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How lazy is your city? New study ranks 189 communities based on activity levels

Published Sep 20th, 2017 9:01PM EDT
laziest cities
Image: brettlohmeyer

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Did you take a spirited run this morning? How about a brief yoga session or a brisk walk? If you spent the day laying on the couch, binging Netflix and eating puffy Cheetos, that’s fine too, but you’re definitely not helping your city’s exercising ranking. A multi-year poll with over 350,000 participants has resulted in the ultimate ranking of the most active metro areas in the country, as well as the laziest.

The poll, which was conducted by Gallup and Sharecare, paints a rather interesting picture of the United States that might not match up with your preconceived notions of where the healthiest people actually live. For example, would you imagine Colorado has three of the top four most active communities in the US? Or that Anchorage, Alaska, beats out the likes of San Francisco, Austin, and Miami? Feast your eyes on the full list, and see just exactly where your home lands in the rankings:

1. Boulder, CO 69.6 percent

2. Fort Collins, CO 67.9 percent

3. San Luis Obispo–Paso Robles–Arroyo Grande, CA 67.0 percent

4. Greeley, CO 65.3 percent

5. Santa Rosa, CA 62.3 percent

6. Urban Honolulu, HI 61.4 percent

7. Hilton Head Island–Bluffton–Beaufort, SC 61.4 percent

8. Anchorage, AK 61.3 percent

9. Clarksville, TN–KY 61.0 percent

10. Chico, CA 60.9 percent

11. Santa Maria–Santa Barbara, CA 60.7 percent

12. Colorado Springs, CO 60.7 percent

13. San Diego–Carlsbad, CA 60.6 percent

14. Burlington–South Burlington, VT 60.5 percent

15. Bremerton–Silverdale, WA 60.3 percent

16. Barnstable Town, MA 60.1 percent

17. Duluth, MN–WI 58.7 percent

18. Lynchburg, VA 58.6 percent

19. Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO 58.3 percent

20. Boise City–Nampa, ID 58.1 percent

21. Albuquerque, NM 58.1 percent

22. San Francisco–Oakland–Hayward, CA 57.8 percent

23. Portland–Vancouver–Hillsboro, OR–WA 57.7 percent

24. Killeen–Temple, TX 57.7 percent

25. Springfield, MO 57.7 percent

26. Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers, AR–MO 57.6 percent

27. Prescott, AZ 57.5 percent

28. Manchester–Nashua, NH 57.2 percent

29. Savannah, GA 57.2 percent

30. Asheville, NC 57.2 percent

31. Pensacola–Ferry Pass–Brent, FL 57.1 percent

32. Tucson, AZ 57.1 percent

33. Los Angeles–Long Beach–Anaheim, CA 57.1 percent

34. Eugene, OR 57.0 percent

35. Gainesville, FL 56.9 percent

36. Durham–Chapel Hill, NC 56.9 percent

37. Norwich–New London, CT 56.8 percent

38. Santa Cruz–Watsonville, CA 56.8 percent

39. El Paso, TX 56.7 percent

40. McAllen–Edinburg–Mission, TX 56.7 percent

41. Charlottesville, VA 56.7 percent

42. Vallejo–Fairfield, CA 56.6 percent

43. Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade, CA 56.6 percent

44. Stockton–Lodi, CA 56.4 percent

45. Fayetteville, NC 56.4 percent

46. Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue, WA 56.3 percent

47. Lincoln, NE 56.3 percent

48. Naples–Immokalee–Marco Island, FL 56.2 percent

49. Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington, MN–WI 56.2 percent

