Shadowing Practice: 5 hobbies that everyone needs - Learn English Speaking with Video

A hobby can be defined as a regular activity that is done for enjoyment.

It's a habit that we get to do

and intentionally curating the hobbies in our life to create a

balanced lifestyle system is one of the most sustainable ways to feel happy, healthy and fulfilled.

If you're new here my name's Izzy, I'm a final year medical student at Cambridge University and on this channel we talk about designing lifestyle systems to stay happy, healthy and efficient while studying.

Let's get right into the video.

A little while ago I came across this idea of separating hobbies into different categories

and this way of thinking about it has really helped me to conceptualise

and evaluate the hobbies that I do have in my life.

So in this video I'm going to talk about five different types of hobbies

that I believe are really important to help us enrich our lives

and I'll also be sharing some of the ways that I've personally tried to implement these in my own life.

This was partly inspired by the quote, find three hobbies that you love, one to make you money, one to keep you in shape, and one to be creative.

And I've added two more categories that I personally believe are really important.

First on the list is a hobby to keep you in shape.

So we all know how important physical exercise is for our well -being,

especially how important exercise is for our body, heart, mind, everything.

But let's be honest, sometimes exercise can really feel like a chore.

So try to find some form of exercise that you really enjoy

and this will make it much more sustainably and seamlessly integrate into your lifestyle.

For example, I once tried to get into running but to be very honest, I hated it.

I'm not sure if it was my mindset, pushing myself too hard, maybe the monotony of running or even just the great British weather,

but I just could not stick to this and almost as soon as I decided on this new habit, I was already skipping out on my running days and I skipped one day,

then two days and eventually just stopped altogether.

Then at one point I tried yoga

and this was a completely different ball game because I really loved this time on my yoga mat, moving mindfully, sweating a little bit and getting in a gentle workout

and I found that there wasn't

that same level of friction to get myself to actually hop on the mat

and do my yoga because I actually wanted to do it

so doing it every single day felt natural it felt good and it's something that I've stuck with to this day.

I think this is a great example of how sometimes I can get hung up on trying to optimize something

and if you're a bit like me sometimes all of the planning

and trying to choose the best kind of exercise for xyz outcome can actually be counterproductive

because at the end of the day what's most important is

actually doing some form of exercise rather than trying to force yourself to do the perfect exercise.

So really try to find something that you genuinely enjoy and hopefully can sustainably do most days of the week.

Second is a hobby to keep you creative.

Having a creative outlet allows us to continually express ourselves

and also it gives us that time and space to really reflect on our own lives.

It gives us a great reason to really create

that space for challenging ourselves and creating those unique connections between ideas

and creativity also invites us to look for the beauty and magic in the day -to -day.

Ever since I was little I've really loved music

but I never really dedicated a lot of time to actually exploring these creative outlets.

This was especially because I was absolutely terrible at art class in school.

I generally felt very untalented and pretty rubbish at actual art classes.

But over the years, I've started dabbling with a bit more amateur photography, more music, journaling, and now making these videos since I started this channel.

I'd find myself making specific time for each of these creative pursuits.

For example, planning a trip to the Botanic Garden to take photos of all the flowers and plants there,

or maybe blocking out some time to play music and sing.

I've really found that just simply making the space to be creative and that process of creation, it's actually really worthwhile in its own right just for ourselves.

And I feel like it's something that's actually helped me to understand myself better.

Thirdly, a hobby to make you money.

Find a job that you love and you'll never work a day in your life.

This quote is getting at the fact that if a work feels like play, then it doesn't really count as work anymore.

If you enjoy at least one of the ways that you make money, whether that's your day job or your side hustle or something else entirely,

then it will likely feel less like work and more like play, which means that you'll naturally just love doing it more

and you're more likely to be naturally good at it simply because you really enjoy it.

As a medical student, I love being in the clinical environment, interacting and talking with colleagues and patients.

And I really hope that this enjoyment will transfer over to the actual job when I start working as a junior doctor.

in just under a year's time.

For me over the years I've also dabbled in various ways of making money on the side from pool lifeguarding

and working as head bar person at my college bar to tutoring, science and maths and even teaching English as a foreign language.

I've kind of done a few different jobs

and I can tell you with 100 % confidence that the ones

that I enjoyed the most were the ones that I really got the most out of and like really stuck with.

