Puff, puff, puff! Boy, that last flight of stairs was a killer!"

If this sounds like you, it's a warning that you may be on the fast track to lose your business because of health problems. You're out of shape. You've been spending all your time and effort trying to make your business prosper, and you're about to give all your profits to a health care professional of one type or another. Worse yet, you may end up giving all your profits to someone else should you die in your tracks. It's action time!

FIRST STEP, A MEDICAL CLEARANCE
There is no requirement forcing you to see a physician to start a program to regain your fitness, many people don't, but it probably is a good idea to get a checkup just to be on the safe side. If you're male, you probably haven't been to a physician in a Coon's age anyway, so a checkup is probably a good idea.

SETTING REALISTIC GOALS
This is important. Without setting a realistic goal, you have practically no chance of success. Take out a sheet of paper and list 100 things you would do if you were fit. Don't worry about the order, just list what you would do! Most people can think of 40 to 60 things they would like to do, so don't stop with 5 or 10.

List them all: learn to hang glide, climb Mt. Everest, scuba dive in Aruba, bungee jump from the bridge, play a whole game of tennis, learn to play tennis, run the marathon, take walks with your significant other, play basketball with the neighbor kids or any of a thousand things you would be able to do if you were fit!

As you reach a goal, cross it off and (here's the secret) add another. As you regain your fitness, you may discover dancing!

PLAN
Alright, you've received the green (or yellow) light from your physician. Now what? Develop an action plan that will lead you towards your goals. Most fitness gurus suggest at least a half hour of some kind of exercise a minimum of three times a week. I caution you to not go into your program with both barrels blazing. When you discover how tough a super-stud or power-woman regime really is, the tendency is to give up the idea and go back to entropy.

The best way to start is to do something simple such as walking, bicycling, or my favorite, swimming. Don't try to walk 30 miles or swim the pool 40 times the first day. You probably could achieve this goal, but you might not be able to get out of bed the next morning. Keep it simple, and don't get out of breath. You'll make that 30 mile trip somewhere, and if that's an important milestone, it should be in your goal list.

FUEL
If you hire great people for your business, it stands a better chance for success, right? Good people fuel the engine of opportunity. The same goes for your body. If you ever expect to achieve your goals, you are going to have to fuel your body with great food! There are plenty of books on the shelf which identify a good eating program, so I'm not going to bore you with the basics. Just make sure you get the vitamins, minerals and supplements that help you gain and maintain your health no matter what eating program you select.

One thing. You don't have to give up you favorite fattening food, you just have to fit it properly in the overall eating program you select.

SCHEDULING
You've come this far, now is not the time to quit. To make it all happen, you have to do exactly as you do in your business, you have to schedule yourself. Say this to yourself: "I want to reach my goals. Th e ONLY way this will happen is if I develop a schedule then stick to it come rain or come shine. I CAN do it! I WANT it! I WILL have it!"