1. What do Chinese people think about sport and other physical activity?
As living conditions are getting better in China sports and other physical activity is becoming entertainment more than just a form of exercise or livelihood. In the past, most physical activity consisted of doing work in order to eat or as a means of therapy. Now young people are playing sports, such as basketball or badminton, in their free time as a way to have fun and make friends. Now that life is less demanding, everywhere you go that has a park or playground is usually filled with people playing sport.
2. What sports or forms of physical exercise are most popular in China?
The most popular sport in China is ping pong. You can find people of all ages playing Ping pong in parks and gymnasiums. Also more and more Chinese are enjoying western sports like basketball. The NBA has put a lot of promotions in China. Especially since more Chinese athletes are going abroad to play, there has been a major increase of NBA television broadcasts.
3. Compared to a few decades ago, do you think modern people in China do more, or less exercise?
Nowadays, Chinese people have put more interest in physical exercise. In the past, living conditions were not as good as they are now. People spent most of their time working so that they can support themselves. Recently more and more young people go to gyms in order to get a better body shape and to meet people. Also on any early morning in China, millions of people, most of the old, gather in parks to exercise. There are several types of traditional exercise that are regarded not only as ways to take care of one's body, but also as therapy.
4. Why do you think modern people do less exercise than before?
Yes, people have become a lot busier nowadays. Many people work long hours sitting at desk. Many of our modern methods do seem to make us more sedentary, so many of us find that we have to go out of our way in order to incorporate regular physical activity into our lives. Even in entertainment, people tend not to be as physically active. Entertainment has gone from playing sports in the park to playing video games and watching television. And urban citizens have made driving rather than walking or bicycling, the standard method for getting around.
