Washingtonians often like to pat themselves on the back for our top-notch exercising habits, but are we really the fittest area in the country?
Not quite, according to a recent Gallup poll that measured how much each state exercises. Vermont came out on top, with 65.3 percent of residents reporting that they exercise for at least 30 minutes three or more days per week.
Since Gallup began tracking Americans’ exercise habits, Vermont has taken the top spot three times, the last being in 2009. This year, Hawaii, Montana, Alaska, and Colorado rounded out the top five.
To be fair, only state residents were polled, so the District was not included in Gallup’s survey. Just half of Maryland’s residents reported exercising 30 minutes three days or more per week. Virginia fared a little better, with 52 percent of residents reporting regular exercise.
Overall, the survey found that fewer Americans exercised regularly in 2013 than in 2012. Gallup noted that colder temperatures in 2013 might have played a role in the national average dip.
And it looks like Vice President Joe Biden’s home state has some work to do in the fitness department. Delaware came out on the bottom of the list, with just 46.5 percent of residents exercising regularly. West Virginia, Alabama, New Jersey, and Rhode Island weren’t far above that.
