The 50 Fittest Cities In The United States, Ranked Using The American Fitness Index

The American Fitness Index has just released their 2015 report on the fittest cities in the United States, and the east coast needs to step their game up. Out of the top 10 fittest cities in the US only 2 of the top 10 sit on the east coast, which is simply unacceptable. Shockingly, Washington D.C. came in as the fittest city in the United States (I call shenanigans), followed by Minneapolis at #2, and three California cities round out the top 5 (San Diego, San Francisco, and Sacramento, respectively.

So what exactly is the ACSM index measuring? Here’s what they state on their site: “The AFI data report reflects a composite of community indicators for preventive health behaviors, levels of chronic disease conditions, as well as community supports and policies for physical activity. In addition, demographic and economic diversity are included for each metropolitan area to illustrate the unique attributes of each city.”

As you can see though by clicking around on the full report, some pretty strange measures come in to play. Things such as the number of farmer’s markets, vegetable consumption, and prevalence of dog parks all factor in to the a city’s ‘fit ranking’. So without further ado, here are the top 50 fittest cities in the United States:

1. Washington D.C.
2. Minneapolis, MN
3. San Diego, CA
4. San Francisco, CA
5. Sacramento, CA
6. Denver, CO
7. Portland, OR
8. Seattle, WA
9. Boston, MA
10. San Jose, CA
11. Hartford, CT
12. Salt Late City, UT
13. Raleigh, NC
14. Atlanta, GA
15. Virginia Beach, VA
16. Cincinnati, OH
17. Chicago, IL
18. Richmond, VA
19. Baltimore, MD
20. Austin, TX
21. Pittsburgh, PA
22. Philadelphia, PA
23. Los Angeles, CA
24. New York, NY
25. Cleveland, OH
26. Kansas City, MO
27. Tampa, FL
28. Providence, RI
29. St. Louis, MO
30. Miami, FL
31. Las Vegas, NV
32. Buffalo, NY
33. Milwaukee, WI
34. Riverside, CA
35. Jacksonville, FL
36. Orlando, FL
37. Phoenix, AZ
38. Columbus, OH
39. Houston, TX
40. Detroit, MI
41. Dallas, TX
42. New Orleans, LA
43. Charlotte, NC
44. Birmingham, AL
45. Nashville, TN
46. Louisville, KY
47. San Antonio, TX
48. Oklahoma City, OK
49. Memphis, TN
50. Indianapolis, IN

I have to admit I’m skeptical of any study that features so many Southern and Mid-West cities high on a list of health. Just consider this for a moment: the phrase ‘Northern Fried Chicken’ is in fact an oxymoron, because such a dish does not exist. Sure there’s fried chicken in the North, but it’s just a knockoff of the dish eaten every day across the south.

California is straight up dominating. I guess that’s what you get when you live in a state where you can surf and snowboard in the same day, and drought aside, is also home to most of the nation’s fresh produce.

NYC coming in at #24 on the list. 24.8% of New Yorkers are obese, which I guess isn’t that big of a shock once I stop to think about it, but it’s still a pretty startling stat to see. I had no idea that NYC’s spending almost $200 per resident on city parks, and that’s pretty badass ($189.00).

For in-depth reporting on each state you can check out the full-report by clicking here. If your city was on that list you can find out just what landed them in the slot they are in.