单选题
Physical Exercise

Declaring that physical exercise is one of the most powerful medicines to help improve our quality of life is not an exaggeration. The World Health Organization expressed the same view in its 2002 World Heath Report, emphasizing that the damage produced by lack of physical activity was equal to the strong probability of serious illness such as heart disease and even some kinds of cancer.
Those who have embraced an active lifestyle for years are familiar with the sort of physical and psychological benefits that come from exercise. Nevertheless a lot of people would never think of physical activity as a way of feeling better, simply because they don"t think they are in need of it, or because they are lazy or maintain that they haven"t got enough time.
There are many positive effects that result from physical exercise and they are not only concerned with the physical aspects but also psychological and social ones.
Beginning with the physical benefits, physical activity improves the life of the heart, burns off fat, lowers high blood pressure, makes tissues more resistant, and increases muscle flexibility and joint mobility.
On a psychological level, physical activity helps reduce anxiety and stress by causing tension to disappear and by encouraging us to have a better sense of ourselves through listening to our bodies during movement.
Lastly, seeing ourselves in better health is advantageous socially. The sense of satisfaction thus obtained will result in an increase of self-respect and serf-confidence in terms of our ability to interact with others.
The benefits linked to exercise have also not gone unnoticed in the business world, with more and more companies setting up gyms on-site. Employees" improved health translates into better performance and reduced costs as well as an increase in people"s satisfaction in the workplace. Physical activity is recommended for all age groups, including children. It is an important growth factor in a child"s education.
And for the elderly? There is no doubt that regular physical activity allows greater efficiency in daily life as well as creating more basic independence day by day, including the possibility of keeping in touch with others and not feeling isolated.
单选题 The writer regards physical exercise as a strong medicine because ______.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[解析] 由第一段第一句“Declaring that physical exercise is one of the most powerful medicines to help improve our quality of life is not an exaggeration. ”可知,作者认为体育锻炼是一剂强效药主要是因为它能提高生活质量,故选B。
单选题 Many people do not engage in physical exercise mainly because ______.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】[解析] 由第二段最后一句“...simply because they don"t think they are in need of it...”可知,很多人不进行体育锻炼的原因之一就是他们认为自己不需要锻炼,故选C。
单选题 According to the passage, physical exercise can make people ______.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】[解析] 由第四段“...physical activity improves the life of the heart, burns off fat, lowers high blood pressure...”可知,体育锻炼可以使人变得更加健康,更加强壮。文中并未提到体育锻炼可以使人变得更加聪明,更加思想开明。D项符合题意,故选D。
单选题 Physical exercise is socially beneficial because ______.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】[解析] 由第六段第二句“...result in an increase of self-respect and self-confidence in terms of our ability to interact with others. ”可知,体育锻炼能增强在与他人交流能力方面的自尊和自信,故本题应选D。
单选题 According to the passage, regular physical exercise can make old people ______.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】[解析] 由最后一段可知,对老年人来说,经常进行体育锻炼可以提高生活能力,创建基本的独立性,包括与人交往的可能性及不感觉孤独。总的来说,就是能自己照顾自己,故本题应选A。