Saturday morning was bright明亮的 /braɪt/ and cool — perfect for outdoor户外的 /ˈaʊt.dɔːr/ exercise运动 /ˈek.sə.saɪz/. Jack knocked敲门 /nɒkt/ on Ben's door at eight o'clock, wearing his helmet头盔 /ˈhel.mɪt/ and gloves手套 /ɡlʌvz/. "Ready to cycle骑车 /ˈsaɪ.kəl/?" he called. Ben opened the door and grinned咧嘴笑 /ɡrɪnd/. "Born ready." They grabbed拿起 /ɡræbd/ their bikes and headed to Greenfield Park, where a long track小径 /træk/ wound蜿蜒延伸 /waʊnd/ past a gentle hill小山 /hɪl/ and a grassy草地的 /ˈɡrɑː.si/ slope坡道 /sloʊp/. The air smelled fresh清新的 /freʃ/ and clean.
Before they set off出发, Jack said, "You should always warm up热身 /wɔːrm ʌp/ first. It gets your muscles肌肉 /ˈmʌs.əlz/ ready and stops you getting hurt." He showed Ben how to stretch拉伸 /stretʃ/ his legs and arms. "Hold each stretch for about ten seconds." Then they did a slow jog慢跑 /dʒɒɡ/ around the car park to raise their energy精力 /ˈen.ə.dʒi/ level. "Don't forget to breathe呼吸 /briːð/ steadily," Jack added. "Good breath呼吸控制 /breθ/ control makes a real difference区别 /ˈdɪf.ər.əns/."
The first part of the ride was flat平坦的 /flæt/ and easy. Ben felt fit强健的 /fɪt/ and full of energy. "This is brilliant. I could ride all day!" "Wait until we hit the uphill section," Jack grinned. When they reached the steeper part of the slope, Jack stood on his pedals踏板 /ˈped.əl/ and began to sprint全速冲刺 /sprɪnt/ towards the top. His legs were strong强壮的 /strɒŋ/; his arms stayed steady稳定的 /ˈsted.i/. Ben pushed用力蹬 /pʊʃt/ hard too, but he quickly很快地 /ˈkwɪk.li/ ran out of breath上气不接下气. "How do you have so much stamina耐力 /ˈstæm.ɪ.nə/?" he gasped喘气 /ɡɑːspt/. "I jog every morning before school," Jack called back. "That builds stamina slowly over time."
At the top they stopped to rest休息 /rest/. Ben looked down at the path, breathing hard and wiping擦拭 /ˈwaɪ.pɪŋ/ sweat汗水 /swet/ from his face. Jack handed him a water bottle. "Good effort. Your weight体重；重量 /weɪt/ distribution was off, though. Try to sit back a little on the hill." Ben nodded, still catching his breath. He pointed at Jack's mountain bike. "Can I try yours? I want to feel the difference." "Sure," said Jack. "But the technique技巧 /tekˈniːk/ is different. You need to keep your balance平衡 /ˈbæl.əns/ and look ahead向前方 /əˈhed/, not down."
Ben climbed爬上 /klaɪmd/ onto Jack's bike and set off slowly. For a minute everything went fine. Then he hit a rough崎岖的 /rʌf/ patch on the track, lost his balance, and had a fall摔跤 /fɔːl/ onto the grass. Jack was beside him in seconds. "Ben! Are you okay?" Ben sat up, holding his knee膝盖 /niː/. There was a red mark and a small bruise淤青 /bruːz/ already forming. His palm手掌 /pɑːm/ was grazed擦破了 /ɡreɪzd/ too. "Ouch. That hurt疼痛 /hɜːrt/." "Sorry," Jack said. "The pain疼痛感 /peɪn/ will pass quickly. Can you move your knee okay?" Ben bent弯曲 /bent/ it carefully小心地 /ˈker.fəl.i/. "Yeah, it's fine. Just a bruise." He managed a small laugh. "And a bit of embarrassment尴尬 /ɪmˈbær.əs.mənt/."
"I should set a proper goal目标 /ɡoʊl/," Ben said as they rested. "Like riding the whole slope without stopping." "That's a brilliant goal," Jack said. "Being healthy健康的 /ˈhel.θi/ takes consistent持续的 /kənˈsɪs.tənt/ effort. It is a challenge挑战 /ˈtʃæl.ɪndʒ/ at first, but your body gets used to it." On the way home, Ben tried a slow jog while Jack walked beside him. "Today was fun," Ben said, "even the fall." Jack smiled. "Every fit person was a beginner初学者 /bɪˈɡɪn.ər/ once." Ben was smiling微笑着 /ˈsmaɪ.lɪŋ/ all the way一路 /weɪ/ home.