American Fitness Index

Description of the American Fitness Index and the 2021 ranking of the 100 largest U.S. cities.  Where does Sacramento Rank?

The American Fitness Index evaluates the 100 largest cities in the U.S. using indicators that represent health behaviors, health outcomes, built environment, recreational facilities and policy/funding.

Sacramento ranks #18 overall in the 2021 American Fitness Index, an improvement over the previous year.  Sacramentans ranked #32 in the Personal Health rank and Sacramento ranked #29 in the Community and Environment rank.

SacramentoRevealed.com – All Things Sacramento (from a personal perspective)

Note:  The data utilized in the 2021 American Fitness Index was collected just prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coming in at #1 was Arlington, Virginia – for the fourth consecutive year in a row! Bringing up the rear at #100 was Oklahoma City, OK.

American Fitness Index – California Cities

The overall ranking of California cities:

• #8 Irvine
• #13 San Francisco
• #15 San Diego
• #18 Sacramento
• #20 San Jose
• #32 Santa Ana
• #33 Long Beach
• #34 Chula Vista
• #35 Fremont
• #39 Los Angeles
• #42 Anaheim
• #48 Glendale
• #49 Stockton
• #73 Riverside
• #74 Fresno

Sacramento – Personal Health Rank & Score

Health Behaviors

• 77.8 – % exercising in the previous month (100-city average 75.7)
• 50.9 – % meeting aerobic activity guidelines (50.8 average)
• 17.8  – % meeting aerobic & strength activity guidelines (23.7 average)
• 4.6  – % bicycling or walking to work (4.5 average)
• 3.4 – % using public transportation to work (7.0 average)
• 32.3 – % consuming 2+ fruits/day (31.0 average)
• 14.7 – % consuming 3+ vegetables/day (14.5 average)
• 65.0 – % sleeping 7+ hours/day (64.8 average)
• 10.1 – % smoking (13.8 average)

Health Outcomes

• 52.3 – % in excellent or very good health (100-city average 49.9)
• 34.1 – % with poor physical health in the previous month (36.6 average)
• 36.9 – % with poor mental health in the previous month (39.5 average)
• 26.7 – % with obesity (29.3 average)
• 9.9 – % with asthma (8.8 average)
• 26.8 – % with high blood pressure (30.5 average)
• 1.8 – % with angina or coronary heart disease (3.2 average)
• 3.8 – % with stroke (3.2 average)
• 9.1 – % with diabetes (10.2 average)
• 3.3 – pedestrian fatalities/100,000 residents (2.6 average)

Sacramento Community/Environment Rank & Score

Built Environment

• 58.4 – air quality index (100-city average 64.5)
• 68.1 – bike score (54.1 average)
• 11.9 – with food insecurity (12.2 average)
• 4.4 – parks/10,000 residents (4.0 average)
• 83.0 – % within a 10-minuite walk to a park (70.8 average)
• 45.3 – walk score (48.0 average)

Recreational Facilities

• 1.9 – ball diamonds/10,000 residents (1.7 100-city average)
• 1.6 – basketball hoops/10,000 residents (3.4 average)
• 4.1 – playgrounds/10,000 residents (2.4 average)
• 0.6 – recreational centers/20,000 residents (0.9 average)
• 2.4 – swimming pools/100,000 residents (2.3 average)
• 0.9 – tennis courts/10,000 residents (1.8 average)

Policy & Funding

• 2.0 – local complete streets policy (1.0 100-city average)
• $113 – park expenditure/resident ($102 average)
• 3.0 – physical education requirement (2.8 average)

 To Sum Up

Check out the American Fitness Index Summary Report or the American Fitness Index home page for more information.  I for one will be most interested to check out the next year’s report as it will reflect the COVID-19 pandemic on our collective health and well-being.

See related blog posts: Sacramento #69 on Well-Being Ranking List and  Where Does Sacramento Rank?

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