The Benefits of Exercise
Regular exercise has a range of benefits for both physical and mental health. Firstly, exercise helps to strengthen the heart and improve cardiovascular health. It can also help to maintain a healthy weight and prevent obesity. Additionally, exercise boosts mood and reduces stress levels. People who exercise regularly often report feeling happier and more relaxed. Finally, exercise can improve cognitive function and memory. It has been shown to enhance concentration and increase mental clarity.
Questions:
1. What are the benefits of exercise for physical health?
2. How does exercise affect mood?
3. What are the cognitive benefits of exercise?
Teamwork is an important part of the health and fitness program at Spirit Club, where most of the participants have disabilities.
Jared Ciner created the program two years ago, “Our main focus is the same thing as any other gym’s, which is to help people be active and healthy, but the difference is that we do change a little bit to make sure that it is right pace for the people we are working with, so that everybody can follow along.”
Ciner used to work as a director for a local organization aimed at helping people with disabilities and as apart-time personal trainer at gyms. “I noticed that many of the people who I was working with who had disabilities did not exercise, struggled with weight problems, and were looking for more physical methods and more social ways,” he said.
His volunteer experience in Ethiopia working with children from very poor families helped him understand the influence of organized physical activity, too. “That helped me realize how much organized physical activity can help people connect to each other and increase people’s self-esteem (自尊),” Ciner said.
Classes at Spirit Club are interactive, and students can come with parents. They participate in partnered workouts and learn balance, strength, speed and agility (灵活性). They are also encouraged to eat right.
Alan Bradshaw, who is mentally disabled, has been coming to classes for two years. “He recently lost 21 pounds,” said his mother. “He is more outgoing. When he first started, he couldn’t sit on the floor, get down on the floor. He is doing that now. Great changes have happened to him and it is an important step forward for him. He likes the gym because he can make friends easily and exercise at the same time,” she said.
1. What is the main purpose of the program at Spirit Club? (no more than 8 words)2. What was Jared Ciner before he created Spirit Club? (no more than 15 words)
3. What is Jared Ciner’s view on organized physical activities? (no more than 13 words)
4. How does the underlined part in the last paragraph mean? (no more than 2 words)
5. What do you think of Spirit Club? Give reasons in your own words. (no more than 25 words)
Gary McKee ran 365 marathons in as many days to raise funds for Macmillan Cancer Support and Hospice at Home West Cumbria.
Gary McKee, 53, from Cleator Moor in Cumbria raised his arms in victory and was cheered by a crowd of supporters as he completed his 365th marathon of the year on New Year’s Eve. As of 4 pm on Saturday, he had raised more than £ 890,000 for the charities Macmillan Cancer Support and Hospice at Home West Cumbria, just shy of (缺少) his £1 million fundraising target. The father of three has gone through 22 pairs of sports shoes and has run 9,563 miles in rain, snow and sunshine to raise money for the charities.
“The support has been amazing and it always is and the West Cumbrians get behind us, but cancer affects everybody so it isn’t just a West Cumbrian thing, it’s a national thing,” said Gary. “I just hope that people do get behind us and we do raise those million pounds.” Gary has not only raised money for two fantastic charities, but he has also sprinkled magic on the local community and brought people together to support him with the challenge.
Chris Young, 29, ran 90 marathons with Mr. McKee. “Gary set a good example to me this year when I began running frequently with him and has given me both physical and mental resilience (适应力) that I don’t know if I would have ever discovered in myself in a million years. I know I don’t just speak for myself on that front as he has inspired not just me or the few, but the entire local community and beyond,” said Chris, “This challenge has raised a great amount of money for two fantastic charities, but the impact Gary has provided to the community and people around him is immeasurable. A lot of people’s lives will be much better off thanks to Gary’s efforts, mine included.”
1. What did Gary do when he completed his 365th marathon? (no more than 10 words)2. What is Gary’s goal of running 365 marathons? (no more than 10 words)
3. How do you understand the underlined part in Paragraph 3? (no more than 10 words)
4. In what ways has Gary McKee influenced Chris Young? (no more than 5 words)
5. What does Gary’s story inspire you? Put it in your own words. (no more than 20 words)
Dear Brett,
Thanks for your email. You do lots of sports at school in Canada. I’d love to play ice hockey one day.
We do lots of sports at our school too. We’ve got a swimming pool and our class go swimming every Wednesday. We also play tennis, volleyball and football, but football in Australia is different from soccer. We can touch the ball with our hands!
There are lots of after-school sports clubs in Australia too. I go to a surfing club after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We go to the beach and learn how to surf. It’s great fun!
Can you surf in your country? Looking forward to your reply.
Rob
1. Which kind of sport may Brett be taking part in?2. What does Rob usually do on Wednesday?
3. What is allowed when it comes to playing football in Australia?
4. How often does Rob go surfing?
How do students spend their spare time after finishing their homework? Watch TV, play computer games, or go outside to relax? Here's a good example.
Tim and Kerry Meek are both teachers. They live in the UK with their two daughters: eleven-year-old Amy and nine-year-old Ella. Recently, the Meek family has become the focus of the whole country after they completed 100 different outdoor activities in one year.
The Meek couple didn't want their children to spend all their free time in front of the TV and become "couch potatoes". So about one year ago, the Meeks decided that watching TV and playing computer games were not permitted. Instead, they set 100 tasks for the two girls to do outside. Although Mr. and Mrs. Meek are not outdoor activity fans, they took part in all the activities to encourage their daughters. It turns out that the two sisters really had a good time joining activities.
Every holiday and weekend, whether it's sunny, rainy or snowy, the Meeks' would set off to try the activities on their list, including hiking, sailing, climbing, skiing, and so on. The two little girls not only had a wonderful time, but also learned a lot of skills from the activities. They were even able to stand up in front of their school to give a talk for charity. "Our friends spend a lot of their free time doing things which are harmful to their health. Luckily, we've had the chance to experience something different." Amy and Ella also helped their parents to draw up a new list of challenges for the next 12 months.
1. Why did the Meeks become the focus of the UK? (no more than 10 words)2. What does the underlined phrase "couch potatoes" mean? (no more than 15 words)
3. When did the Meeks go out to do the activities? (no more than 5 words)
4. What did the two little girls learn from the activities?(no more than 5 words)
5. What have you learnt from the story? (no more than 25 words)
