Denver residents may not have the parks and open space other cities do, but apparently that doesn’t stop its residents from getting out and active, making them among the fittest people in the nation, according to the American Fitness Index.
Colorado’s capital ranked third in its report of the 45 fittest cities in the nation, scoring 71.6 on its scale. Denver was noted for its lower percent of unemployed population, lower percent of residents with disabilities and a higher percent of folks who are at least moderately physically active. Its challenges are a lower percent of city land area as parkland, fewer acres of parkland per capita and fewer farmers’ markets per capita.
The AFI measures each city’s performance on 30 indicators, including acres of parkland, death rate from cardiovascular disease, number of primary care physicians per capita and the percent of residents who bicycle or walk to work. The metrics were gathered from government and nonprofit organizations.
Topping the list was Washington, D.C. Its residents’ access to farmers’ markets, with 13 markets per 1 million residents compared with the national average of 11, as well as a lower percentage of smokers, diabetics and with 90 percent of its residents having health insurance (the national average is 86 percent) all helped the nation’s capital take the title of fittest.
Detroit, Mich.; Oklahoma City, Okla.; and Birmingham, Ala., performed poorly in the study, struggling in measures such as eating less than five or more fruits and vegetables a day, having a high percentage of residents with heart disease, or having more residents who suffer from poor mental health one or more days a year.
Here are the top five fittest cities in the nation, according to the AFI:
1. Washington, D.C.
2. Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
3. Denver, Colo.
4. Boston, Mass.
5. San Francisco, Calif.
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