50. Oxnard–Thousand Oaks–Ventura, CA 56.2 percent

51. Trenton, NJ 56.1 percent

52. Jackson, MS 56.1 percent

53. Reno, NV 56.0 percent

54. Worcester, MA–CT 56.0 percent

55. Spokane–Spokane Valley, WA 56.0 percent

56. Bakersfield, CA 55.9 percent

57. Green Bay, WI 55.9 percent

58. Daphne–Fairhope–Foley, AL 55.9 percent

59. Provo–Orem, UT 55.9 percent

60. Ogden–Clearfield, UT 55.9 percent

61. Lafayette, LA 55.8 percent

62. Olympia, WA 55.7 percent

63. Charleston–North Charleston, SC 55.2 percent

64. Raleigh, NC 55.1 percent

65. San Antonio–New Braunfels, TX 55.0 percent

66. Ann Arbor, MI 54.9 percent

67. Springfield, MA 54.8 percent

68. Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach, FL 54.8 percent

69. York–Hanover, PA 54.5 percent

70. Austin–Round Rock, TX 54.5 percent

71. Riverside–San Bernardino–Ontario, CA 54.4 percent

72. Oklahoma City, OK 54.3 percent

73. Salt Lake City, UT 54.2 percent

74. Binghamton, NY 54.2 percent

75. Portland–South Portland, ME 54.2 percent

76. Cape Coral–Fort Myers, FL 54.1 percent

77. Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington, TX 54.1 percent

78. San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara, CA 54.1 percent

79. Crestview–Fort Walton Beach–Destin, FL 54.1 percent

80. Knoxville, TN 54.0 percent

81. Kansas City, MO–KS 54.0 percent

82. Bridgeport–Stamford–Norwalk, CT 53.9 percent

83. Davenport–Moline–Rock Island, IA–IL 53.9 percent

84. Phoenix–Mesa–Scottsdale, AZ 53.8 percent

85. Columbus, GA–AL 53.7 percent

86. Palm Bay–Melbourne–Titusville, FL 53.6 percent

87. Charlotte–Concord–Gastonia, NC–SC 53.5 percent

88. Kingsport–Bristol–Bristol, TN–VA 53.5 percent

89. Utica–Rome, NY 53.5 percent

90. Salinas, CA 53.5 percent

91. Lake Havasu City–Kingman, AZ 53.4 percent

92. Wilmington, NC 53.4 percent

93. Corpus Christi, TX 53.4 percent

94. Syracuse, NY 53.3 percent

95. Miami–Fort Lauderdale–West Palm Beach, FL 53.3 percent

96. Salem, OR 53.2 percent

97. Mobile, AL 53.1 percent

98. North Port–Sarasota–Bradenton, FL 53.0 percent

99. Madison, WI 53.0 percent

100. Scranton–Wilkes-Barre–Hazleton, PA 53.0 percent

101. Milwaukee–Waukesha–West Allis, WI 53.0 percent

102. Virginia Beach–Norfolk–Newport News, VA–NC 52.9 percent

103. Omaha–Council Bluffs, NE–IA 52.9 percent

104. Boston–Cambridge–Newton, MA–NH 52.9 percent

105. Wichita, KS 52.8 percent

106. Tallahassee, FL 52.6 percent

107. Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC–VA–MD–WV 52.6 percent

108. Kennewick–Richland, WA 52.5 percent

109. New Orleans–Metairie, LA 52.5 percent

110. Chattanooga, TN–GA 52.4 percent

111. Lancaster, PA 52.4 percent

112. Columbia, SC 52.3 percent

113. Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Roswell, GA 52.3 percent