Now for number four, which is my own addition.

And I think that having a hobby to grow your mind is so important.

I personally love learning new things or like new perspectives all the time.

And having a hobby that encourages us to keep on learning

and keep evolving our mindset means that we can always find something new from life

and keep leveling up towards becoming the version of ourselves that we really want to be.

Learning also keeps our brains young and reminds us

that the world is a place that is full of almost endless possibilities and opportunities, helping us to develop that growth mindset.

I love reading books and listening to podcasts, and this is probably the biggest way that I have continued to learn new things and new perspectives throughout my life,

just beyond actual formal study, which for me would be medicine.

So beyond that, books and podcasts have really expanded the way that I think.

One book that I've read in the last year

that I would highly recommend to anyone is In Order to Live by Yeonmi Park, who escaped from North Korea.

And she tells her story of all the things she had to do and sacrifice in order to live.

And I really think that everyone should read this book.

It genuinely changed my worldview on privilege and gratitude.

I've also found that regular meditation has really helped me to evolve my mindset

and the way that I interact with the world.

And I've actually made a whole video about meditation and my experience with it.

So feel free to check it out somewhere over here.

And finally, number five is a hobby to stay connected.

And this is something that has been so, so important over the last year because in today's world, it's so easy to feel disconnected.

And especially since the COVID pandemic started and we've been through more than a year's worth of lockdowns,

I think it's so crucial to have some way to stay connected with the people around you.

Having a hobby that allows you to stay connected with

or serve others is so important for our psychological well -being and happiness and also our sense of belonging and fulfilment.

This can be via joining clubs or societies,

volunteering, perhaps having a weekly scheduled activity with friends or even just having a habit of regularly connecting with other people,

for example with weekly check -ins.

I know that in the last year I've personally sometimes felt a little bit isolated

and maintaining that connection with others has genuinely helped me to stay grounded

when I've been feeling not so great about things during lockdown.

So that's why I've added this one onto the list as well.

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So overall in each of these five categories there are loads of different hobbies and activities that you could choose.

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I'd love to hear what sort of hobbies you're including in your own life

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and any that you would recommend so please do leave a comment down below to let me know.

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If you enjoyed this video I think you might like this one over here.

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Thank you so much for watching, take care of yourself and remember that the journey is the destination.

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Why This Video Is Perfect for English Speaking Practice

This video is a goldmine for english speaking practice because it balances conversational flow with clear, structured ideas. Izzy’s tone is natural—like chatting with a friend—making it easy to mimic rhythm and intonation. The content covers relatable topics (hobbies, lifestyle) with specific examples, which helps learners connect new vocabulary to real life. Plus, the pace is steady, ideal for shadow speech exercises where you repeat phrases immediately after hearing them.

Breaking Down Natural English Phrases

Let’s look at 3 phrases that sound authentic and why they work: 1. “This was partly inspired by the quote…” – Uses “partly inspired” to soften a point, a common way to connect ideas in casual speech. It avoids formality, making it relatable. 2. “Then at one point I tried yoga and this was a completely different ball game…” – The idiom “different ball game” adds color and shows how native speakers use figurative language to emphasize contrast. 3. “I'd find myself making specific time for each of these creative pursuits.” – “Find myself + verb” is a natural way to describe habits that develop without forced effort, a structure learners often miss.

A Simple Shadowing Routine for This Video

Use this shadowing practice to boost fluency:

Watch 10 seconds of the video, pausing after each sentence.
Repeat the sentence out loud, matching Izzy’s pace and tone. Focus on stress (e.g., “genuinely enjoy” vs. “sustainably do”).
Record yourself, then compare to the original. Notice gaps in intonation or word stress.
Gradually increase to 30-second clips. For extra practice, use a shadowing app to loop sections and track progress.

This loop trains your brain to think in English and improves muscle memory for natural speech. Over time, you’ll find phrases like “counterproductive” or “creative outlet” roll off your tongue effortlessly.

By using shadowspeak with this video, you’ll not only learn new words but also master the art of speaking like a native—all while exploring useful tips for a balanced life.

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

Structure	In the video
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	has really helped · I've added · I've stuck
Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing	play, which means · four, which is

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →

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