Fitness Friday: The Five Integrity Muscles

Fitness isn't purely physical. Fitness is something that relates to connectivity, function, purpose and performance.

My approach to fitness is whole-body conditioning. As humans, we are made up of five parts, which I refer to as our integrity muscles: heart, brain, emotional, physical and spiritual. Each of these five areas works and functions together in a team-like effort producing a synergistic energy.

Our heart is made up of muscle and it normally beats 60-100 times per minute. An exerciser's heart rate may normally drop below 55 beats per minute. Doing only 25 minutes of cardio, three to four times weekly of walking, indoors or outdoors, conditions the heart muscle and significantly improves overall health.

The brain can also be thought of as muscle in relation to use, connectivity, and cognitive function. University of Illinois psychology professor Art Kramer found that older adults who are more fit tend to have better connectivity in specific regions of the brain than their sedentary peers. Aerobic exercise like walking can enhance the connectivity and function of specific brain structures. His study shows that even moderate aerobic exercise also improves the coordination of important brain networks. This is especially beneficial to older adults and the dysfunction that commonly occurs with age.

Emotional well-being is achieved through a positive mindset, life experience, and basic acceptance for all things. Emotional muscle, on the other hand, is perhaps the most difficult muscle to flex because it requires exercising patience together with an ability to respond, face and deal with various challenges and joys as they arise in life. It generally calls upon immediate bolsters of strength and fortitude at times when we may least have it to give.

Physical muscle is the easiest muscle to flex simply by training regularly each week. It starts with a workout plan involving free weights, resistance machines and a goal. Aim to train at least three times a week by doing a full-body workout that covers all major muscle groups: chest, back and legs. Building muscle dramatically changes your body type and bodyfat composition. It also helps to reduce your chance for injury, strengthens your musculoskeletal system and makes you physically stronger to complete daily tasks more easily.

Spiritual muscle is connected to heart, an inner knowing, and an inner wisdom to boot. It develops through a deep, daily discipline that aligns perfectly with the engagement of exercise in offering stress reduction and a sense of peace felt throughout the mind, body, and soul. Exercising your spiritual muscle sometimes involves no movement at all. In fact, sitting quietly in silence or solitude requires more effort alone than moving actually does.

Do a monthly check of your five integrity muscles. It might be a perfect time for a well-deserved tune-up.

Catherine Dickson is a certified personal trainer and wellness coach in Smithtown.