness, we turned to a personal trainer Abdias Rojas. He said, “there are so many movements you can do to actually improve not just the strength of your hands but also flexibility in your hands.”     2    

Put rubber bands on your fingers, then expand and contract them. This will contribute to myofascial (肌筋膜的) release and getting your hands to feel more comfortable.

To get a better sense of how much pressure you should apply when touching things, do hand exercise in sand.     3     But when you do hand exercise inside of a sandbox, put your hands in a box of sand, you can literally learn to squeeze the sand and understand which joint or which finger is giving more giving more pressure or less pressure.

    4     Practice leaning into them with your palm down on the floor. Then, practice leaning into them with the backs of your hands on the floor, rolling on them, like putting weight on and taking weight off the wrist.

Finally, try seated eccentric (偏心的) wrist extension. Sit upright with an arm on a table, holding a dumbbell with your hand hanging off the edge and your palm facing down. Use your other hand to curl your wrist up, lower it, and repeat.     5    

Don’t overlook the value of overall body health when it comes to improving skillfulness, either. Rojas pointed out that without the optimal gross (最佳的粗肌) and fine motor skills, which make up the skillfulness of our hands, we would be unable to perform daily tasks.

A．It sounds strange.

B．Moreover, it helps you have fun, too.

C．Here are the ones that he recommended.

D．To strengthen your wrists, do wrist mobility drills.

E．Do this in sets of two with 20 repetitions each, every day.

F．To strengthen your sensation of touch, avoid working out with gloves.

G．To start with the basics, flexibility is the skill of performing tasks, particularly with your hands.

3 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Traditional Fitness Qigong Wins Hearts of Young Chinese

No one could have expected that slow-moving Qigong    1    (become) popular among Chinese young people in the past several years. Short videos of young Chinese doing traditional fitness Qigong have flooded video websites, among     2    a video of Baduanjin has been played for more than 10 million times and received over 6, 000 comments on a video sharing platform targeting young people.

Baduanjin is one of the oldest fitness     3    (method) to stay healthy in China, originally created over 800 years ago during the Song Dynasty. The name refers    4    how the eight individual movements provide a soft quality for the movement of the body.

Compared with more    5    (physical) demanding sports such as the ball games or swimming, Baduanjin is slow and usually accompanied by restful music, so it used to be considered as the sport    6    (intend) for the elders. However, not requiring much space, equipment or time, it’s perfect for office workers, as they often suffer from back and neck pain caused by    7    (sit) in front of computers for hours.

“I’ve been doing Baduanjin for a couple of months, which makes     8    (I) sleep well and get strong,”     9    young netizen commented below the video. “I owe big thanks to Baduanjin as it offers a much    10    (good) lifestyle.”

4 . Helping Your Kids to Be Interested in Sports

Being active and moving is something that is so important for us all, especially for children.     1     However, some parents can feel shocked when they see that their child isn’t interested in sports. So how can you encourage them to have ago?

It is such a good idea to lead by example when you are a parent. This is true for a variety of aspects, but especially forgetting children involved in sport.     2     So you need to be someone who is interested and active, if you want any hope of them doing so too. If you lay on the couch all day then they will just learn to do that too.

    3     Although they can choose who they want to support, seeing your enthusiasm for a particular player or team can be just what is needed to start their journey. You could look for a team uniform store to get them a sports shirt with their name on for example, as well as see the team play at one of their games.     4    

If something is dull, it will be hard for children to be enthusiastic about it. This will make them resent(讨厌) it, which is not a good thing for later in life. If they show particular skill and learn to play sport, then more practice and training can come in.     5     When they can enjoy what they do, they will only see it as something fun to do, rather than what we as adults might see it as, such as a chore to burn calories.

Whatever sport your child chooses to play, encourage them and make it fun, and then it will be something that they will want to carry on doing as they go about the rest of their lives.

A．They won’t be interested in sports if you’re not.

B．here are some other tips that you would share with them.

C．Share your enthusiasm and it will help to lighten a passion.

D．So think about ways that can get them to be active in the sports.

E．How active a child is will impact their overall health and learning.

F．Apart from leading by example, you could also share your favorite team.

G．However, the main message forgetting children into sport is to keep it fun.

5 . Most people in their eighties would consider themselves lucky not to have health problems, but this is not the case with Toshisuke Kanazawa. The 82-year-old Japanese bodybuilder is not only in perfect physical condition, he also looks better than a lot of men a quarter his age.

