4 · 40 words
Health and lifestyle
Sleep, diet, stress and the habits that keep a body going.
These are the words of how people live rather than of illness: what they eat, how they sleep, and what wears them out. Two of them look alike and are not: 营养is the goodness in food饮食everything a person eats and drinks And 熬夜 has no single English word — it is staying up late, usually to work or to play, and Chinese speakers use it all the time.
The words
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Verb (11)
熬夜to stay up lateVerb4
别总是熬夜玩手机，对身体不好。Don’t keep staying up late on your phone — it’s bad for you.
放松to relaxVerb4
周末我喜欢去郊外放松一下。At weekends I like to get out into the countryside and unwind.
戒烟to give up smokingVerb4
为了孩子，他终于戒烟了。For his children’s sake, he finally gave up smoking.
抽烟to smokeVerb3
这儿不能抽烟，请到外面去。You can’t smoke here — please go outside.
Separable: 抽了一支烟. Signs use the written 吸烟.
久坐to sit for long periodsVerb4
久坐对腰不好，最好每个小时站起来活动一下。Sitting for long periods is bad for your back; it’s best to stand up and move about every hour.
养成to form (a habit)Verb4
他从小就养成了每天运动的习惯。He got into the habit of exercising every day as a child.
坚持to keep at, to persistVerb3
跑步不难，难的是每天坚持。Running isn’t hard; what’s hard is keeping it up every day.
保持to keep, to maintainVerb4
多运动能帮你保持好心情。Plenty of exercise helps you stay in a good mood.
节食to dietVerb4
为了减肥只节食不运动，效果不会好。Dieting to lose weight without taking exercise won’t work well.
缓解to relieve, to easeVerb4
听音乐可以缓解压力。Listening to music can relieve stress.
减压to relieve stressVerb4
她用画画的办法减压。She draws to relieve stress.
Noun (23)
营养nutrition, nourishmentNoun4
早饭一定要吃，而且要有营养。You must have breakfast, and it should be nourishing.
饮食diet, food and drinkNoun4
医生让他注意饮食，少吃肉。The doctor told him to watch his diet and eat less meat.
睡眠sleepNoun4
睡眠不够，上课的时候就容易困。If you don’t get enough sleep, you easily get drowsy in class.
The noun of the written language; in speech people say 睡得好.
压力pressure, stressNoun4
最近工作压力太大，我经常头疼。Work has been very stressful lately, and I often get headaches.
Stress is “big” in Chinese: 压力很大.
心理state of mind; mental, psychologicalNoun4
他身体没问题，是心理上有压力。There is nothing wrong with him physically; the pressure is in his mind.
体重body weightNoun4
这半年我的体重一直没变。My weight hasn’t changed at all in the last six months.
热量calories; heatNoun4
这种饮料热量很高，少喝点儿。This drink is very high in calories — go easy on it.
蛋白质proteinNoun4
鸡蛋和牛奶里有很多蛋白质。Eggs and milk contain a lot of protein.
维生素vitaminNoun4
水果和蔬菜能给身体提供维生素。Fruit and vegetables provide the body with vitamins.
脂肪fatNoun4
油炸的东西脂肪太多。Fried food contains too much fat.
酒精alcoholNoun4
开车前不能喝含酒精的饮料。You must not drink anything containing alcohol before driving.
生物钟body clockNoun4
经常熬夜会打乱生物钟。Staying up late a lot upsets your body clock.
精力energy, vigourNoun4
年轻人精力好，一晚上不睡也没事。Young people have plenty of energy; a night without sleep does them no harm.
体力physical strength, staminaNoun4
爬这座山需要很好的体力。Climbing this mountain takes a lot of stamina.
体质constitution, physiqueNoun4
她体质比较弱，天一冷就容易感冒。She has a rather weak constitution and catches cold as soon as the weather turns cold.
状态state, condition, formNoun4
他今天状态不太好，可能是没睡好。He’s not on good form today — maybe he didn’t sleep well.
身心body and mindNoun4
旅行能让人身心放松。Travelling relaxes body and mind.
作息daily routine of work and restNoun4
放了假以后，孩子的作息全乱了。Since the holidays began, the children’s routine has gone completely haywire.
午睡afternoon nap; to take a napNoun4
很多中国人有午睡的习惯。Many people in China are in the habit of taking a nap after lunch.
垃圾食品junk foodNoun4
炸鸡和薯条都是垃圾食品。Fried chicken and chips are both junk food.
运动量amount of exerciseNoun4
老年人的运动量不要太大。Older people shouldn’t take too much exercise.
保健health care, keeping healthyNoun4
很多老人喜欢买保健品。Many old people like buying health supplements.
养生looking after one’s healthNoun4
我爸爸最近开始关心养生了，每天喝热水。My dad has lately started taking an interest in staying healthy, and drinks hot water every day.
Health care in the traditional sense — diet, rest, warm drinks — rather than medicine.
Adjective (6)
均衡balancedAdjective4
每顿饭都要有肉有菜，营养才均衡。Every meal should have both meat and vegetables; only then is it nutritionally balanced.
肥胖obese; obesityAdjective4
孩子肥胖的问题越来越受关注。Childhood obesity is getting more and more attention.
A medical, written word; in conversation 胖.
疲劳fatigue; tiredAdjective4
连续开四个小时车很容易疲劳。Driving four hours without a break makes you tired very easily.
Written and medical; in conversation 累.
适量in moderation; the right amountAdjective4
咖啡可以喝，但是要适量。You can drink coffee, but in moderation.
过度excessive; to excessAdjective4
运动过度反而对身体不好。Too much exercise is actually bad for you.
长寿long-lived; longevityAdjective4
这个村子的人都很长寿。People in this village all live to a great age.
This list belongs to Body and health — seven lists and 281 words that can also be practised as a whole.
Practise this list
Multiple choice and gaps, drawn from exactly these 40 words. Whatever you get wrong comes back tomorrow.