PrepTest 146

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Facts

Question Type:
Must Be True

Stimulus Summary:

Modest exercise can improve cardiovascular health.
Only a half hour of walking most days is enough to see benefits.
More vigorous exercise is more effective.

Answer Anticipation:
When dealing with a wishy-washy stimulus like this one, where there's a lot of uncertain language, it's important to focus on the elements that have enough logical force to support an answer. Let's go through each one to see the thought process behind it!

The first statement is weak, but it's causal, so it could lead to an inference. The recommendation is probably not going to lead to an inference (it's hard to see what it would be other than a restatement of it), but the second half of that sentence sets a strong limit on necessary exercise ("one need only"). The first half of the last sentence sets up a direct comparative relationship, so it could play a role in a correct answer, but the second half doesn't say much since it tells us a certain relationship doesn't exist (and there are many, many relationships that don't exist), so we should downplay that.

So at the end of the day, we're left with the statements highlighted in our Summary. Looking to see if we can combine them, it appears as if modest exercise (half hour of a brisk walk) can lead to improvements in CV health, but more vigorous exercise would do more.

Answer Explanation:
The stimulus establishes that modest exercise most days of the week can produce a dramatic improvement in CV health, and that more vigorous exercise is more effective. Therefore, a strenuous workout most days of the week would have at least a dramatic effect on CV health, and thus this answer is supported.

Key Takeaway:
When not dealing in conditional statements, Must Be True questions generally provide a mix of statements of varying types of logic and force. Start to develop a sense for the types of statements that tend to be involved in the correct answer so you can cut through the ones that aren't and answer the question more efficiently.

Incorrect. The stimulus establishes that the brisk walk on "those days"—i.e., "most days"—is enough to see these benefits, but 2-3 days doesn't qualify as "most days."

Incorrect. This answer is contradicted by the stimulus when it states that more vigorous exercise "is more effective."

Incorrect. While the stimulus establishes that certain types and amounts of exercise will benefit CV health, there's no suggestion that it's the only way to do so.

Incorrect. The stimulus specifically notes that strenuous workouts are "not absolutely necessary."