Kanazawa is living proof (证明) that you’re never too old to hit the gym and achieve the body you’ve always dreamed of. A champion bodybuilder in his youth, Kanazawa stopped exercising completely after he retired at age 34, drinking, smoking and eating whatever he liked. It wasn’t until he turned 50 that he got his motivation to regain the perfect body of his younger years.

Kanazawa’s wife felt sick frequently, and the former bodybuilder remembered that she had never been happier than when he won the national championship. So to please her, he decided to return to the gym and completely change his diet.

His workout schedule had to be adjusted to his age as well. In his youth, he would spend up to six hours training in the gym every day, and his body would recover within two days after a particularly intensive (强化的) workout, but that was not the case anymore. He cut the daily gym time to three hours and started giving his body one week to recover after exercising every muscle group.

Kanazawa’s efforts paid off. In 2016, at the age of 80, Kanazawa defeated many opponents and placed sixth in the world in a contest for bodybuilders over 65, and won the admiration of the crowd.

Sport keeps this elderly man healthy, as he claims not to have suffered so much as a cold since he started bodybuilding again at age 50.

“I want to be a super old man in the bodybuilder community,” Kanazawa said, “If I have a goal, I can continue moving forward. I have to work much harder.”

1. What can we learn about Kanazawa from Paragraph 2?

A．He started bodybuilding at the age of 34.	B．He seldom exercised when he was young
C．He had serious health problems in his childhood.	D．He developed an unhealthy lifestyle after he retired.

2. Why did Kanazawa decide to take up exercise again?

A．To help change his diet.	B．To cheer up his wife.
C．To stand to his promise.	D．To recover from illness.

3. What did old Kanazawa do while rebuilding his body?

A．He took the same workout schedule.	B．He turned to the doctors for advice.
C．He combined relaxation with exercise.	D．He spent over six hours training every day.

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．Bodybuilding: No Age Limit	B．Champion: The Result of Workout
C．Exercise: The Best Medicine for Illnesses	D．Understanding: A Guarantee of Happiness

6 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

China’s taijiquan has become     1    (increasing) popular as a form of mind-body exercise and stress reduction, especially among young people. Song Fei,     2     was the former female champion of a fitness model     3    (compete) in Beijing, has been sharing the changes in her body and mind after learning taijiquan on lifestyle-sharing platform Xiaohongshu. Song Fei told that as pain started to develop in her legs, she thought it was time     4    (look) for some correctional treatment and taijiquan     5    (come) up in her search result. Besides     6    (practise) it each morning now, she also weaves(编入) elements of the Chinese martial art into her fitness courses.

“When I first started, it was quite boring and I had to practise     7     same set of movements for nearly two years. But it’s a process of reconnecting all     8    (part) of my body.” Gradually Song started to feel a sense     9     calmness. She explained that in the gym she would listen to music or think about other things while working out because each exercise was repetitive. Yet in taijiquan, each movement was flowing and she had to constantly stay     10    (focus).

7 . There is no age limit to work or do something you love. 102-year-old Jean Bailey, a resident of Elk Ridge Village Senior Living in Omaha, is constantly ________ this by teaching a fitness class four times a week for almost three years now.

Bailey mentioned that some of her ________ clients have arthritis(关节炎) that restricts their mobility, but they can ________ perform stretching exercises by following her instructions and get benefit from them. Bailey, who also uses a ________ frequently due to her leg pain, is a strict coach despite this. She explained she was ________ and called “mean” for being strict in her classes. “The girls seem to ________ what I’m going to do for them,” she added. “They know it’s beneficial.”

In 2020, 99-year-old Bailey started ________ classes. Despite being a senior, she wasn’t ________ by the younger ages of her peers(同行). Being someone who was keen on staying active and good at motivating people, she encouraged her students to bring chairs into the hallway and performed ________ exercises. Everyone enjoyed it greatly and the classes never stopped.

Bailey ________ 30-minute exercise classes on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, which begin at 9:45 am. Apart from helping them stay ________, the classes also have allowed the women attending to form beautiful ________. Bailey said, “One of us would do something for anybody. We really keep track of each other.”

One of these women is Phyllis Black, 87, who lives down the hall from Bailey. Black was ________ by Bailey with homemade cookies when she moved into Elk Ridge about three years ago. Bailey often treats the ________ with baked goods after the exercise sessions, especially on birthdays, as she believes all birthdays are significant at this age. Black said of Bailey, “She’s a very ________ neighbor, and she’s also a good friend.”

