American Cities Getting the Most Exercise

March 16, 2017 by Steven M. Peters

Only about one in five adults meet the federal guidelines for both aerobic and strength-focused exercise. Perhaps even more concerning, nearly one in four Americans fail to get any exercise whatsoever outside of work.

In some areas, residents tend to be more physically active than in others. In these cities, residents have greater access to gyms, recreation centers, and parks. Further, people in these cities take advantage of these many opportunities to stay active. To determine the American cities getting the most exercise, 24/7 Wall St. created an index based on two measures — the share of adults in a metro area who are physically active during their leisure time, and the share of the population that has access to areas for physical activities outside of their homes.

Residents of Southern states are typically less active than residents in other regions. Of the 50 American cities getting the most exercise, only three are located in Southern states. At the same time, 41 of the 50 cities getting the least exercise are in the South. Residents of Western states tend to get the most exercise, and cities located in Western states account for 37 of the 50 cities on this list.

Click here to see the cities getting the most exercise.

When there are fewer barriers to being physically active, more people tend to exercise. In Boulder, which ranks first on our list, more than 97.7% of the Colorado city’s population are within a 5-10 minutes commute from a place to exercise, compared to the 84% of adults nationwide. In Boulder, 90.6% of adults spend some of their leisure time being physically active, a larger share than in any other metropolitan area, and well above the national share of 77%. Of the 50 cities with the highest share of physically active adults, 39 have more access to exercise opportunities than the nation.

Ultimately, a city with a lower share of sedentary adults, even if they do not fully meet the federal guidelines for exercise, tend to have better health outcomes. For example, obesity rates in areas with active adults tend to be lower than in areas with less active adults. In 44 of the 50 cities on this list, the obesity rate is lower than the national rate of 27%. In addition, residents tend to feel healthier in the cities that exercise more. The 50 cities getting the least exercise all have a higher share of adults in poor or fair health than the nationwide share of 14%. Meanwhile, the majority of cities on this list have a lower share of adults who report poor or fair health than across the country as a whole.

To determine the cities getting the most exercise, 24/7 Wall St. created an index to rank the 381 metro areas by both the share of adults who are physically active as well as the accessibility to areas of exercise. Both measures come from the 2014 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps, a collaboration between the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. Obesity rates — the share of residents that report a body mass index greater than or equal to 30 — as well as the percentage of adults who report fair or poor health also come from County Health Rankings.

These are the cities exercising the most.

Bremerton, Washington

50. Bremerton-Silverdale, WA
> Physically active adults: 80.9%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 90.3%
> Obesity rate: 29.5%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.9%

[in-text-ad]

Chicago, Illinois

49. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI
> Physically active adults: 79.1%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 96.7%
> Obesity rate: 26.4%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 15.5%

Rochester, Minnesota

48. Rochester, MN
> Physically active adults: 80.4%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 92.1%
> Obesity rate: 25.1%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 9.2%

Iowa City, Iowa

47. Iowa City, IA
> Physically active adults: 82.3%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 86.6%
> Obesity rate: 23.7%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.8%

[in-text-ad-2]

Salem, OR

46. Salem, OR
> Physically active adults: 83.3%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 84.9%
> Obesity rate: 33.4%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 15.1%

Lincoln, Nebraska

45. Lincoln, NE
> Physically active adults: 80.7%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 93.0%
> Obesity rate: 26.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 9.9%

[in-text-ad]

Riverside, California

44. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA
> Physically active adults: 81.5%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 90.6%
> Obesity rate: 27.0%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 19.3%

Lawrence, Kansas

43. Lawrence, KS
> Physically active adults: 81.3%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 91.3%
> Obesity rate: 23.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.4%

Bridgeport, Connecticut

42. Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT
> Physically active adults: 79.7%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 96.8%
> Obesity rate: 20.8%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.8%

[in-text-ad-2]

Salinas, California

41. Salinas, CA
> Physically active adults: 83.2%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 87.2%
> Obesity rate: 23.7%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 19.9%

Barnstable Town, Massachusetts

40. Barnstable Town, MA
> Physically active adults: 82.8%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 88.5%
> Obesity rate: 19.7%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 9.2%

[in-text-ad]

Provo, Utah

39. Provo-Orem, UT
> Physically active adults: 84.7%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 83.9%
> Obesity rate: 23.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.8%

Bellingham, Washington

38. Bellingham, WA
> Physically active adults: 83.7%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 87.0%
> Obesity rate: 23.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 13.7%

Modesto, California

37. Modesto, CA
> Physically active adults: 81.7%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 92.7%
> Obesity rate: 32.4%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 20.2%

[in-text-ad-2]

Olympia, Washington

36. Olympia-Tumwater, WA
> Physically active adults: 82.8%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 89.5%
> Obesity rate: 28.6%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.6%

An aerial view of a Maui beach, Kahului, Hawaii

35. Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI
> Physically active adults: 81.4%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 93.7%
> Obesity rate: 22.4%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.6%

[in-text-ad]

Naples, FL

34. Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL
> Physically active adults: 82.2%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 91.3%
> Obesity rate: 18.8%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 16.4%

Missoula, Montana

33. Missoula, MT
> Physically active adults: 83.0%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 89.1%
> Obesity rate: 21.4%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 13.4%

Downtown Madison, Wisconsin

32. Madison, WI
> Physically active adults: 83.3%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 88.5%
> Obesity rate: 23.9%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.2%

[in-text-ad-2]

