Richard Simmons , the energetic fitness guru who exuded positivity, has died according to his representative, ABC News reports . He was 76. Simmons had just celebrated his birthday on Friday and had posted a thread about it on X, formerly Twitter.
According to TMZ who first reported the news, the Los Angeles Police Department responded to his home on Saturday morning following a call from his housekeeper. He was reportedly pronounced dead at the scene. No cause of death was given.
Per authorities, there is no foul play suspected and he appears to have died of natural causes. (Reps for Simmons did not immediately return Rolling Stone ’s requests for comment.) Simmons, who became obese during his adolescence, dedicated his life to helping others get healthy.
In the 1970s and Eighties he opened several gyms aimed at those who were looking to gain fitness that were of all shapes (back then, most gyms were geared to those already bulked up and fit). He opened his own exercise studio, The Anatomy Asylum, in Los Angeles (later called Slimmons where he taught classes until 2013), which provided encouragement with an emphasis on the enjoyment of exercise. His popular fitness tapes and DVDs — including his “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” series — featured him in his trademark striped short-shorts and sparkly tank tops providing motivation via his exuberant personality to people of all shapes and sizes.
His celebrity extended beyond working out: He had a recurring role in soap oper.
