Talking About Hobbies and Exercise in Mandarin Chinese: A Dialogue About Running 🏃‍♀️

In this lesson, you’ll join two friends, Lǐ Nà and Wáng Wěi, as they catch up after a long time. You will learn key Mandarin phrases for talking about what you like to do, discussing the benefits of exercise, and making plans to meet up. Pay close attention to how they use words for hobbies and suggest a time to go running.

💬 Video Transcript

王伟: 李娜，你好！
(Wáng Wěi: Lǐ Nà, hello!)

李娜: 王伟，你好！好久不见！
(Lǐ Nà: Wáng Wěi, hello! Long time no see!)

王伟: 是啊，好久不见。你怎么样？
(Wáng Wěi: Yeah, long time no see. How are you?)

李娜: 我很好，谢谢。你呢？
(Lǐ Nà: I’m very well, thank you. And you?)

王伟: 我也很好。你这是要去哪里？
(Wáng Wěi: I’m also very well. Where are you going?)

李娜: 我要去公园。我想去运动。
(Lǐ Nà: I’m going to the park. I want to exercise.)

王伟: 运动？你喜欢运动吗？
(Wáng Wěi: Exercise? Do you like to exercise?)

李娜: 是的，我非常喜欢运动。运动对身体很好。
(Lǐ Nà: Yes, I really like to exercise. Exercise is very good for the body.)

王伟: 你喜欢什么运动？
(Wáng Wěi: What sports do you like?)

李娜: 我喜欢跑步。我每天都去公园跑步。
(Lǐ Nà: I like running. I go running in the park every day.)

王伟: 每天都跑步？
(Wáng Wěi: You run every day?)

李娜: 对。我喜欢早上跑步。你呢，王伟？你喜欢运动吗？
(Lǐ Nà: Correct. I like to run in the morning. What about you, Wáng Wěi? Do you like to exercise?)

王伟: 我吗？我不太喜欢运动。
(Wáng Wěi: Me? I don’t really like to exercise.)

李娜: 是吗？那你喜欢做什么？
(Lǐ Nà: Really? Then what do you like to do?)

王伟: 我喜欢在家看书，还喜欢看电影。
(Wáng Wěi: I like to read books at home, and I also like to watch movies.)

李娜: 看书和看电影也很好。但是，你也需要运动。
(Lǐ Nà: Reading books and watching movies is also very good. But, you also need to exercise.)

王伟: 嗯，我知道。医生说我应该多运动。
(Wáng Wěi: Mmm, I know. The doctor said I should exercise more.)

李娜: 是的。运动很重要。你的身体会更健康。
(Lǐ Nà: Yes. Exercise is very important. Your body will be healthier.)

王伟: 我应该学习你。每天运动。
(Wáng Wěi: I should learn from you. Exercise every day.)

李娜: 那，你想不想和我一起跑步？
(Lǐ Nà: Then, would you like to go running with me?)

王伟: 和你一起跑步？
(Wáng Wěi: Go running with you?)

李娜: 对啊。我们可以一起去公园跑步。一个人跑步没有意思。两个人一起跑步很好。
(Lǐ Nà: That’s right. We can go running in the park together. Running alone is no fun. Running together with someone is great.)

王伟: 嗯……听起来不错。可是我跑得很慢。
(Wáng Wěi: Hmm… sounds good. But I run very slowly.)

李娜: 没关系。我们可以一起慢慢跑。
(Lǐ Nà: No problem. We can run slowly together.)

王伟: 好吧！那我们什么时候去？
(Wáng Wěi: Alright! So when are we going?)

李娜: 明天早上怎么样？
(Lǐ Nà: How about tomorrow morning?)

王伟: 明天早上？可以。明天早上几点？
(Wáng Wěi: Tomorrow morning? Okay. What time tomorrow morning?)

李娜: 早上八点，在公园门口，可以吗？
(Lǐ Nà: 8 AM, at the park entrance, is that okay?)

王伟: 早上八点，在公园门口。好的，没问题。
(Wáng Wěi: 8 AM, at the park entrance. Okay, no problem.)

李娜: 太好了！我很高兴。
(Lǐ Nà: That’s great! I’m very happy.)

王伟: 我也很高兴。谢谢你，李娜。
(Wáng Wěi: I’m also very happy. Thank you, Lǐ Nà.)

李娜: 不客气。那，我们明天见。
(Lǐ Nà: You’re welcome. Well then, see you tomorrow.)

王伟: 好的，明天见。再见！
(Wáng Wěi: Okay, see you tomorrow. Goodbye!)

李娜: 再见！
(Lǐ Nà: Goodbye!)

📝 Essential Vocabulary

🔍 Grammar Focus

1. Talking About Likes and Dislikes with 喜欢 (xǐhuān)

The verb 喜欢 (xǐhuān) is fundamental for expressing what you like to do. You can use it to talk about hobbies, food, activities, and more. The structure is simple: Subject + [Adverb] + 喜欢 + Verb/Noun.

From the dialogue:

• Affirmative: 我喜欢跑步。 (Wǒ xǐhuān pǎobù.) - I like running.
• With an adverb: 我非常喜欢运动。 (Wǒ fēicháng xǐhuān yùndòng.) - I really like to exercise.
• Negative: 我不太喜欢运动。 (Wǒ bú tài xǐhuān yùndòng.) - I don’t really like to exercise. (Note: 不太 is a softer way of saying “don’t like” than the stronger 不喜欢).
• Question: 你喜欢运动吗？ (Nǐ xǐhuān yùndòng ma?) - Do you like to exercise?

2. Making Suggestions with “…怎么样? (…zěnmeyàng?)”

When you want to propose an idea or ask for someone’s opinion, adding 怎么样 (zěnmeyàng), which means “how about it?” or “what do you think?”, is a very common and polite way to do so. You simply state your suggestion and add 怎么样 at the end.

In the script, Lǐ Nà suggests a time for their run:

• 明天早上怎么样？ (Míngtiān zǎoshang zěnmeyàng?) - How about tomorrow morning?

You could use this for many situations:

• 我们去看电影，怎么样？ (Wǒmen qù kàn diànyǐng, zěnmeyàng?) - Let’s go watch a movie, how about it?

🌍 Cultural Tip

🃏 Flip & Learn

💡 Key Takeaways

• Greeting an old friend: Use 好久不见 (hǎo jiǔ bú jiàn) which literally means “good long not see.”
• Talking about hobbies: The key phrase is 你喜欢做什么？ (Nǐ xǐhuān zuò shénme?) - What do you like to do?
• Expressing frequency: To say you do something “every day,” use 每天 (měitiān), as in 我每天都去公园跑步 (Wǒ měitiān dōu qù gōngyuán pǎobù).
• Making suggestions: A simple and effective way to propose a plan is by adding 怎么样 (zěnmeyàng) to the end of your sentence.
• Arranging a meeting: Be specific with time and place, like 早上八点，在公园门口 (zǎoshang bā diǎn, zài gōngyuán ménkǒu) - 8 AM, at the park entrance.

🎯 Practice Quiz

✍️ Fill in the Blanks

Let’s test your spelling and memory! Fill in the missing words below. Use correct spelling.