Where does your city rank on the fit index?

Ever thought your city was the fittest of them all? Well, community fitness activities and resources, and overall healthy people are just a few of the points taken into consideration to find out which U.S. cities have the best fitness index.

Each year the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) in collaboration with the WellPoint Foundation produces the American Fitness Index™ report entitled the “Health and Community Fitness Status of the 50 Largest Metropolitan Areas.”

In its seventh year, the report compiles information related to a city’s preventive health activities, stats on chronic diseases, along with resources and policies in the community around exercise. Each city is given points based on these criteria out of a 100-point scale. 

At the top of the list is Washington, D.C, followed by Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota; Portland, Oregon; Denver, Colorado; and San Francisco, California. Washington, D.C. ranked at 77.3 with the lowest city on the list, Memphis, Tennessee, coming in at a 24.8. Chicago landed at the fifteenth spot with 56.6 points. 

A team of researchers from the ACSM, the Indiana University School of Family Medicine, and a board of 26 experts in health and physical activity helped analyze the data to compile the listing. In order to provide a methodical, precise overview, the research included information from U.S. Census figures, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, The Trust for the Public Land City Park Facts.

“Health advocates and community leaders have come to expect the arrival of the American Fitness Index as an annual check-up regarding their community’s health and fitness levels,” said the chair of the report’s board, Dr. Walter Thompson, in the ACSM release. “The AFI data report is a snapshot of the state of health in the community and an evaluation of the infrastructure, community assets and policies that encourage healthy and fit lifestyles. These measures directly affect quality of life in our country’s urban areas.” 

So, if you ever want to assess the fitness index for your next move, now you can. See the full ranking of the 50 cities, here.