Sports

Mapped: Countries Where People Don’t Exercise Enough

Published

3 weeks ago

April 25, 2025

Pallavi Rao

Graphics/Design:

Anna Diederichs

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

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Mapped: Countries Where People Don’t Exercise Enough

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Key Takeaways

Two-thirds of the UAE isn’t getting enough exercise, the highest rate for any country in this study.
In West and South Asia, around half the population falls short of recommended physical activity levels.
Roughly one in three Americans aren’t hitting the minimum exercise mark.

The World Health Organization recommends 2.5 hours of moderate activity or 1.25 hours of vigorous activity every week.

What counts as moderate and vigorous activity?

A good rule of thumb is checking heart rate and breathing. If you can talk but not sing while doing the activity (walking, hiking), then it’s a moderate level of exercise.

Running and high-intensity sports are in the vigorous zone.

Using the latest data from a study published by The Lancet Global Health in 2024, we map the countries by the share of their population who aren’t meeting minimum exercise requirements.

Ranked: Countries That Don’t Get Enough Exercise

At the very top of the list, two-thirds of UAE’s population isn’t meeting minimum physical activity guidelines. This is the highest rate for any country in the study.

Rank	Country/Territory	% of population with insufficient physical activity
1	🇦🇪 UAE	66%
2	🇰🇼 Kuwait	63%
3	🇨🇺 Cuba	61%
4	🇱🇧 Lebanon	59%
5	🇰🇷 South Korea	58%
6	🇵🇦 Panama	58%
7	🇶🇦 Qatar	54%
8	🇮🇶 Iraq	52%
9	🇵🇹 Portugal	52%
10	🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia	52%
11	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	50%
12	🇮🇳 India	49%
13	🇸🇷 Suriname	49%
14	🇮🇷 Iran	46%
15	🇵🇰 Pakistan	46%
16	🇻🇪 Venezuela	46%
17	🇱🇾 Libya	46%
18	🇵🇭 Philippines	46%
19	🇷🇸 Serbia	45%
20	🇿🇦 South Africa	45%
21	🇯🇵 Japan	45%
22	🇹🇹 Trinidad & Tobago	45%
23	🇹🇷 Türkiye	44%
24	🇧🇧 Barbados	44%
25	🇰🇳 Saint Kitts & Nevis	42%
26	🇵🇷 Puerto Rico	42%
27	🇧🇿 Belize	42%
28	🇴🇲 Oman	41%
29	🇨🇾 Cyprus	41%
30	🇲🇹 Malta	41%
31	🇧🇷 Brazil	40%
32	🇮🇹 Italy	40%
33	🇲🇾 Malaysia	40%
34	🇸🇻 El Salvador	39%
35	🇳🇮 Nicaragua	39%
36	🇧🇭 Bahrain	39%
37	🇯🇲 Jamaica	39%
38	🇦🇷 Argentina	39%
39	🇲🇷 Mauritania	39%
40	🇨🇱 Chile	38%
41	🇦🇬 Antigua & Barbuda	38%
42	🇸🇾 Syria	38%
43	🇧🇸 Bahamas	37%
44	🇨🇦 Canada	37%
45	🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	37%
46	🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	37%
47	🇵🇱 Poland	37%
48	🇬🇹 Guatemala	37%
49	🇭🇳 Honduras	37%
50	🇷🇴 Romania	37%
51	🇵🇾 Paraguay	36%
52	🇬🇩 Grenada	36%
53	🇹🇯 Tajikistan	36%
54	🇳🇷 Nauru	36%
55	🇬🇷 Greece	35%
56	🇬🇾 Guyana	35%
57	🇳🇴 Norway	35%
58	🇵🇪 Peru	35%
59	🇨🇴 Colombia	34%
60	🇪🇬 Egypt	34%
61	🇺🇾 Uruguay	34%
62	🇺🇸 U.S.	34%
63	🇦🇫 Afghanistan	33%
64	🇹🇳 Tunisia	33%
65	🇧🇳 Brunei	33%
66	🇧🇬 Bulgaria	32%
67	🇰🇮 Kiribati	32%
68	🇺🇿 Uzbekistan	32%
69	🇨🇻 Cabo Verde	31%
70	🇹🇴 Tonga	31%
71	🇩🇲 Dominica	31%
72	🇻🇨 Saint Vincent & the Grenadines	31%
73	🇻🇳 Vietnam	30%
74	🇲🇺 Mauritius	30%
75	🇲🇱 Mali	30%
76	🇵🇸 Palestine	30%
77	🇭🇺 Hungary	29%
78	🇫🇲 Micronesia	29%
79	🇾🇪 Yemen	29%
80	🇩🇿 Algeria	29%
81	🇹🇭 Thailand	29%
82	🇭🇷 Croatia	28%
83	🇭🇹 Haiti	28%
84	🇯🇴 Jordan	28%
85	🇰🇿 Kazakhstan	28%
86	🇲🇽 Mexico	28%
87	🇲🇳 Mongolia	28%
88	🇹🇼 Taiwan	27%
89	🇦🇩 Andorra	27%
90	🇰🇵 North Korea	27%
