S e c o n d e d I t I o n 1 Reading for the Real World 1

Drugs in Sports
Discussion
Discuss the following questions.
1.
Do you think athletes should have the freedom of choice to use 
performance enhancing drugs? Why or why not?
2.
Some say that mandatory drug testing is a violation of a person’s right to privacy.
Do you agree or disagree?
Track 34

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Vocabulary Preview
 
Match each word or phrase with the correct definition.
1.
build up 
a.
a strong attention or effort
2.
circulate 
b.
an uncomfortable feeling
3.
concentration 
c.
to do or attempt
4.
discomfort 
d.
very deep and quiet thought
5.
meditation 
e.
to collect; to be contained
6.
undertake 
f.
to move in a continuous way
Pre-Reading Questions
Think about the following questions.
1.
Do you think that each person has a special energy inside them? 
Why or why not?
2. 
How can meditation or acupuncture help people?
3. 
What do you think gi is?
Gi
 
S p o r t s & F i t n e s s
2
U N
I
T
9

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108
Gi
5
10
15
W 
hat is gi? Gi means different things to different people. Some say 
that it is a 
force
created by practicing breathing exercises. Some 
say that it is highly developed concentration. Still others say that it 
is an electrical force that circulates within the body of all living creatures. Some 
even claim that gi is a person’s soul. Where does the idea of gi come from? Most 
information about gi comes from Asia. For thousands of years, the people of 
India have believed in this type of energy, which they call prana. According to 
Indian 
mystics
, or holy men, highly developed prana can allow a man to equal 
the physical strength of several men; letting him bend thick metal bars and lift 
heavy objects. The Chinese call this force chi, the Koreans gi, and the Japanese ki.
Regardless of the name, the traditional thinking in Asia is that this energy can 
be used for health, relaxation, and