Phitness.

What determines someone's level of fitness? How do we decide if someone is fit or not? In my view, it requires a step back first to examine the term 'fit' or 'to be fit'. Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines 'fit' as "to be in harmony or accord".

Can one be physically 'fit' without being mentally 'fit'? Indeed, just as one can be mentally 'fit' without having a high level of physical fitness. It's a complex makeup and believe it or not plays a much larger, more integral part in the overall success of achieving a healthier being than most realize.

PHitness, by my own definition, integrates the key combination of one's overall Personal Health and Personal Happiness (in reference to the 'ph factor' written about below). It's all tied together. How one chooses to incorporate phitness into one's life is generally influenced by the bigger picture of how that person manages other facets of their personal health portfolio and the level of overall happiness ("harmony or accord") experienced.

F. Heylighen writes in his 'evolutionary-cybernetic theory of happiness' that as it relates to health, "life satisfaction tends be larger among those that are in good physical and mental health. Inversely, happy people are much less likely to fall ill and die than unhappy people. This directly reflects the strong correlation between happiness and biological fitness".

I contend that in one's quest to achieve a higher level of sustained, long-term physical phitness and hence, improved overall health, (as we're all told we're deficient in by magazines, tabloids, and big money supplement companies) one mustn't forget a key/critical ingredient in this quest.........happiness. It's worth the effort to discover and maintain your own phitness/happiness equilibrium.