1.

A．promoting

B．identifying

C．proving

D．qualifying

2.

A．wise

B．regular

C．warm-hearted

D．skillful

3.

A．vividly

B．stably

C．awfully

D．easily

4.

A．walker

B．caretaker

C．tool

D．chair

5.

A．kept pace with

B．taken care of

C．made fun of

D．looked up to

6.

A．assume

B．realize

C．expect

D．confirm

7.

A．language

B．driving

C．exercise

D．cooking

8.

A．appreciated

B．inspired

C．teased

D．frightened

9.

A．simple

B．fierce

C．typical

D．elegant

10.

A．attends

B．conducts

C．quits

D．improves

11.

A．brave

B．smart

C．busy

D．fit

12.

A．bonds

B．shapes

C．figures

D．images

13.

A．rewarded

B．supported

C．welcomed

D．impressed

14.

A．neighbors

B．participants

C．bosses

D．couples

15.

A．fair

B．ridiculous

C．honest

D．nice

8 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What is the speaker?

A．A manager.

B．A trainer.

C．A guide.

2. What class is on Wednesday morning?

A．Dancing.

B．Tai chi.

C．Weightlifting.

3. When does the new members’ party start?

A．At 5:00 pm.

B．At 7:00 pm.

C．At 8:00 pm.

4. What does the speaker mainly talk about?

A．His hobbies.

B．Services in his gym.

C．His plan for exercise.

9 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. What is the speaker mainly talking about?

A．Some ways to keep healthy.

B．Some of his favourite sports.

C．The way to solve the problems,

2. Where does the speaker probably live?

A．In the countryside.

B．In a big city.

C．By the sea.

3. What did the speaker do ten years ago?

A．He climbed the Alps.

B．He took part in London Marathon.

C．He finished a course in ice climbing.

4. Why does the speaker’s wife seldom go climbing?

A．She has no time.

B．She isn’t strong enough.

C．She is afraid of climbing.

10 . At an age where many of his contemporaries are winding down, Jo Schoonbroodt is somehow speeding up. On Sunday, the 71-year-old from the Netherlands, ran a marathon in 2hr 54min 19sec to become the fastest septuagenarian (70-90 年龄组) in history.

A few days later, when the Times catches up with him, his achievement is still sinking in. “I only started jogging at 36 because my doctor told me I had high cholesterol (胆固醇),” he says. “But last year I ran 7,242 kilometres, which is more than double what I did in my car.”

But the secrets of his success might surprise you。 “Most runners train too hard. I do a lot of my training with groups who run very slowly. And then I build on these basics with some faster interval training.”

Schoonbroodt often runs at 9-or 10-minute mile pace, far slower than the 6.38min / mile he ran for 26.2 miles to set his world record, but he says the crucial thing is that he listens to his body. “A lot of people follow a training plan or coach and push on even when their body is saying: ‘No, this is not a good day to do it.’ But if you go out the door and just do what you feel, it’s easier to keep running and stay injury-free.”

Being a late bloomer (大器晚成), he believes, has actually helped him because his ego (自我意识) never had to worry about chasing faster times of his youth. “Because I started so late, I missed my best years. But that’s no problem. Everything is still new to me.”     

Schoonbroodt, meanwhile, has no plans to put his feet up. “My next marathon is in two and a half weeks, on an old Roman road built 2,000 years ago,” he says, the excitement obvious. It will be his third in 2023. And with that he is off. After all, the quest (追求) for another sub-three-hour marathon waits for no man. Not even one who is 71.

1. What message does Schoonbrodt’s story carry?

A．It is never too late to run.	B．More haste, less speed.
C．Time waits for no man.	D．An earlier bird catches the worm.

2. What is the secret behind Schoonbrodt’s success?

A．He competed with slower runners.

B．He made full use of the intervals.

C．He trained in line with his condition.

D．He ran faster in the races than in trainings.

3. Why is being a late bloomer helpful to Schoonbrodt?

A．He can draw lessons from other runners.

B．He has no youthful success to think back to.

C．He can equip himself with new running skills.

D．He has a strong desire to make up for the lost time.

4. How does Schoonbrodt talk about his next marathon?

A．He is unsure of winning it.	B．He is eager to participate in it.
C．He has no plan to enter for it.	D．He will not run it in three hours.