91	🇹🇱 Timor-Leste	27%
92	🇦🇲 Armenia	27%
93	🇮🇱 Israel	27%
94	🇲🇰 North Macedonia	26%
95	🇵🇼 Palau	26%
96	🇮🇸 Iceland	26%
97	🇸🇲 San Marino	26%
98	🇦🇺 Australia	26%
99	🇲🇨 Monaco	26%
100	🇧🇪 Belgium	25%
101	🇨🇰 Cook Islands	25%
102	🇳🇦 Namibia	25%
103	🇲🇻 Maldives	25%
104	🇲🇦 Morocco	25%
105	🇲🇭 Marshall Islands	24%
106	🇹🇻 Tuvalu	24%
107	🇦🇱 Albania	24%
108	🇬🇪 Georgia	24%
109	🇦🇿 Azerbaijan	24%
110	🇨🇳 China	24%
111	🇨🇿 Czechia	23%
112	🇸🇰 Slovakia	23%
113	🇫🇷 France	23%
114	🇸🇬 Singapore	23%
115	🇪🇨 Ecuador	23%
116	🇲🇪 Montenegro	23%
117	🇧🇴 Bolivia	23%
118	🇧🇼 Botswana	22%
119	🇲🇲 Myanmar	22%
120	🇮🇪 Ireland	22%
121	🇪🇸 Spain	22%
122	🇬🇭 Ghana	21%
123	🇬🇲 Gambia	21%
124	🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina	21%
125	🇱🇨 Saint Lucia	21%
126	🇬🇦 Gabon	21%
127	🇸🇨 Seychelles	20%
128	🇧🇩 Bangladesh	20%
129	🇱🇹 Lithuania	20%
130	🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan	20%
131	🇦🇹 Austria	20%
132	🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire	20%
133	🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea	20%
134	🇸🇿 Eswatini	19%
135	🇸🇩 Sudan	19%
136	🇨🇭 Switzerland	19%
137	🇬🇧 UK	19%
138	🇮🇩 Indonesia	19%
139	🇸🇮 Slovenia	19%
140	🇨🇲 Cameroon	19%
141	🇳🇿 New Zealand	19%
142	🇸🇹 São Tomé & Príncipe	18%
143	🇳🇬 Nigeria	18%
144	🇷🇺 Russia	18%
145	🇸🇴 Somalia	18%
146	🇧🇯 Benin	18%
147	🇹🇩 Chad	18%
148	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	18%
149	🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau	18%
150	🇸🇧 Solomon Islands	18%
151	🇦🇴 Angola	17%
152	🇰🇲 Comoros	17%
153	🇩🇯 Djibouti	17%
154	🇧🇫 Burkina Faso	17%
155	🇬🇳 Guinea	17%
156	🇸🇳 Senegal	17%
157	🇨🇫 Central African Republic	17%
158	🇸🇸 South Sudan	16%
159	🇳🇪 Niger	16%
160	🇨🇬 Congo	16%
161	🇪🇪 Estonia	16%
162	🇱🇦 Laos	16%
163	🇫🇯 Fiji	16%
164	🇨🇩 DRC	15%
165	🇹🇬 Togo	15%
166	🇱🇷 Liberia	15%
167	🇱🇻 Latvia	15%
168	🇧🇮 Burundi	14%
169	🇿🇲 Zambia	14%
170	🇧🇾 Belarus	14%
171	🇱🇺 Luxembourg	14%
172	🇲🇬 Madagascar	14%
173	🇼🇸 Samoa	14%
174	🇰🇭 Cambodia	13%
175	🇸🇱 Sierra Leone	13%
176	🇺🇦 Ukraine	13%
177	🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea	13%
178	🇩🇰 Denmark	12%
179	🇹🇲 Turkmenistan	12%
180	🇩🇪 Germany	12%
181	🇪🇷 Eritrea	12%
182	🇲🇩 Moldova	11%
183	🇧🇹 Bhutan	10%
184	🇲🇿 Mozambique	10%
185	🇫🇮 Finland	10%
186	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	9%
187	🇳🇱 Netherlands	9%
188	🇷🇼 Rwanda	9%
189	🇰🇪 Kenya	9%
190	🇸🇪 Sweden	9%
191	🇳🇵 Nepal	8%
192	🇱🇸 Lesotho	8%
193	🇻🇺 Vanuatu	8%
194	🇳🇺 Niue	7%
195	🇺🇬 Uganda	6%
196	🇹🇿 Tanzania	4%
197	🇲🇼 Malawi	3%

Note: Data collected between 2022–2024, via surveys and national statistics programs, published August 2024. Figures are age-standardized, averaged between sexes, and rounded.

In fact, the Middle East and West and South Asia are all swathes of red—indicating about half of the population isn’t exercising enough.

On the other hand, East and Southeast Asian countries are a little better when it comes to physical activity.

Interestingly Japan—known for their longevity—isn’t technically exercising enough by the specified guidelines. However the Japanese are also known for their walkable cities and excellent diet, both points in their favor.

Meanwhile, most people in Europe and Africa meet the requirements. Sub-Saharan Africa in particular is very active, but there are economic reasons at play here as well: a greater share of the population in poorer countries are often employed in subsistence farming or manual labor.