President George W. Bush

Bethesda (Maryland), Dec. 12 (Reuters): President George W. Bush was declared to be in ?superior? health after his annual physical exam yesterday but lamented a weight gain he blamed on months of campaign travel.

?Although I think the doctor put out a report that shows me to be physically fit ? I?m still able to get on the stress test ? I?m a little overweight,? he said. ?Therefore, I fully intend to lose some inches off my waistline and pounds off my frame. But other than that, I feel great.?

Bush, 58, said it was clear he had just gone through a campaign after he stepped on the scale during his exam at the National Naval Medical Center in the Washington suburb of Bethesda, Maryland.

?I?ve obviously have gone through a campaign where I probably ate too many doughnuts, if you get my drift,? he said. ?My New Year?s resolution has become apparent by getting on the scales.?

The nearly 6-foot Bush weighs just shy of 91 kg. His weight had crept up from 88 kg at his last physical in August 2003. Although many people often remark on Bush?s fitness, his weight gain gives him a body mass index of 27, putting him in the category of the more than 60 per cent of Americans who are overweight. A body mass index of 25 or above is considered overweight.

But Bush?s blood pressure and pulse were in a very healthy range, in keeping with his fitness habits of working out six times per week.

A team of 10 doctors led by Dr. Richard Tubb, Bush?s personal physician, and Dr. Kenneth Cooper, head of the Cooper Aerobics Center, issued a statement saying they ?find him to be fit for duty and have every reasonable expectation that he will remain fit for duty for the duration of his presidency?.

The doctors described Bush?s health as being in the top fifth percentile for a man his age. Elaborating on the physical exam, White House spokesperson Claire Buchan said, ?They determined that he is in superior health overall for a man his age.?

Bush has an occasional cigar and drinks diet sodas and coffee, the doctors noted.