As Gov. Christie reconsidered a presidential bid that would have pitted him against a trim President Obama, some wondered if he would be physically up to the task of leading the country. Gary Foster, director of Temple's Center for Obesity Research and Education, says that although the average obese person has more medical conditions than others, the argument that all obese people are in poor health — and therefore more likely to die while in office if serving as president — is not true. "There are many overweight people who are physically fit, who are healthy, who don't have metabolic complications," Foster said.