This post is all about feeling great with all the trimmings, and how to make it happen…routinely.

When I’m feeling my very best, everything I love is the first thing I see and feel, in everything I think and do. And within those moments, everything is exactly the way it should be.  You know how I feel.

• Energy level is high
• Thinking is crystal clear
• Possibilities seem endless
• Confidence is bold
• Awareness is sharp
• Attitude is soaring
• Senses are firing

We walk a very fine line between merely tolerating life in black and white, so to speak, and living it fully in high definition color. What is it that transforms our perspective from one to the other?

• It’s just another day, to…living the dream
• Do we have to do that again, to…I wish it would last forever
• I don’t much feel like it, to…let’s get up and make it happen
• I’m glad that’s over, to…let’s do it again
• It’s such an uphill battle, to…it’s just a walk in the park

I guess most people would say attitude makes the difference…but I say…they’d be wrong. Wrong because attitude, on its own, can’t sustain itself for long. What makes the difference is how you feel in that moment…and the better you feel, the more pleasure you’re able to milk from that moment…pure and simple. As I said, it’s all about feeling good.

We all know people who seem to always be happy, regardless of their situations… while on the other hand, there are other folks who wouldn’t recognize joy if it was staring them in the face.

Why do you suppose that is? Could it be that some just have it tougher than others? Absolutely…some of us do indeed have heavier crosses to bear, but I’m here to tell you…many of the happiest people I know, carry the largest and the heaviest.

So then…what’s the answer? Is there a secret formula for happiness? I say there is. Opportunities to be happy surround us daily. Being ready to receive them…now that’s a different story…and for this, there is a formula.

Again, you have to feel great in order to participate in happiness to the fullest. Listen…I don’t know a single person who feels terrible and happy at the same time.

Seems to me, if you want a life full of pleasure and happiness, the question should be: What can I do to make myself feel fantastic?

I thought you’d never ask.

Our lives are full of ups and downs, which too often play havoc with our moods. Don’t know about you, but sometimes I can be a bear, even when there’s no good reason to be…just ask my lovely wife…she’ll tell ya.

The fact is…life’s ups and downs don’t really fluctuate all that much…we do. It’s simply our readiness, or lack of, to receive them which determines our demeanor.

When I’m feeling great, life can’t throw me a curve that I can’t catch. You know what I’m talking about.

Tell me where I’m wrong. When your body’s feeling great, your mind follows suit…you feel wonderful, vibrant, and in perfect harmony with your world. Within this frame of mind, there is absolutely no way you can be pi#@ed off at the world.

As a matter of fact, when you’re feeling good, you are ready and willing to receive all that life has coming your way. Bring it on.

• It’s that Friday night feeling…oh baby!
• It’s a crackling fire, a bottle of wine and soft music with the person I love…mercy!
• The first cup of coffee on a Saturday morning.
• It’s my favorite song at a live concert…turn it up!
• The first day of a week’s vacation…you better believe it.
• It’s a hot steamy bath on a cold winter’s night…ahhhhhh.
• It’s an endorphin high after a routine workout…WHAT?

Well, you knew I had a punch line coming sooner or later. The fact is…I’m desperately trying to get your attention, because this habit of working out, or exercising if you will, on a routine basis, is the formula for feeling fantastic…therefore, the formula for happiness…and in that order.

This formula has paid off for me big time, and I want to pay it forward to you…Look how excited I am, for crying out loud.

Relax…I’m not going to shove an exercise program down your throat, or make you feel inadequate about not working out like a banshee. True…a good exercise program is important, but that’s not the point I’m trying to make here…not this time.

More important than a good program is the personal commitment to a routine. A routine is everything…I mean everything. Without a routine, you are wasting your precious time and energy.

Most people begin an exercise program wanting instant gratification…hell, who doesn’t? They lace up their new sneakers (do they still call them that?) and go all in, like there’s no tomorrow.

But the reality is, there is a tomorrow…and a day after that…and a week, and a month and a year after that. Get my point? The all in approach is intoxicating, but doomed from the start.

The problem is…you’re working much too hard and way too often…consequently burning yourself out before having a fighting chance to discover your groove if you will…your routine…your key to happiness.

If you take your time and ease into it, before long a routine will bloom. And from that routine…feeling great will blossom. Trust me…feeling great will make you happy…very happy. Bingo…that’s what it’s all about.

And when it becomes a routine, you will be very happy, very often, as you will be addicted to your endorphin high. It’s OK…it’s a good addiction.

Remember…success is not about how hard you work out…it’s measured on how routinely you do so. In order for it to truly change your life, you have to carry it out like clockwork on a routine basis, and there’s no getting around it. I can’t stress this enough…this is the key…the only key.

In other words…set a schedule…commit to it, and stick to it. Don’t let anything get in the way…never…ever.

If there was a simpler way, I would tell you in a heartbeat…but there’s not. Though I will emphatically say…for those who commit to a routine exercise program, I promise it will change the way you receive happiness in your life…you won’t miss a trick. The highs will be sky high and the lows will be seen as nothing more than minor stumbling blocks.

Just go easy for the first six months…commit to 15 minutes, three days a week…Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, or whenever. The trick is…pick the days and time, and come hell or high water…get it done. Remember…easy does it…you’ll build up later when it’s time, believe me…you’ll know when it’s time.

You stick with it for six months, and you’ll understand what I mean when I say…I workout for the mental high…getting in shape is just a wonderful byproduct.

This commitment to a routine workout is the most important thing you’ll ever do, for yourself, and your family…especially your family. It affects everything…your relationships…your career…your attitude…the way you look…the way you feel…your energy level…your health…your outlook…your happiness…everything.

Here’s my last word on the subject. For the past 25 years I have practiced what I preach, and I honestly feel 20 years younger in every aspect of my life. I’m in better shape now, by far, than I have ever been. I wake up each morning motivated, full of energy, ready to take on the day. At the end of my work day I go to the gym, and I think nothing of it, because it’s just another part of my daily routine. Regardless of how I feel when I walk in…one hour later, I leave energetic and mellow…which by the way, is a wonderful combination…and boy does it pay off dividends all evening long.

You gotta…know how I feel

By the way…a workout can be anything from a brisk walk to a full fledge weight lifting program…or anything in-between.

You know how I feel. But you don’t have to take my word for it… just ask Nike…they’ll tell ya. Just Do It!

Bill Peak

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