Do you lead a sedentary lifestyle? 6 Minute English

Catherine: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute

English. I'm Catherine.

Dan: And I'm Dan.

Catherine: Now Dan, would you say you

had a sedentary lifestyle at all?

Dan: If I only went to work, yes, I would

have a pretty sedentary life. I sit on the

tube, I sit at my desk or in the studio for

most of the day. But because I know

that's not good for my health, I do also

like to go to the gym a couple of times

a week and I'll do some exercise,

like a bike ride or playing football at the

weekend. So, my job

is pretty sedentary, but not my life.

Catherine: Nice answer, Dan. And our

topic today is about how one country in

particular has been very successful

in dealing with the problem of

a sedentary population. But before

we find out more, here is today's question.

According to a recent survey, how long

does the average person in the UK spend

sitting down every day? Is it:

a) between 6 and 7 hours, b) between 7

and 8 hours or c) between 8 and 9 hours?

So, Dan, what do you think?

Dan: Based on my day, it would be

between 8 and 9 hours, but I don't know if

I am an average person! So I'm interested

to learn the answer for myself.

Catherine: We'll find out the answer later

in the programme. Now, 40 years ago

Finland was perhaps the unhealthiest

country in the Western world.

But now, it's one of the healthiest.

Dan: Death by heart disease in Finland

has fallen by 80% and life expectancy, the

age at which the average person lives

until, has risen by 10 years.

Catherine: How has this been achieved?

This was investigated on BBC Radio 4's

You and Yours programme and one of the

ways Finland has improved

the health of the nation is by

a lot of state involvement. BBC reporter

John Laurenson describes in a humorous

way how this works. How does he

describe someone with

many health problems?

John Laurenson: If you're an exercise

shirker because you're fat or old or

asthmatic or chained to your computer or

just plain lazy or all of those things rolled

into one super-health disaster zone,

they will come to you in the form perhaps,

of a stern lady with a clipboard and

make some firm suggestions.

They won't actually drag you off your

PlayStation, out of your nursing home or

out of the pub but they do get quite close.

Catherine: How did he describe someone

with a lot of health problems, Dan?

Dan: Well, he wasn't very complimentary,

and we should emphasise that this report

is quite tongue-in-cheek, which means

that it's meant to be funny and shouldn't

be taken seriously

but he called the people with many health

problems 'super-health disaster zones'.

Catherine: 'Super-health disaster zones'.

So what other vocabulary can we pick

from what he said?

Dan: He talked about being an exercise

shirker. A shirker is someone who avoids

doing something usually because they are

being lazy. It's also a verb, to shirk.

Catherine: Laurenson says that if you are

an exercise shirker or indeed a

super-health disaster zone, someone

from the authorities will come and visit

you. In another tongue-in-cheek

description he says that this visitor might

be a stern lady with a clipboard.

Dan: Stern is an adjective which means

very serious and strict, someone without

a sense of humour who might be quite

angry. And in his description the reporter

says that this stern lady will have a

clipboard. It's a hard board you can attach

papers to so you can write on the paper

while you are moving around.

Catherine: So we have this image of an

angry lady arriving at your house to tell

you off for your health habits and make

you live a healthier life.

Dan: But he does point out that they won't

actually drag you out of your house to do

exercise. However, in the report he goes on

to say that there is lot of encouragement,

even from school age, to eat well

and take regular exercise.

Catherine: Well, before a stern lady with

a clipboard comes and tells us off for not

finishing on time, let's get the answer to

today's quiz. According to a recent survey,

how long does the average person in the

UK spend sitting down every day? Is it:

a) between 6 and 7 hours,

b) between 7 and 8 hours or

c) between 8 and 9 hours?

Dan: And I said I had no idea.

Catherine: Well, the answer was c),

Dan - between 8 and 9 hours.

In fact, it was 8 and a quarter hours.

By comparison, in Finland,

it's less than 6 hours.

Dan: I guess we are a lot more

sedentary in Britain.

Catherine: And sedentary is our first word

in our vocabulary review. It's an adjective

used to describe a lifestyle which involves

a lot of sitting and not much exercise.

Dan: And if you are very sedentary, it can

lead to a lower life expectancy.

Life expectancy, the age to which you

are expected to live.

Catherine: Next we had the word shirker

for someone who avoids doing

something they don't like, usually

because they are lazy. For example,

an exercise shirker avoids exercise.

Dan: Something that is said

tongue-in-cheek is meant to be humorous

and not taken seriously.

Catherine: If you are stern though, you

want to be taken seriously. It's an

adjective that means serious and strict.

Dan: And finally there's clipboard. A board

you attach papers to so you write on them

as you walk around.

Catherine: Well, Dan, it's time for us to

go and get some exercise. Join us again

next time and remember you can find us

on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube

and of course our website

bbclearningenglish.com.

See you soon, bye.

Dan: Bye!