Lexington, Kentucky may be best known sprawling, beautiful horse farms, but the city has recently received notoriety for another reason — it’s the most sedentary city in the United States.
According to a new study from Men’s Health Magazine, Lexington is the most exercise-phobic city followed by Indianapolis, Indiana and Jackson Mississippi. Seattle, San Francisco and Oakland, California were ranked among the most physically active.
“What hurt Lexington most was the actual amount of activity, or exercise, people reported engaging in — any physical activity at all, which was relatively low,” said Matt Marion, deputy editor of Men’s Health. “And they did have higher rates of deaths from deep vein thrombosis (DVT) as well.”
Men’s Health included 100 cities in its study, and examined often residents exercise, the number of households that watched 15 hours of cable television a week and bought more than 11 video games a year, and the rate of DVT, a blood clot in a vein, which is often associated with lack of exercise.
“When we crunched the numbers Lexington finished at the bottom,” Marion explained. “In certain cities there is a more laid-back lifestyle. That’s fine, but there is not that same drive you’ll see in certain parts of the northeast or California, or the northwest where people get up every morning and run or hit the gym.”
Check out the complete results in the latest issues of Men’s Health.
Image: dawarwickphotography
