The Fittest Cities in America + Me on Yahoo!

Happy Tuesday!

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If you are finding your way here from Yahoo, welcome! You might want to check out my about me, weight loss story or race recaps. (Shameless plug: you might also want to check out my blog consulting services!)

If you are wondering what I’m talking about, go check out this story!

Here’s a handy-dandy little infographic on the fittest cities on Facebook, according to fitness-related mentions, check-ins and use of fitness apps and a guide to how to use Facebook to stay motivated to work out.

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I must say, between he amount of people I always see running, biking and rolllerblading (?) on the river paths and the gyms and fitness studios I see on what seems like every block, it always surprises me when NYC doesn’t make the cut in these kinds of lists. Also, no hating on Livingston (I was born there!), but…really? There are more fitness-related statuses in Livingston than NYC?

Does this list surprise you? Do you live in one of these cities…and if so, do you agree?

31 comments on “The Fittest Cities in America + Me on Yahoo!

  1. Kate

    I was born in Livingston too! St. Barnabas?? Lol but yeah I’m always surprised when NYC doesn’t make the cut considering most people walk everywhere!

    Reply
  2. Becky @ Olives n Wine

    I live in Minneapolis and we are definitely the biking city! I think we were rated one of the top healthiest cities in another survey – it is interesting to see the differences between how the cities are ranked in a variety of surveys.

    Reply
  3. Kristina

    I have major issues with this list – first of all, two cities in Texas (a state that has a serious obesity problem) are listed, yet zero cities in California (well, San Diego which is listed as marathon city – what about surfing? Triathlon, since it is the home of triathlon?)? That is total BS. Plus, it only mentions Colorado Springs, but Boulder doesn’t make the list. Perhaps people in truly “fit” or “athletic” cities don’t need social media in order to pursue their goals.

    Reply
    1. Theodora Post author

      @Kristina: A lot of the list surprised me, too. You’re right though – perhaps in cities where fitness is a bigger part of that city’s culture, people are posting about it less since it’s such second nature to them.

      Reply
  4. Whitney @ Whit Likes Fit

    I live in Portland and do agree that it’s a fit city. However, I was raised in Olympia, WA which is about 30 min south of Tacoma which got #9. Um, there is no way Tacoma deserves to be on that list. I could see Seattle but Tacoma is just ridiculous.

    Reply
  5. Jen @ Jens Best Life

    It also has to be percentage of population, right? So in NYC, where the population is so large, even if we see so many people being active, it doesn’t mean it’s a super high percentage of the population. And in cities, you often have a lot of professionals who compete in triathlons or races on the side. They probably don’t have the time to be that active on social media talking about their training constantly.

    Reply
  6. Rachel

    This list is kind of surprising. I live in Bozeman, MT and it has to be one of the fittest cities. Everyone is so active! We have such great access to climbing, hiking, mountain biking, skiing, snow shoeing, etc.

    Reply
    1. Theodora Post author

      @Rachel: I can’t remember if I’ve commented back to you before – or if I have another reader in Bozeman? – but my dad went to school there!

      Reply
        1. Theodora Post author

          Nope – for wildlife management, weirdly. (Weirdly because he is not a very outdoorsy person any more.) He ended up switching to commerce about halfway through. Minored in skiing 🙂

          Reply
  7. Molly Ever After

    I live in Chicago, and there are ALWAYS people out running or biking or playing beach volleyball, but we’re never on these lists either. It must have something to do with the amount of people living in places like Chicago, NYC, and DC. Maybe we have a smaller percentage of people who are fit?

    Reply
    1. Theodora Post author

      It doesn’t show much about the methodology of the survey, but from how I’m interpreting it, it seems that it’s just based on sheer mentions. Maybe it is because people in all of these cities are already active/fit so they are inclined to mention it less on social media since it’s already so intrinsic to their lifestyles?

      Reply
  8. Blogging4Living

    Im in Vegas and its hard to find locals going out for walks or exercise simply because the city is made for tourists. Of course you will find tons of tourists doing their daily walks along the strip, which is really one of the few places to do anything outdoors.

    Reply
  9. Nicole

    Congrats on the Yahoo feature!
    Madison, WI, tends to make it on fit city lists…lots of bikers, plenty of outdoor areas for exercise, and it’s easy to walk everywhere.

    Reply
  10. Glenn

    What surprises me about the list is that most people associate getting in shape with the warmer weather. Yet, I don’t usually associate warm weather with Minnesota.

    Reply
  11. Claire

    I live in Austin and I think it is a pretty fit city.
    We have a hike and bike trail around the lake, popular pools, and tons of dance and fitness studios, and gyms too.

    Reply
  12. Elle

    I live in lower Alabama, and pretty sure we are the LEAST fit city. We have gyms, but there is not a ton our city does to promote outside physical activity… very few sidewalks and bike lanes. I live in the Bible belt meaning there are tons of churches… but the number of fried chicken places is starting to compete with the amount of churches, so I know we are an unhealthy eating city too! Hoping it will change soon… we just got a pure barre, so maybe more gyms and physical activities will come our way!

    Reply
  13. Charlene

    I live in Albuquerque and came across this interesting article. I was unaware we are one of the fittest cities. This is interesting because I am wondering how they determine this information.

    Reply

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