To stay in shape， you only need to work out once or twice a week.

為了保持體形，你只需要一個禮拜鍛煉一次或者兩次。

Truth： Once or twice a week wont cut it for sustained health benefits.

A minimum of three days per week for a structured exercise program is best.

Technically， you should do something every day， and by something I mean physical activity—just move. Because were finding more and more that the act of sitting counteracts any of the activity you do.

事實：一周一到兩次的鍛煉不會給身體健康帶來持久的回報。

對一個結(jié)構(gòu)合理的鍛煉計劃來說，一周至少要鍛煉3次才是最佳的。

嚴格來說，你每天都要做點什么，也就是說要活動一下。因為我們越來越清楚，久坐會抵消掉你的鍛煉成果。

The best time to work out is the first thing in the morning.

早上鍛煉是最好的。

Truth： The best time for a workout is whatever time allows you to exercise most consistently. Ideally， you want to make physical fitness a daily habit， so if late-night trips to the gym are your thing， stick with it. If you prefer a morning run， do that instead.

事實：鍛煉沒有最好的時段，無論什么時候都行，只要你能堅持。理想的情況下，你要讓健身成為你的日常習慣，所以如果你喜歡晚上去健身房，那就堅持晚上去。如果你喜歡晨跑，那就晨跑。

Weight lifting turns fat into muscle.

舉重能把脂肪變成肌肉。

Truth： You cant turn fat into muscle. Physiologically speaking， theyre two different tissues. Fat tissue is found under the skin， sandwiched between muscles， and around internal organs like the heart.

What weight training really does is help build up the muscle tissue in and around any fat tissue.

事實：你不能將脂肪變成肌肉。從生理學方面來說，它們完全是兩種不同的組織。脂肪組織被夾在皮膚和肌肉中間，還會包裹在心臟等器官的外部。

舉重訓練真正能做到的是幫你鍛煉脂肪組織內(nèi)部和周圍的肌肉組織。

Puzzles and games are the best “brain workout” around.

解謎和游戲是最佳的“大腦鍛煉”方式。

Truth： Plain old physical exercise seems to beat out any type of mental puzzle available， according to a wealth of research.

Studies suggest that aerobic exercise—any activity that raises your heart rate and gets you moving and sweating for a sustained period of time—has a significant， overwhelmingly beneficial impact on the brain.

事實：根據(jù)多項研究結(jié)論，普通的身體鍛煉似乎能打敗任何種類的腦力游戲。

研究表明，能讓你心跳加快、揮汗如雨的有氧運動對大腦有著顯著的、絕對有益的影響。

Exercise is the best way to lose weight.

鍛煉是減肥的最佳方式。

Truth： If youre looking to lose weight， you shouldnt assume that you can simply “work off” whatever you eat. Experts say slimming down almost always starts with changes to your eating habits.

“In terms of weight loss， diet plays a much bigger role than exercise，” University of Texas exercise scientist Philip Stanforth said.

事實：如果你想要減肥，你就不應(yīng)該有“我吃下去的卡路里都能燃燒掉”的這種假設(shè)。專家表示，瘦身主要靠改變自己的飲食習慣。

得克薩斯州立大學的運動科學家菲利普·斯坦福斯說：“在減肥這方面，飲食比鍛煉重要得多?！?/p>

Sit-ups are the best way to get six-pack abs.

想要6塊腹肌，做仰臥起坐是最佳方式。

Truth： As opposed to sit-ups， which target only your abdominal muscles， planks recruit several groups of muscles along your sides， front， and back. If you want a strong core—especially the kind that would give you six-pack-like definition—you need to challenge all of these muscles.

事實：仰臥起坐只能針對你的腹部肌肉，而平板支撐則要用到你側(cè)面、正面和背部的幾組肌肉。如果你想擁有強壯的核心肌肉，尤其是想要練出6塊腹肌，你需要鍛煉到所有的這些肌肉。

Weight training is for men.

舉重訓練是男人的項目。

Truth： Weight training is a great way to strengthen muscles， and has nothing to do with gender. However， women produce less testosterone （the male sex hormone） on average than men do， and studies suggest that hormone plays a role in determining how we build muscle. So its not going to be easy for women to build up strong muscle.

事實：舉重訓練是加強肌肉的好途徑，而且和性別無關(guān)。不過，女性產(chǎn)生的睪丸素（男性荷爾蒙）平均要比男性少，而研究指出睪丸素有助于塑造肌肉，所以女性也就不太容易練就強壯的肌肉。

It takes at least two weeks to get “out of shape”.

“身材走形”至少需要兩周時間。

Truth： In most people， muscle tissue can start to break down within a week without regular exercise.

If you stop training， you actually do get noticeable de-conditioning， or the beginnings of de-conditioning， with as little as seven days of complete rest.

事實：大多數(shù)人一周不進行規(guī)律鍛煉的話，肌肉組織就會開始分解。

如果你停止訓練，7天完全休息的話，肌肉功能失調(diào)或者開始功能失調(diào)是顯而易見的。

Running a marathon is the ideal way to get fit.

跑馬拉松是健身的理想方式。

Truth： Not ready to conquer a marathon？ No problem. You can get many of the benefits of long-distance running without ever passing the five-mile mark.

In fact， people who run for less than an hour a week—as long as they get in those few minutes each day—see similar benefits in terms of heart health compared to those who run more than three hours per week.

事實：跑不了馬拉松？沒關(guān)系的。就算你跑不到5英里，長跑也是大有好處的。

實際上，只要能每天都跑幾分鐘，每周跑不到一小時給心臟健康帶來的益處和每周跑三小時以上的差不多。

Sports drinks are the best way to re-hydrate after a workout.

運動飲料是鍛煉后補充水分的最佳飲品。

Truth： Most sports drinks are just sugar and water.

Instead， experts recommend refuelling with plain old water and high-protein snack， since studies suggest protein helps recondition muscles after a workout.

事實：大多數(shù)的運動飲料都是糖水。

相反，專家推薦喝白開水和吃高蛋白零食補充能量，因為研究表明在鍛煉后補充蛋白質(zhì)有助于肌肉的恢復(fù)。

Word Study

workout /'w??ka?t/ n. 鍛煉

She does a 20-minute workout every morning.

plain /ple?n/ adj. 極普通的;平凡的

You dont need any special skills for this job， just plain common sense.