Shopping app ranks Florida low on fitness

Katy Perry proclaimed in song that California girls are “Undeniable, fine, fresh, fierce/We got it on lock.”

Connie Francis rhapsodized on a Fort Lauderdale beach, Where the Boys Are, that she could always find “A smilin' face, a warm embrace, two arms to hold me tenderly.”

If one takes the Retale app’s latest study on America’s Sportiest States seriously, poor Connie’s going to need stronger arms to hold her than she’s going to find in Florida.

Perhaps she might want to join Katy in sunny Cali-for-nia.

The app, which tracks deals and provides shopping tips, ranked the nation’s healthiest states, taking into account residents who meet recommended levels of aerobic activity, Olympic medalists per capita, CrossFit gyms per capita, obesity levels, percentage of high school sports participation, number of miles run per capita, number of Hall of Fame football players, number of commuters who walk or bike to work and, since it’s a retail site, the number of sporting good stores.

According to the Chicago-based Retale, Florida ranked a lowly No. 33 compared to California, which squeezed into the Top 10 in 10th place. The sportiest state? Vermont, followed by Massachusetts, Colorado, Hawaii and Oregon in the Top 5.

Where we fell short?

Commuter bicycling and walking, where we ranked No. 42. Guess Retale’s never been here for Critical Mass.

We were low on Olympic medals per capita, high school sports participation (at just 1.35 percent) and Hall of Fame football players. But we were ranked No. 5 for number of stores with sports products.

If only we were buying them.

This story was originally published April 20, 2015 at 9:28 PM with the headline "Shopping app ranks Florida low on fitness."