Quotes from Richard Simmons

I show them the funny part, the silly part, the laughing part, the crazy part and then the really deep, deep part where I'm talking from my heart to these people. Because I've been through everything they've been through.

Energy is that amazing feeling that comes to life inside of you when you're happy and believe in yourself.

I get an abundance of e-mail every day, some say 'dear Richard, can you call my husband, he weighs 400 pounds...' or 'my 14-year-old is 200 pounds...' or 'I just got divorced, no one wants me, I am 500 pounds.' So I pick up the phone and I call people.

When you're feeling down, sad, lonely, negative, you don't want to take care of yourself - and the weight problem and the diabetic problem and the heart attack and stroke problems and high cholesterol set in.

Ninety percent of people who lose weight gain it back. It's very sad.

I'm not into any show that makes people compete when they lose weight.

But if you pick up every other magazine, it is the peanut butter diet, or the cabbage soup diet, and then you go to the radio and you hear that you can drink some solution and you will lose weight overnight. It just does not work that way!

I used to think that if someone gained their weight back, it was my fault, but all I can do is be God's motivator and try to instill the motivation in others so they do it themselves.

When I lost my weight, I went and bought about 15 different types of underwear to see what would look good on my new body. It's exciting!

When you gather up all the balls of life that you try to juggle, it is a very difficult thing to try to focus in on taking good care of yourself. But that's why God invented me - so I can come and teach and preach and make people laugh and give them some education so they can start liking themselves better.

You have to make your own decisions. That's what the freedom in America is all about.

Some people like to look at pictures of themselves before they lost weight. I don't particularly care for that. Whenever I was overweight, it was a very sad time in my life.

People need the court jester, so I keep that smile on and keep going out there to do what I do.

Energy is that amazing feeling that comes to life inside of you when you're happy and believe in yourself.

The real pride, the real present, is your health and your longevity. My whole career, I have never done anything where competition was involved with weight loss.

We overweight people, we say terrible things to ourselves. Oh, you wouldn't believe it. 'You fat pig. How can you do this? You're a disgusting jerk.' And that gets you nowhere. That gets you right back into a bowl of pasta fregula.

When I go to bed at night, I ask God to give me another day; I ask him to keep me strong and make me a good teacher and to keep spreading this right word.

I just love what I do, and I'm a teacher more than anything.

I have 40 pounds to lose. It is not the fault of the fast food people, and anyone who's trying to sue the fast food places needs a therapist, not an attorney.

When I was growing up, I did not exercise at all. I was raised in the French Quarter in New Orleans. If I saw someone running, I would call the police because I thought they stole something on Royal Street.

Puberty for me was graduating from Thousand Island salad dressing to Caesar salads. It was like going from hot dogs and hamburgers to beef stroganoff, or from ice cream in a cone to creme brulee.

I don't know about you, but every time some joker points me out as I walk through an airport wearing extra-small Dolfin shorts, a tank top and leg warmers, I get a little upset.

After all the throwing up, I would starve myself. Which meant eating lettuce and water for two and a half months. I almost lost my life.

I don't talk about my personal life, and I don't talk about death.