Access to Exercise Opportunities measures the percentage of individuals in a county who live reasonably close to a location for physical activity. Locations for physical activity are defined as parks or recreational facilities. Individuals are considered to have adequate access to exercise opportunities if they:

• reside in a census block that is within a half mile of a park, or
• reside in a census block that is within one mile of a recreational facility in an urban area, or
• reside in a census block that is within three miles of a recreational facility in a rural area.

The method for calculating Access to Exercise Opportunities has changed

With the 2018 Annual Data Release, we switched from using North American Information Classification System (NAICS) codes to Standard Industry Classification (SIC) codes due to lack of availability of a nationally reliable and updated data source. 

With the 2022 Annual Data Release, we stopped including the DeLorme map data in the numerator. The ESRI data source included most of these parks and is updated annually. 

With the 2023 Annual Data Release, we switched from using 2010 census blocks and population counts to 2020 census blocks and population counts and used the new 2020 Census Urban Areas to assign urban/rural status to recreational facilities and YMCAs.