America's Fittest Cities: Gallup Calculates The Nation's Obesity Rate (PHOTOS)


As the health care debate continues to rage, Americans are deluged with stories about the obesity epidemic and its corrosive effects on the nation's health. Now Gallup, in collaboration with Healthways, has determined the fittest (and most obese) metropolitan areas in the country.

Gallup's telephone survey, which was conducted between December 29, 2009 and January 2, 2010, calculated average body mass index based on the heights and weights the respondents provided. The study also recorded information of health habits such as eating, exercise and access to health insurance.

Given the strong national correlation between "having a safe place to exercise" and obesity rate, it's not surprising that four metro areas in Colorado made the top ten.

Check out which cities made Gallup's top ten fittest cities list:

Here's The Skinny: America's Thinnest Cities