Urban Honolulu, Hawaii

31. Urban Honolulu, HI
> Physically active adults: 81.3%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 94.6%
> Obesity rate: 21.9%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.6%

streets of washington dc

30. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV
> Physically active adults: 81.2%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 95.2%
> Obesity rate: 24.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.9%

[in-text-ad]

Ogden, Utah

29. Ogden-Clearfield, UT
> Physically active adults: 82.6%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 91.3%
> Obesity rate: 26.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.6%

Minneapolis, Minnesota

28. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
> Physically active adults: 82.0%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 94.0%
> Obesity rate: 25.4%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 10.1%

Santa Fe, New Mexico

27. Santa Fe, NM
> Physically active adults: 88.0%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 80.6%
> Obesity rate: 13.8%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 15.1%

[in-text-ad-2]

Carquinez Bridge, Vallejo, California

26. Vallejo-Fairfield, CA
> Physically active adults: 81.6%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 96.8%
> Obesity rate: 29.5%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 15.5%

Austin, Texas

25. Austin-Round Rock, TX
> Physically active adults: 82.7%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 93.4%
> Obesity rate: 23.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 15.0%

[in-text-ad]

Reno, Nevada

24. Reno, NV
> Physically active adults: 83.8%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 90.7%
> Obesity rate: 22.2%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 16.3%

Bend-Redmond, Oregon

23. Bend-Redmond, OR
> Physically active adults: 85.4%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 87.1%
> Obesity rate: 23.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.3%

Salt Lake City, Utah

22. Salt Lake City, UT
> Physically active adults: 82.9%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 94.3%
> Obesity rate: 25.4%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.6%

[in-text-ad-2]

San Luis Obispo, California

21. San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA
> Physically active adults: 84.9%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 89.2%
> Obesity rate: 21.8%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 13.1%

Ann Arbor, Michigan

20. Ann Arbor, MI
> Physically active adults: 83.9%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 92.0%
> Obesity rate: 23.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.5%

[in-text-ad]

Carson City, Nevada

19. Carson City, NV
> Physically active adults: 82.6%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 96.4%
> Obesity rate: 24.1%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 18.1%

Eugene, Oregon

18. Eugene, OR
> Physically active adults: 84.5%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 91.1%
> Obesity rate: 27.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 13.1%

Colorado Springs, Colorado

17. Colorado Springs, CO
> Physically active adults: 83.8%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 93.3%
> Obesity rate: 21.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.2%

[in-text-ad-2]

Corvallis, Oregon

16. Corvallis, OR
> Physically active adults: 86.8%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 86.0%
> Obesity rate: 19.7%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 13.0%

Seattle, Washington

15. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
> Physically active adults: 83.1%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 95.5%
> Obesity rate: 25.5%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.8%

[in-text-ad]

Los Angeles, California

14. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
> Physically active adults: 83.1%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 97.8%
> Obesity rate: 20.7%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 18.7%

Oxnard, California

13. Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA
> Physically active adults: 83.3%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 97.8%
> Obesity rate: 20.6%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 14.7%

Sacramento, California

12. Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade, CA
> Physically active adults: 84.0%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 95.9%
> Obesity rate: 24.7%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 14.7%

[in-text-ad-2]

Portland, Oregon's

11. Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA
> Physically active adults: 85.0%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 95.4%
> Obesity rate: 24.7%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.6%

Santa Barbara, California

10. Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
> Physically active adults: 85.3%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 95.6%
> Obesity rate: 19.0%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 16.8%

[in-text-ad]

Napa, California

9. Napa, CA
> Physically active adults: 86.0%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 93.9%
> Obesity rate: 24.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 14.2%

San Diego, California, USA downtown skyline.

8. San Diego-Carlsbad, CA
> Physically active adults: 85.2%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 96.1%
> Obesity rate: 20.2%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 14.3%

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California

7. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
> Physically active adults: 84.7%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 98.2%
> Obesity rate: 19.6%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 11.6%

[in-text-ad-2]

Painted Ladies, San Francisco, California

6. San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA
> Physically active adults: 85.1%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 98.6%
> Obesity rate: 19.5%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.5%

Denver, Colorado

5. Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO
> Physically active adults: 85.6%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 97.9%
> Obesity rate: 19.7%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 12.1%

[in-text-ad]

Santa Rosa, CA

4. Santa Rosa, CA
> Physically active adults: 86.8%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 94.7%
> Obesity rate: 21.6%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 13.3%

Fort Collins, Colorado

3. Fort Collins, CO
> Physically active adults: 87.9%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 92.1%
> Obesity rate: 18.9%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 9.8%

Santa Cruz, California

2. Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA
> Physically active adults: 88.6%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 96.1%
> Obesity rate: 20.6%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 14.3%

[in-text-ad-2]

Colorado University campus, Boulder, Colorado

1. Boulder, CO
> Physically active adults: 90.6%
> Pop. with access to exercise locations: 97.7%
> Obesity rate: 13.3%
> Adults in fair/poor health: 10.1%

Take This Retirement Quiz To Get Matched With A Financial Advisor (Sponsored)

Take the quiz below to get matched with a financial advisor today.

Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests.

Here’s how it works:
1. Answer SmartAsset advisor match quiz
2. Review your pre-screened matches at your leisure. Check out the
advisors’ profiles.
3. Speak with advisors at no cost to you. Have an introductory call on the phone or introduction in person and choose whom to work with in the future

Take the retirement quiz right here.