114. Dayton, OH 52.3 percent

115. Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land, TX 52.3 percent

116. Augusta–Richmond County, GA–SC 52.0 percent

117. Memphis, TN–MS–AR 51.9 percent

118. Las Vegas–Henderson–Paradise, NV 51.8 percent

119. Medford, OR 51.8 percent

120. Richmond, VA 51.8 percent

121. Kalamazoo–Portage, MI 51.7 percent

122. Des Moines–West Des Moines, IA 51.7 percent

123. Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater, FL 51.5 percent

124. Columbus, OH 51.5 percent

125. Evansville, IN–KY 51.5 percent

126. Lubbock, TX 51.5 percent

127. Baton Rouge, LA 51.2 percent

128. Little Rock–N Little Rock–Conway, AR 51.2 percent

129. Myrtle Beach–Conway–North Myrtle Beach, SC–NC 51.2 percent

130. Hartford–West Hartford–East Hartford, CT 51.1 percent

131. Pittsburgh, PA 51.1 percent

132. Allentown–Bethlehem–Easton, PA–NJ 51.0 percent

133. Nashville–Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN 51.0 percent

134. Tulsa, OK 50.9 percent

135. Port St. Lucie, FL 50.9 percent

136. Jacksonville, FL 50.9 percent

137. Chicago–Naperville–Elgin, IL–IN–WI 50.9 percent

138. Philadelphia–Camden–Wilmington, PA–NJ–DE–MD 50.9 percent

139. Erie, PA 50.8 percent

140. Lakeland–Winter Haven, FL 50.8 percent

141. Albany–Schenectady–Troy, NY 50.8 percent

142. Shreveport–Bossier City, LA 50.6 percent

143. Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, FL 50.6 percent

144. St. Louis, MO–IL 50.5 percent

145. Lexington–Fayette, KY 50.5 percent

146. Providence–Warwick, RI–MA 50.5 percent

147. Birmingham–Hoover, AL 50.5 percent

148. Fresno, CA 50.3 percent

149. Ocala, FL 50.3 percent

150. Beaumont–Port Arthur, TX 50.1 percent

151. Salisbury, MD–DE percent

152. Greenville–Anderson–Mauldin, SC 50.0 percent

153. Grand Rapids–Wyoming, MI 49.9 percent

154. Detroit–Warren–Dearborn, MI 49.8 percent

155. Winston–Salem, NC 49.6 percent

156. Harrisburg–Carlisle, PA 49.6 percent

157. Modesto, CA 49.6 percent

158. Reading, PA 49.5 percent

159. Topeka, KS 49.4 percent

160. South Bend–Mishawaka, IN–MI 49.3 percent

161. Visalia–Porterville, CA 49.3 percent

162. Indianapolis–Carmel–Anderson, IN 49.2 percent

163. Huntington–Ashland, WV–KY–OH 49.2 percent

164. Baltimore–Columbia–Towson, MD 49.2 percent

165. Cleveland–Elyria, OH 49.2 percent

166. Youngstown–Warren–Boardman, OH–PA 49.1 percent

167. New York–Newark–Jersey City, NY–NJ–PA 49.1 percent

168. Fort Wayne, IN 48.9 percent

169. Greensboro–High Point, NC 48.8 percent

170. Flint, MI 48.8 percent

171. New Haven–Milford, CT 48.7 percent

172. Fort Smith, AR–OK 48.6 percent

173. Peoria, IL 48.6 percent

174. Louisville–Jefferson County, KY–IN 48.3 percent

175. Canton–Massillon, OH 48.0 percent

176. Huntsville, AL 48.0 percent

177. Lansing–East Lansing, MI 47.9 percent

178. Cincinnati, OH–KY–IN 47.8 percent

179. Rochester, NY 47.8 percent

180. Roanoke, VA 47.5 percent

181. Rockford, IL 47.4 percent

182. Gulfport–Biloxi–Pascagoula, MS 47.3 percent

183. Spartanburg, SC 46.6 percent

184. Buffalo–Cheektowaga–Niagara Falls, NY 46.5 percent

185. Toledo, OH 46.5 percent

186. Montgomery, AL 45.7 percent

187. Cedar Rapids, IA 45.6 percent

188. Akron, OH 45.0 percent

189. Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton, NC 41.8 percent

These rankings are based entirely on the frequency of physical exercise among participants living in the area, and was reliant on self-reporting surveys. It’s certainly possible that plenty of people lied about their activity levels, but with over 350,000 data sets, it’s hard to imagine the true numbers being very far off from what we see here.