Power-ups are quick fixes to energy-sucking situations that keep you from being your healthiest, happiest, most heroic self. In the following examples, the set-up creates the drama, the power-up energizes your ability to solve the problem, and the follow-up tells you how to take it all one vital step further. I call the first one ...

DANCE TO ENHANCE

THE SET-UP: A stressful workday has ended. You're exhausted. You'd planned to lift weights at the gym — three times a week no matter what! — but it takes all your strength just to navigate home. You shuffle through the door and collapse on the couch. Where's the remote? Where's your energy? Where's the wine?

THE POWER-UP: Try this little trick: As soon as you get home, start the music. Grab for Lady Gaga, or crank up your iPod playlist and — without thinking, without excuses — start dancing around the house to your favorite tunes. You don't need a partner, shoes or even clothes. The payoff is immediate: just 10-15 minutes of musical movin' and groovin' is a great way to get your heart pumping and your mojo jumping, and rapidly turn your body from lazy to crazy for more.

THE FOLLOW-UP: Did you know that listening to music while you exercise can actually increase your stamina? It's true. One study found that cyclists could ride 25 percent longer when they did it to music. The faster the beat, the quicker we tend to move, whether it be walking, running or riding the rowing machine. Next time you feel your workout slowing to a crawl, let loose with some Led Zeppelin, and watch what happens!

FEELING TIRED? ENERG-EYES!

THE SET-UP: In 10 minutes your big party is starting. You've been working hard all day, cooking, cleaning, hiding things in closets. Now the company's coming, and you feel like the wettest of dish rags. No time for a nap. No time for a walk. You've got to re-energize fast or risk being your own party pooper.

THE POWER-UP: Time to take matters into your own hands. Sit down at a table or desk. Put your elbows on the surface in front of you, close your eyes, and cover them with the palms of your hands, pressing gently against the entire eye area. As you do that, breathe deeply, noticing the sound of your inhalation and your exhalation. Let go of thoughts, worries, expectations. When your mind wanders, and it will, come back to the sound of your breath. After a few minutes, take your hands down and open your eyes slowly, consciously. You should feel refreshed and ready to host a magnificent party.

THE FOLLOW-UP: What actually happens when you listen to your breath? It's a simple, ancient, and very effective way of clearing your mind of useless chatter and focusing it on a single point. With that deep attention comes a kind of calm that is profoundly restorative. Listen with your ears, but also listen with your spirit. When you open your eyes, allow your heart to open as well, and pour that love into your guests.

PITCH IN TO FEEL PERKIER

THE SET-UP: It's Saturday morning, and you're still in bed. You've been waiting for the weekend all week. Now it's here, and you can't move. You tell yourself to get up, jump on the bike, go to the gym. Your self tells you to shut up and stay under the covers. You feel listless, useless, restless.

THE POWER-UP: Give your heart a different kind of workout. Exercise compassion — the energy-boosting vitamin C that recharges your batteries and boosts your self-esteem. Take a few hours to do something useful for someone else. Tutor a kid. Clean a stream. Gather up your unused toys, clothes, books and recycle them to the needy. The universe rewards us with energy and good feelings when we give selflessly to others. Try it.

THE FOLLOW UP: Doing for others gives you energy. So does doing for yourself. Does that sound like selfishness? It's not. Denying yourself pleasure blocks the free flow of joy in your life. What can you do in the next 24 hours that would give you some joy? A massage? A Broadway matinee? A mango? Big or small, do something special for yourself. Today!

ENERGY EXPRESS-O! THE POWER OF POOH

"A bear, no matter how hard he tries, grows tubby without exercise." — A.A. Milne

Marilynn Preston — fitness expert, personal trainer and speaker on healthy lifestyle issues — is the creator of Energy Express, the longest-running syndicated fitness column in the country. She has a website, http://marilynnpreston.com and welcomes reader questions, which can be sent to MyEnergyExpress@aol.com.