Sunday, I returned from Colorado where I noticed more people riding bikes, more people hiking and walking than they do here in North Carolina. I also noticed that there was a whole let less of the people there than there is of the folks here. Hmm, I wondered. Is there a connection?

Why, yes, it turns out. There is.

It may be no-duh research, but it demands repeating because so many people still, apparently, aren’t making the connection. According to a study of 47 of the largest U.S. cities, all 50 states, and 13 other countries, there is indeed a correlation between the amount of walking and cycling we do and how much we weigh. The study found the highest levels of walking and cycling in Switzerland, the Netherlands and Spain, which also happened to have the sveltest citizens. The most sedentary countries: Australia, Canada and, of course, us — as in the United States.

The study’s lead author, John Pucher, a professor studying transportation issues at Rutgers University, said in a release from the Center for Advancing Health: “As obvious as it is, it’s shocking that Americans don’t want to do anything about it. It’s amazing how unconcerned most Americans are about this.” (The study appears in the October issue of the American Journal of Public Health. Read more about it here.)

Amazing and dangerous in new ways that we’re discovering daily. In addition to the staggering burden on our health care system — dealing with obesity-related issues costs the nation about $147 billion a year — our slovenly habits are weakening our armed forces as increasingly flabby recruits report for duty.

Now, some of you may point to your last family reunion — Aunt Edna in her mumu waddling about making sure everyone has peach cobbler, Uncle Ralph beached on his chaise lounge — and say, “But I’m genetically predisposed!”

Good news for you comes from another study that found that exercise can reduce a person’s genetic predisposition to obesity by 40 percent. Researchers in the epidemiology unit of Cambridge University’s Medical Research Council looked at 20,430 people, the majority of whom had inherited 10 to 13 genetic variants known to increase the risk of obesity (some had more than 15, some fewer than six). Each additional variant increased the risk of obesity by 1.1-fold. However, the risk was 40 percent lower among the more active members of the study. So yes, you may face additional challenges in keeping your weight down if your people tend to be big. But you can battle your genes by going for a walk or taking a spin.

Just ask the folks in Switzerland, the Netherlands and in Spain.

Photo: Move!