The ability to deal with anxiety is an important part of sports training.People who are able to overcome their anxiety perform much better than some of the strongest competitors of the game.Unfortunately,at times sportspersons fail because they feel nervous when they are on the playing field,which makes them lose confidence in themselves.As a matter of fact,performance anxiety is quite common among stage artists and athletes,who are required to present themselves and their skills to a large crowd.

Various psychologists have found that expert athletes may behave like amateurs under great pressure.So what causes performance anxiety?First of all,during training and preparing for any competition,an athlete focuses on improving his or her skills in a familiar environment.All the efforts taken and practice done are,thus,stored in the procedural memory.However,in a real competitive situation,the conscious awareness of new grounds corrupts the memory of the practiced game,thus causing anxiety.It is also found that with more cheering crowds,the pressure for the athlete to achieve the best builds up rapidly.

Secondly,our body releases certain hormones(荷尔蒙) to welcome the upcoming exciting situation,which causes quickening of the heartbeat and sweaty hands.These signs are often misinterpreted(曲解) by an athlete as fear and lack of ability to perform.The negative thoughts often result in a terrible panic attack.

Thirdly,while training,some athletes set unrealistic targets for themselves.Failure to achieve those targets is regarded as lack of skills and puts the athletes in self?denial(自我否定) of their own improvement.Even if they are fully prepared for an event,they tend to think poorly of their capabilities.Such reaction can turn any professional player into a green hand,thus ruining their performance.

Fortunately,something can be done to solve the problem.One of the best ways to overcome such a situation is distraction(分心).As soon as you have the awareness of anxiety,pay your attention to something else—maybe singing or asking a fellow sportsperson about something that is not related to the game.Besides,you can take some small but effective measures.For instance,cut down on caffeine and sugar and have a carbohydrate?rich meal before the game to preserve energy.Anyway,performance anxiety is not a disease that athletes can get rid of once and for all.They should handle it properly to improve their performance so as to achieve sporting glory.

Performance Anxiety in Sports

Concept of performance anxiety

·Performance anxiety refers to the 1. of nervousness,which leads to athletes doubting their abilities.

·Its common 2. are stage artists and sportspersons.

Causes of performance anxiety

·Sportspersons can feel anxious when competing in a(n) 3. environment.

·The 4. of large cheering crowds makes a sportsperson feel more stressed.

·Sportspersons think too 5. about some normal body signs,such as fast heartbeat and sweaty palms.

·Sportspersons begin to doubt themselves when they 6. to achieve their targets.Thus,they tend to undervalue themselves even though they’ve made full 7. for the event.

8. to performance anxiety

·When you feel anxious,pay your attention to something 9. to the game.

·10. caffeine and sugar,and consume something rich in carbohydrate before the game.

A person had three friends, but he felt more attracted towards two of them. He did not bother much about the third and was rather ______ to him. Once he was in deep distress(不幸,悲痛), he went to his first friend and told him, “I shall have to appear in court in ___ with a charge against me. I am in great _____. So can you please help me and accompany(陪同) me to court?” The friend’s _____ was very straight and hardly polite. He said, “What, going to court? I can’t go even a single step with you.” ____with this friend, he felt very sad and went to his_______friend. The second friend said, “You are in distress. So I shall go along with you for _____reasons. But I can’t help you inside the court and __ you in the case.” Feeling _____helpless, he went to his third friend _____ he usually did not take notice. He told him about the distress he was in and everything about his ____ . The third friend listened to him and not only went to court with him but produced such ____ proof(证据,证明) of his innocence as a(n) ____ in court that he was _____ . This person then felt that the friend whom he had so long _____had really given him the most ___ help at the time of his danger and distress.

Who are these three friends? They are Wealth, Relations and Virtuous deeds(道德行为). _____death, a man’s wealth (the first friend) will be _____ no avail (有用). The second friend (Relations) will ___ person only up to the burial ground. But the third friend is a real friend because he was a friend ____ . Anything but Virtuous deeds disappears with the body when a man dies.

1.A. unknown B. unconcerned C. undoubted D. unexpected

2.A. comparison B. accordance C. conflict D. connection

3.A. excitement B. anger C. difficulty D. order

4.A. response B. action C. way D. method

5.A. Disappointed B. Satisfied C. Frightened D. Astonished

6.A. first B. last C. second D. third

7.A. extent B. certain C. a D. what

8.A. prove B. charge C. scold D. assist

9.A. relatively B. absolutely C. obviously D. probably

10.A. for which B. of which C. for whom D. of whom

11.A. story B. distress C. friends D. relations

12.A. good B. negative C. positive D. new

13.A. proof B. witness C. evidence D. supporter

14.A. set free B. set off C. set out D. set down

15.A. ignored B. noticed C. connected D. cared

16.A. modest B. pleasant C. important D. sincere

17.A. Before B. Until C. After D. As

18.A. in B. of C. on D. at

19.A. lead B. accompany C. follow D. advise

20.A. in need B. in trouble C. in word D. in action

Housework is a frequent source of disputes (争论) between lazy husbands and their hard-working wives, but women have been warned not to expect men to pull their weight any time soon.

A study from Oxford University has found that men are unlikely to be doing an equal share of housework before 2050. Mothers, the researchers warned, will continue to shoulder the burden of childcare and housework for the next four decades, largely because housework such as cleaning and cooking is still regarded as “women’s work”.

The gap between the amount of time men and women spend on housework has narrowed slowly over the past 40 years. But it will take another four decades before true housework equality (平等) is achieved, the study concluded.

The research found that in the Nordic countries, the burden of housework is shared more equally between men and women. In the UK, women spend an average of four hours and forty minutes each day on housework, compared with two hours and twenty-eight minutes for men. This is an improvement from the 1960s, when British women typically spent six hours a day on housework, while men spent just 90 minutes every day.

But progress towards housework equality appears to be slowing in some countries. Dr Oriel Sullivan, a research reader from Oxford’s Department of Sociology, said, “we’ve looked at what is affecting the equality in the home, and we have found that certain tasks seem to be given according to whether they are viewed as ‘men’s work’ or ‘women’s work’.”

Dr Sullivan said cultural attitudes taught at school may be responsible for the views of housework. “At school it is much easier for a girl to be a tomboy, but it is much more difficult for a boy to enjoy baking and dancing,” she said.

1.The underlined part “pull their weight” in Paragraph 1 probably refers to “ __________ ”.

A. lose weight B. be lazy

C. earn money D. do equal housework

2.Women will continue to do more housework before 2050 mainly because _________ .

A. men are too busy to help

B. they would like to do so

C. they can do better in housework

D. housework will still be considered as women’s work

3.From Paragraph 4 we know that in the UK ___________ .

A. men now spend just 90 minutes a day on housework on average

B. women now are too busy with their work to do housework

C. women now spend less time on housework than before

D. housework is shared equally between men and women

4.In Dr Sullivan’s opinion, what is to blame for the housework inequality?

A. Cultural attitudes towards housework.

B. Policies made by the government.

C. The time spent on work.

D. The type of housework.

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