Energy and Happiness: Looking After a Charged Body and an Ordered Mind

Think about the last time you felt completely flat. Not sad exactly, just depleted. Chances are even the things you usually love felt like hard work.

That's the starting point for a concept I've been working on, and I shared an early version of it on a recent solo episode of the Joyful Mate podcast. I recorded it outside, in the sunlight and among the trees, which was very much the point.

The idea is this. There's a strong association between energy and happiness. When our energy is low, it's much harder to feel great. When we have energy, we can live life to the fullest, do the things we love and experience more joy. So if we want more joy, it makes sense to look after our energy, in both the body and the mind.

As I said on the episode, I'm still finding the best way to articulate all of this. But I'd rather share it now and refine it with you than wait until it's perfect.

The concept: a charged body and a positive mind

I've been playing with the word enlightenment, in its most literal sense: creating light. When a positive charge and a negative charge come together, they create electricity and light.

So I've been thinking about happiness in two parts. The first is keeping the body charged, which I describe as maintaining the body's electronegativity, or the charge of our cells. The second is keeping the mind positive, by which I mean ordered, coherent and moving in a forward direction towards meaning and purpose.

When both are looked after, I believe we have the energy to keep moving towards what matters to us, and the clarity to know what that is.

Looking after the body's charge

Here are the everyday habits I talk about on the episode. They're simple, and most of them are free.

Get your bare feet on the ground. I'm a big fan of walking barefoot on grass, dirt or sand, and getting the palms of my hands on the earth too. On the episode, I explain my view that this is one way we can take on electrons from the earth.

Spend time outside in sunlight and green spaces. I talk about infrared light, which makes up a large part of the sun's spectrum, and how green spaces reflect it. My view is that this light supports the water our mitochondria make as they turn food into energy. Whatever the mechanism, getting outdoors and into nature is something I prioritise every day.

Swim in natural bodies of water. Oceans, lakes and rivers are some of my favourite places to recharge.

Move your body. I describe our muscles as piezoelectric, meaning movement itself creates energy. If you work at a desk, take regular breaks. Get up, walk around and, ideally, step outside.

Be thoughtful about fats. I share my view that fats are a valuable source of energy, and that how we prepare them matters. I suggest avoiding fried foods and not overheating oils, particularly those that are liquid at room temperature. In my view, oils that are solid at room temperature handle heat better, and oils are best consumed at room temperature.

Enjoy a few supportive foods. On the episode I mention turmeric, ghee (clarified butter) and holy basil, also known as tulsi, as foods I like to include.

Think about your environment. I also share my preference for filtered water free of fluoride and chlorine, and for keeping exposure to screens and phones in check.

Look after your emotional health and your relationships. This one surprises people, but I believe it belongs on the list. Being around anger, or people who make us feel threatened, drains us. Supportive relationships, and things that calm our nervous system, help us keep our energy.

A note: these are my personal views and a concept I'm still developing. They're general information, not individual advice, so please check with your own health practitioner before making changes.

Keeping the mind ordered and moving forward

The second half of the concept is the mind. We often hear that positive thinking is good for us, but I don't mean being optimistic all the time. I mean a mind with direction: one that knows what lights you up and is moving towards it. That's what gives life meaning and purpose.

The other part is order. I've found we lose order in our minds when we don't take the time to understand why we react the way we do. So I make room every day for reflection. How am I feeling? Why am I feeling this way? What's driving that emotion?

Balancing your perceptions

Once I know what's driving an emotion, I can work on how I'm perceiving the situation. The key question I ask is: how is this serving me?

Here's an example from my own life. People regularly challenge my views on nutrition. It would be easy to see that as an attack. Instead, I've come to appreciate it. Every challenge makes me question what I understand, look at the evidence again and keep up with the latest research.

My views have changed a lot over the years. Once upon a time I believed fats were bad and that we should eat a more plant-based diet. Now I advocate for meat from grass-fed animals raised as naturally as possible. Whatever your own view, the point is this: the people who challenged me helped me become more skilful, more knowledgeable and, I hope, wiser.

When we look for how a challenge is serving us, we start to see the order in what's happening around us. And when we see that order, we feel more order within ourselves.

Why it matters for joy

When we don't reflect, it's easy to feel out of control, as though life is unfair and the world is happening to us. In that state, joy and fulfilment are hard to find.

When we regulate our emotions by balancing our perceptions, we respond rather than react. We're guided by our inner world rather than pushed around by people, weather events and everything else outside our control. And that steady, coherent action carries us in the direction we want to go.

Put the two halves together, a charged body and an ordered mind, and the body can keep up with where the mind wants to take us. For me, that's the heart of a long, joyful life.

Key takeaways

Energy and happiness go hand in hand. Get outside, get your feet on the ground, move often, choose and prepare your fats with care, and surround yourself with supportive people. Then give your mind the same attention with a little daily reflection and one powerful question: how is this serving me?

Listen to the full episode on the Joyful Mate podcast, and if you know someone who could use a recharge, please share it with them. This is all about building a community of Joyful Mates. Until next time, continue to discover your joy.