Oklahoma City looks a little sick, unfit

“It's not a surprise,” said Gary Cox, Oklahoma City-County Health Department director. “But of course it's certainly a disappointment that we're 50 out of the 50 largest cities.”

Oklahoma City ranked at the bottom of the American College of Sports Medicine's 2011 American Fitness Index data report. Researchers looked at the 50 most populous metropolitan areas to find the healthiest and fittest places to live. The score of 24.6 out of 100 points is based on healthy lifestyles and physical activity.

Minneapolis-St. Paul pushed out last year's leader, Washington, D.C., with a top score of 77.2. Oklahoma City was 50th last year, too.

Oklahoma is doing something about the consistently poor rankings for both the state and city, according to Judy Duncan, the state Health Department's director of physical activity and nutrition.

State wellness programs just got more than $1 million in funding from the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust to target issues such as fitness and nutrition in 21 counties, for the first in a five-year plan.