For many，running has never been their favorite activity. But running can certainly be a great way to get fit and stay healthy.

Getting started is difficult.【小题1】 Running can be boring at times，but the effect on your body and mind is well worth that struggle of just getting up and running.

【小题2】 Every major city and many smaller cities have running communities. They are quite organized and willing to help. They will help you see your running goals through.

Start with short distances. Though the running community would love to have a new long-distance runner tomorrow，the fact is that that will not happen overnight. Try running one mile every day for the next 3 weeks. After that，add it to two miles and so on.【小题3】

Take part in a race. By signing up for a race in the near future，you will focus on a goal and be motivated（激励）to keep practicing for that event. I suggest signing up for a 5-kilometer race that will take place within one month.【小题4】

【小题5】 Motivation is a major factor in running success. Bring a friend along to push you through the times and motivate you in his own way.

   An increasing number of Chinese are jogging to get and stay fit. Most joggers will run alone, but some will jog with friends or even coaches.

The Beijing Olympic Forest Park is one of the most popular spots. It is packed with runners in the afternoon, usually after work, and at weekends.

Jogging after a whole day’s work can be a way to unwind. It is true for He Wenjun, whose workplace is right near the forest park. She discovered her athletic gift at the age of seven, when she began playing tennis. Then she turned to jogging, and she has persevered with it for 10 years. “I come to jog almost every day after work, whenever I have time. I think jogging is good for my health. And for me, a girl, it helps me to achieve to keep slim,” she said.

She says she prefers jogging alone, so she can focus better. She loves jogging, even during Beijing’s smoggy days. “If the smog is severe, I’ll hold off jogging for a while. But if I really want to get away from work, I’ll wear a mask, or just ignore the smog and go on jogging,” she said.

For those who are not so athletic, jogging also has its attractions.

Wu Houbin started roughly two years ago, when he was severely obese（病态肥胖的）. Within two months, his weight dropped from 82 kilograms to 64 kilograms. The success helped him recover health, and he has made friends. “Jogging does not require speed, but perseverance. If you want to stick to the game, you need to take it as a task, a habit, and then eventually a hobby,” Wu said.

Jogging is beneficial to heart-lung function, and the skeletal system, but doctors say improper technique damages the joints, especially the knees and ankles. “Excessive jogging wears down the body, and harms one’s health. Poor technique harms the muscles and skeletons, and can cause secondary injuries. And, jogging in a bad environment can cause circulation problems,” said Lu Zhiyong, attending doctor, Sports Hospital, General Administration of Sports.

Dr. Lu has some tips for joggers, and those who are thinking of taking it up.

He says people should first evaluate（评估）their physical condition, to decide the amount and type of exercise, and jogging in the open air is better than running on a running machine. It is recommended that joggers jog three or four times a week, and 30 to 60 minutes each time. The best time to jog is 4p.m. — 5 p.m.

   Easy Ways to Reach and Keep a Healthy Weight

Weight loss is most likely to be successful when people change their habits, replacing old, unhealthy ones with new, healthy ones. Here are 5 ways to make that happen.

1.Exercises.

【小题1】 Walking the family dog, cycling to school and doing other things that increase your daily level of activity can all make a difference. If you want to burn more calories, increase the intensity of your workout and add some strength exercise to build muscles. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn, even when you aren't exercise.

2. 【小题2】

One reason people get less exercise these days is an increase in screen time-- the amount of time spent watching TV, surfing the Internet or playing video games. Limit recreational screen time to less than 2 hours per day.

3. Watch out for sugary drinks.

One key factor in weight gain is that some people drink lots of sugary drinks, such as soda, juice drinks and sports drinks. 【小题3】

4. Eat 5 servings of fruit and vegetables a day.

【小题4】 They're also packed with fiber, which means they can fill you up. And when you fill yourself up on fruit and vegetables, you are less likely to overeat when it comes to high-calorie foods like chips and cookies.

5. 【小题5】

Breakfast can promote your metabolism(新陈代谢), burning calories and giving you energy to do more during the day. People who skip(跳过) breakfast often feel so hungry that they eat more later on. So they get more calories than they would have if they didn't eat breakfast.