American Fitness Index 2014: Washington ranked fittest city in US

The Washington D.C. metropolitan area has reclaimed the top spot in an annual ranking of health and community fitness, bumping Minneapolis-St. Paul, last year’s three-peat winner, to second place.

Portland, Denver and San Francisco round out the Top 5 on the 2014 American Fitness Index report, released today.

The authors used the American Fitness Index (AFI) to assess fitness levels in each city. The index pulls data from sources including the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“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,” Walter Thompson, chair of the AFI’s advisory board, said in a statement. “These measures directly affect quality of life in our country’s urban areas.”

Among the report’s findings, the authors discovered that more than 80 percent of Washington, D.C. residents had done some kind of physical activity in the last 30 days, compared to 72 percent of the population in Memphis. Furthermore, fewer than 25 percent of the population of D.C. is obese, compared to 35 percent in Memphis.

The results, they say, are a valuable tool of public health policy.

“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,” Thompson said.

Agencies/Canadajournal