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This IELTS Speaking Part 2 cue card asks you to talk about something you do to stay healthy, covering what you do; when you started doing it; how often you do it; and explain why you think it keeps you healthy.. Below is a band 9 sample answer with tips on structuring a two-minute talk.
Describe something you do regularly to stay healthy.
You should say:
You have one minute to prepare and may make notes. Then speak for one to two minutes; the examiner may ask one or two short follow-up questions.
Something I do almost every day to stay healthy is a brisk morning walk of about forty-five minutes. I started this habit roughly three years ago, when my work became completely desk-based and I noticed I was feeling sluggish and sleeping badly. I usually leave home around six in the morning, before the streets get busy, and follow a fixed route through a nearby park. I would say I manage it five or six days a week, and on days when the weather is terrible I do simple stretching at home instead. What I love about walking is that it is completely sustainable — it needs no equipment, no membership and no exceptional willpower, which is exactly why I have not abandoned it the way I abandoned gym subscriptions in the past. The health benefits have been very real for me. My stamina has improved, my back pain has almost disappeared, and I genuinely believe the quiet thinking time reduces my stress, because I often solve problems in my head while walking. It has also improved my discipline in general: starting the day with one completed task makes the rest of the day feel more organised.
After your talk, the examiner moves to more abstract questions linked to this cue card.
Mainly because modern life is designed for convenience, not health. Processed food is cheaper and faster than fresh food, work keeps people seated for ten hours, and entertainment happens on screens. Healthy habits require swimming against this current daily, and motivation alone runs out — only routine and environment changes really last.
Yes, within limits. Governments cannot force anyone to exercise, but they shape the environment: cycle lanes, parks, food labelling, taxes on sugary drinks and health education in schools all make the healthy choice the easy choice. I think that is a legitimate role, since public money ultimately pays for lifestyle diseases.
In some ways yes, in others no. We live longer than any previous generation thanks to vaccines, hygiene and medicine. At the same time, obesity, diabetes and anxiety are far more common than before because of sedentary work and processed diets. So modern people survive better but arguably live less healthily day to day.
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