彭蒙惠英语：Finding the Energy（在线收听）

Finding the Energy

by Richard Seven

©2005 The Seattle Times,

Knight Ridder Newspapers.

Distributed by Tribune Media Services

Need some energy? To get it you have to spend it, and there’s the rub

1

We’ve got energy-boosting inhalers, energy-boosting cough drops and energy-boosting flavored water. We’ve got energy-boosting pills, energy-boosting snack bars and energy boosting mantras.

Mintel International, a market research and consumer intelligence firm, reports that sales of products marketed on “energy”—specifically energy bars, drinks and liquid/powder protein drinks, rose from $2 billion in 1998 to $5 billion in 2003, and could reach $8 billion in 2008. Unfortunately, no matter how many energy-boosting products you use, the best way to get energy is by exercising. So the conundrum is this: Exercise provides energy (the natural kind) but you need energy to exercise. So you fall into an unhealthy cycle and do little to nothing, or at least not enough. You mean well, but life gets in the way. You’ve got commitments, and your workout can get so far down the daily chore list that by the time its turn comes up, you’re too fatigued. You shortchange sleep to fit everything in, but that only makes you less excited about exercise.

The easy answer is to start doing what you can and build on it until it becomes a challenging and fun habit. Keep your eye on the long-range goal. Here are some more ideas to keep your eye on:

Get some sleep

We’re all aware of this one, but we all cut corners. Sleep is when your body regenerates, repairs and re-energizes. Experts believe that exercise promotes restful sleep. So if you’re too tired to exercise, you set off another vicious cycle. Seven to nine hours a night is optimal, but you should also try to make your sleeping schedule as consistent as possible. If you wake up tired, you probably didn’t get enough shuteye.

Vocabulary Focus:

conundrum (n) [kE5nQndrEm] a dilemma; a problem that is difficult to deal with

shortchange (v) [5FCt5tFeindV] to give less money, time, or attention than someone or something deserves; to cheat

cut corners (idiom) to do something in the easiest, cheapest, or fastest way

shuteye (n) [5FQt7ai] sleep (informal)