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LONDON — Scientists say they have destroyed the myth that you can be “fat but fit,” with research showing that obese regular exercisers are likely to die before slim unfit people.

Obese people with high levels of aerobic fitness were 30 per cent more likely to die prematurely, compared with those were slim but did little exercise, a study of 1.3 million men found.

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The researchers tracked men for 30 years, before coming to the conclusion that being the right weight is the most important factor for long-term health.

Scientists said the findings demolished the myth that being fit could compensate for obesity.

Unfit normal-weight individuals had a 30-per-cent lower risk of death from any cause than did fit obese individuals

A number of studies have suggested that obese people who were regular exercisers were at no greater risk of a potentially fatal illness than people of normal weight.

The new research, the largest study of its kind, was based on 18-year-old Swedish military conscripts whose aerobic fitness was tested by asking them to cycle until they had to stop due to fatigue. They were then followed by the health researchers into middle age, for an average of 29 years.