Richard Simmons

 Jacob Tucker, feature editor

Richard Simmons has helped millions of people around the world lose weight, but he had to help himself before he could help others.

His life began on July 12, 1948 in New Orleans, La.  But he had not always been known to the public as ‘Richard.’

"I started my life out as Milton Simmons," said Simmons. 

Simmons also learned how to gain the attention of people at a very young age.  He developed a strong sense of humor and witty charm as he sold pralines to people from a small street corner within New Orleans.

While growing up, Simmons loved food.  He fit the stereotypical label of the South while at the dinner table.  He continually gorged himself with large helpings of greasy food, and never passed up any dessert.

"I was, and still am, a compulsive eater," said Simmons.  "I ate without knowing what I was doing to myself."

By the end of junior high school, Simmons weighed nearly 200 pounds, and by his senior year of high school, he was carrying 300 pounds on his 5-foot-7 frame.  He was a constant victim of childhood and teenage bullies.

He began to look at himself with disgust.  Simmons wanted to turn his life around, but he began doing it the wrong way. 

"I started on many diets," said Simmons.  "Some of them were pretty weird."

When he did not get the results that he had wanted, Simmons turned to a more drastic approach.  He began taking laxatives.

"When I was on the laxative diet, I took anywhere from 20 to 30 pills a day," said Simmons.  "But, I still did not see the weight come off like it should have."

Simmons then became bulimic.  He would throw up at least five times a day to keep his body from absorbing the fat from the food he was eating. 

"Even with throwing up, I wasn't getting the results that I wanted," said Simmons.  "So, I began starving myself."

After losing 137 pounds, Simmons was admitted to a hospital in critical condition.  A nurse asked him a question that would end up being the revelation that would turn his life around.

"She looked at me and said, 'Do you want to live, or do you wan to die, Mr. Simmons?',"  he recalls,  "That day, I decided to change my life completely."

Simmons began to do a little bit at a time.  He started out by walking a mere five minutes a day, and slowly worked up to where he is now.

"I only did what my body was able to do," said Simmons.

After he lost his weight, Simmons moved to Los Angeles and opened a fitness center cleverly called 'Slimmons' in Beverly Hills.  This center welcomed everyone from those who only wanted to lose a few pounds to the massively obese.  He continues to teach there today, and is continually enrolling new members.

Simmons is also famous for his fitness videos.  He has filmed a total of 50 and has sold more than 20 millions copies.  These videos combine music from the 1950's to today's Top 40 with easy-to-do exercise routines that make losing weight fun.  One of these videos, called "Sit Tight," is designed for people who cannot stand.  Simmons has geared his workouts to everyone, big or small.

Simmons has also written nine books, the most famous being "Never Say Diet," which was on the New York Times Best Seller list. 

"None of my routines require strict supervision on what you eat," says Simmons.  "I just tell you to watch your portions, and exercise well."

In a recent trip to Lubbock on Feb. 18 for the Seventh Annual Health and Beauty Expo, Simmons asked the audience, after a one-hour workout, to break the word diet into separate syllables.  He labeled the first as 'die,' and warned the audience of the now infamous diet pills and schemes on television.

"If you diet, the first thing you’re going to do is die," said Simmons.  "All you have to do is manage yourself well, and the weight will take care of itself."

However, after all of his years as a fitness guru, Simmons still has not overcome his urge to eat huge portions. 

"I have to work out at least one hour and 15 minutes every day to stay at my weight," said Simmons.

Simmons had to halt all of his touring and exercising when Hurricane Katrina slammed into his hometown of New Orleans.

"We lost everything, but we are strong and God will help us through this," said Simmons.

For information on donating to the Hurricane Katrina relief fund or for assistance in shedding a few of those pounds, visit Simmons’ website at www.richardsimmons.com.  You can write him at Richard Simmons, 9306 Civic Center Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210.

"It has been the same address for 30 years, and it's not moving any time soon," said Simmons.