When Kate exercises, she either swims or runs. She wants to spend a minimum of 8 hours a week exercising, and she wants to swim 3 times the amount she runs. What is the minimum amount of time she must spend doing each exercise?
A) At least 2 hours running and 6 hours swimming.
B) At least 6 hours running and 2 hours swimming.
C) At least 4 hours running and 6 hours swimming.
D) At least 4 hours running and 12 hours swimming.
E) At least 1 hour running and 7 hours swimming.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Let the time spent running be x hours. Since she swims 3 times the amount she runs, the time spent swimming is 3x hours. The total exercise time is x + 3x = 4x hours. She wants to exercise at least 8 hours a week, so 4x ≥ 8. Solving for x gives x ≥ 2. Therefore, she must spend at least 2 hours running and 3*2 = 6 hours swimming.

When Kate Exercises, She Either Swims or Runs