Fittest city in India
With over 1500 men (54 per cent) and women (46 per cent) surveyed across top 8 cities, all were between 20-35 years of age and engaged in at least one fitness activity per week. Among all cities surveyed, Pune scores the highest in FitScore, 7.65, (which is a combination of how fit people in the city feel, number of hours devoted to fitness each week, frequency of working out and number of fitness activities participated in), followed by Chandigarh that scores a close 7.35 on the fitness meter.
Most Unfit cities
While Chandigarh was in news last year for being the diabetes capital of India, this year, the younger generation of the city is moving fast towards adopting a healthier lifestyle. Not only does the city have the maximum number of running enthusiasts and yoga practitioners, they are doing their tad bit by spending maximum on the right fitness gear (52% spend over INR 8000/- a year on fitness related apparel and shoes).
While North India rocked the fitness report, South Indian cities like Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Chennai score the lowest in the FitScore index.
Tapping the fitness pulse of Indians, the Fit India survey decodes interesting findings ranging from fitness activities pursued, sources of fitness knowledge, purchasing habits and more.
Over 60 per cent of the respondents spend more than four hours in a week on fitness, giving up a complacent and lackadaisical attitude towards health and fitness. Running is the most popular fitness activity across Indian cities. The popularity of the activity is driven by limited investment in equipment, and how it can be combined easily with other activities. There is active participation in the marathons by Indians with 56 per cent of the respondents having participated in one marathon every two years.
This is followed by Yoga, with nearly 70 per cent respondents from each city covered in the survey practicing the same, to reduce stress or anxiety. Apart from conventional fitness activities, people are being exposed to newer forms of training like CrossFit, Mixed Martial Arts, Kickboxing and Combat Training. Respondents who practice strength workouts are more evolved fitness enthusiasts.
Strength workouts in India have been able to gain popularity even among the female population with nearly 41 per cent practicing such activities. Most women practice strength workouts with the objective of improving fitness and building self-confidence.