VOA健康报道2024--Group Helps People Exercise Outdoors

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.

In Edmonton, Alberta, the sun had yet to come up. The temperature was more than 20 degrees below zero. In the dark and cold, Tanis Smith was ready to run up and down hundreds of stairs among the trees in the Saskatchewan River Valley.

And Smith was not alone. Ten people joined her for the activity. All were wearing several layers of clothing to keep warm.

"You're pretty much just putting everything you own on," said Smith, an accountant. "If you look at the pictures, you don't know who you are unless you remember what you were wearing."

Since that winter back in 2013, Smith has rarely missed a workout with a group called November Project.

November Project is a network of free outdoor group exercise classes that started in Boston, Massachusetts. No matter the weather, members get out of bed before sunrise at least once a week and go outdoors for group exercise.

November Project is part exercise, part fun, and part community. It is a model for exercising outdoors, especially in the winter.

It started in 2011, when two friends agreed to exercise every morning for the month of November. They were looking for accountability and motivation to help them stick to an exercise routine.

By the end of that first month, they had invited others to join them. Soon, their meetings were bringing in almost forty people. And it became a year-round project.

"A party is better when there's more people around. We would talk to anybody who would listen," said Bojan Mandaric. He created the project with friend, Brogan Graham.

Then, as people moved to other cities, they took the idea with them. So, the November Project grew. Now, there are 52 groups in eight countries, including 44 in the United States and Canada.

What do the workouts look like?

People of all ages and fitness levels join the workouts. Some groups begin with something called "The Bounce." They chant and jump at the same time to bring the group together. Those who feel inhibited¹, do not have to do this.

Most classes include running and body weight exercises like squats³. The project also uses the surroundings of the location. So, for example, some places include running up steps in an outdoor sports stadium. Currently in D.C., members meet on Wednesdays to run up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

To keep the workouts fun, they also might include fun games and activities from childhood. In Edmonton, they play snow games in winter and water games in summer. The games help to lower inhibitions. This helps people make connections, said Jason Shaw. He is co-leader of the Indianapolis, Indiana group.

"Nobody (is) cool at November Project," he said.

Shaw said groups recognize members' milestones⁵. People can earn prizes for reaching different goals.

To find out if a November Project group is near you, go to their website at November-Project.com. Building community and making friends is another big part of the project. So, each group is active on social media.

If you do not have a November Project nearby, you can find another type of outdoor exercise group. Or start your own.

The November Project organizers offer a few suggestions on how to work out during colder months.

Find workout friends

Find workout friends. At the center of the project, is accountability. Members promise to show up. There is a sense of letting down your teammates if you do not show up, said Mandaric, who moved to Boston from Serbia to row crew for Northeastern University. (Rowing crew is a type of boat racing⁶.)

Invest in some cold-weather clothing

There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing, said Shaw, the leader from Indianapolis. He suggests wearing clothing next to your skin that removes sweat. This will help keep you warm and dry. Avoid cotton, he warned. It keeps sweat in contact with your body and will make you colder.

Also, add a top layer that protects against bad weather. On its webpage, the November Project leaders for Washington, DC say workouts are not cancelled for weather.

Make it a usual activity

Promise yourself to exercise on the same days and times for a month. Create a routine. This will make it easier to stick to an exercise routine, says Mandaric.

Make it fun

And make sure to have fun. Exercise does not have to be hard or serious.

Smith, the member from Edmonton, Alberta, says she enjoys the social part of the November Project the most. She calls it "a chosen family." They came together because they had fun exercising. She said. "You can have fun and get fit."

Words in This Story

layer -n. one thickness or fold over or under another

call-and-response -n. statement quickly followed by an answering statement

chant -n. a rhythmic⁷, one-tone statement or song said out loud

squat² -n. an exercise in which a standing⁸ person lowers to a position in which the torso is erect⁹ and the knees are deeply bent¹⁰ and then rises to an upright position

burpee -n. conditioning exercise in which a person squats, places the palms of the hands on the floor in front of the feet, jumps back into a push-up position, in some cases completes one push-up, returns to the squat position, and then jumps up into the air while extending the arms overhead

inhibition -n. a restraint or check upon the free or spontaneous instincts or impulses of an individual guided or directed by the social and cultural forces of the environment

milestone⁴ -n. a significant point in development

crew -n. the sport of rowing a boat, causing it to move through water using poles with flat ends called oars¹¹

sweat -n. the fluid excreted from the sweat glands¹² of the skin

routine -n. a standard or regular way of doing something

1 inhibited   

a.拘谨的，拘束的

参考例句：

• Boys are often more inhibited than girls about discussing their problems. 男孩子往往不如女孩子敢于谈论自己的问题。
• Having been laughed at for his lameness,the boy became shy and inhibited. 那男孩因跛脚被人讥笑，变得羞怯而压抑。

2 squat   

v.蹲坐，蹲下；n.蹲下；adj.矮胖的，粗矮的

参考例句：

• For this exercise you need to get into a squat.在这次练习中你需要蹲下来。
• He is a squat man.他是一个矮胖的男人。

3 squats   

n.蹲坐，蹲姿( squat的名词复数 )；被擅自占用的建筑物v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的第三人称单数 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。

参考例句：

• The square squats in the centre of the city. 广场位于市中心。 来自互联网
• Various squats, lunges, jumps and sprints are incorporated for the humans. 主人们还要进行下蹲、弓步、跳跃和短跑等各项训练。 来自互联网

4 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

5 milestones   

n.重要事件( milestone的名词复数 )；重要阶段；转折点；里程碑

参考例句：

• Several important milestones in foreign policy have been passed by this Congress and they can be chalked up as major accomplishments. 这次代表大会通过了对外政策中几起划时代的事件，并且它们可作为主要成就记录下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dale: I really envy your milestones over the last few years, Don. 我真的很羡慕你在过去几年中所建立的丰功伟绩。 来自互联网

6 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

7 rhythmic   

adj.有节奏的，有韵律的

参考例句：

• Her breathing became more rhythmic.她的呼吸变得更有规律了。
• Good breathing is slow,rhythmic and deep.健康的呼吸方式缓慢深沉而有节奏。

8 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

9 erect   

n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的

参考例句：

• She held her head erect and her back straight.她昂着头，把背挺得笔直。
• Soldiers are trained to stand erect.士兵们训练站得笔直。

10 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

11 oars   

n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He pulled as hard as he could on the oars. 他拼命地划桨。
• The sailors are bending to the oars. 水手们在拼命地划桨。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 glands   

n.腺( gland的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a snake's poison glands 蛇的毒腺
• the sebaceous glands in the skin 皮脂腺