HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Jillian Michaels (born February 18, 1974) is an American fitness trainer, nutritionist, businesswoman, media personality, and author. She is best known for her appearances on
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
series such as ''
The Biggest Loser ''The Biggest Loser'' is a reality television format which started with the American TV show ''The Biggest Loser (American TV series), The Biggest Loser'' in 2004. The show centers on overweight and Obesity, obese contestants attempting to lose ...
''. She has also made an appearance on the talk show '' The Doctors''. In 2015, she hosted and co-judged a series on Spike titled ''Sweat, INC''. In 2016, her reality television series '' Just Jillian'' premiered on E!.


Early life

Michaels was born in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
on February 18, 1974, the daughter of psychotherapist JoAnn, and lawyer Douglas McKarus. Her mother is
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
and her father is of
Syrian Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...
and Lebanese descent. She was raised in the Tarzana neighborhood of Los Angeles. Michaels was heavy in her youth, using food to comfort herself, which became more pronounced at age 13 when her parents divorced. Her mother enrolled her in martial arts classes to help her deal with stress, the result of which was Jillian focusing on health, wellness and fitness. She attended
California State University, Northridge California State University, Northridge (CSUN or Cal State Northridge), is a public university in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. With a total enrollment of 36,848 students (as of Fall 2024), it has the ...
, supporting herself as a bartender and personal trainer during that time. In 2002, after working briefly as an agent with International Creative Management, she opened the sports medicine facility Sky Sport & Spa in
Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...
.


Career

As a personal trainer, Michaels uses a blend of strength training techniques with her clients including
kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...
,
yoga Yoga (UK: , US: ; 'yoga' ; ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with its own philosophy in ancient India, aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various salvation goals, as pra ...
, Pilates,
plyometrics Plyometrics, also known as jump training or plyos, are exercises in which muscles exert maximum force in short intervals of time, with the goal of increasing power (speed-strength). This training focuses on learning to move from a muscle exten ...
, and
weight training Strength training, also known as weight training or resistance training, is exercise designed to improve physical strength. It is often associated with the lifting of weights. It can also incorporate techniques such as bodyweight exercises ( ...
. Michaels has also developed a continuing education series for trainers with AFAA and holds a nutrition and wellness consultant certificate with the American Fitness Professionals and Associates (AFPA).


Media

Jillian Michaels: The Fitness App is one of the top fitness apps globally and has won awards from both Apple and Google for best of in health and fitness app category. Michaels has also authored 9 books on health and wellness topics with eight ''New York Times'' Best Sellers ''New York Times'' Best Seller list. Since February 2011, Michaels has hosted a weekly
podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...
, ''Keeping It Real'', through
iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...
. In December 2011, the show was among the podcasts honored by Apple in its App Store Rewind 2011, winning in the Best New Audio Podcast category. Michaels recently formed a partnership with Bill Maher's Club Random to expand her audio podcast "Keeping It Real" to video. Also in the same year, Michaelsappeared in a commercial with former racecar driver
Danica Patrick Danica Sue Patrick (; born March 25, 1982) is an American former professional racing driver and model. She is the most successful woman in the history of American open-wheel car racing—her victory in the 2008 Indy Japan 300 is the only win ...
for the internet domain website godaddy.comfor
Super Bowl XLV Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...
. Michaels launched her company Empowered Media LLC in 2008 and released her fitness video membership website called Fitfusion.com. Fitfusion is also associated and broadcasts on AT&T U-verse,
BroadbandTV Corp BBTV is a Canadian media and technology company founded by CEO Shahrzad Rafati in 2005. In 2019, the company was the second-largest video property by unique viewers, according to comScore. Its head office is in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada ...
,
Bell Satellite TV Bell Satellite TV (; formerly known as Bell ExpressVu, Dish Network Canada and ExpressVu Dish Network and not to be confused with Bell's IPTV Bell Fibe TV, Fibe TV service) is the division of BCE Inc. that provides satellite television service a ...
Canada, and other TV channels, as well as
Roku Roku ( ) is a brand of consumer electronics that includes streaming players, smart TVs (and their operating systems), as well as a free TV streaming service. The brand is owned by Roku, Inc., an American company. As of 2024, Roku is the U ...
,
Apple TV Apple TV is a digital media player and a microconsole developed and marketed by Apple. It is a small piece of networking hardware that sends received media data such as video and audio to a TV or external display. Its media services include ...
, and Fitness OnDemand reaching audiences in Marriott,
Hilton Worldwide Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. is an American multinational hospitality company that manages and franchises a broad portfolio of hotels, resorts, and timeshare properties. Founded by Conrad Hilton in May 1919, the company is now led by Chris ...
and Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts.


''The Biggest Loser''

Michaels was a trainer on the
reality series Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...
''
The Biggest Loser ''The Biggest Loser'' is a reality television format which started with the American TV show ''The Biggest Loser (American TV series), The Biggest Loser'' in 2004. The show centers on overweight and Obesity, obese contestants attempting to lose ...
'' when the show started in October 2004. On the show, she assumed the role of Red Team trainer and remained in that capacity for the first two seasons. After her departure in 2006, she was replaced by Kim Lyons. She returned to the show in 2007 as the Black Team trainer competing against Lyons's Red Team and Bob Harper's Blue Team. Along with Harper, Michaels was also a trainer in the Australian version of the show from 2006 to 2008. On December 7, 2010, Michaels announced via
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
that the eleventh season of the show would be her last. Michaels made her last appearance on ''The Biggest Loser'' on May 24, 2011. On September 4, 2012, it was announced that Michaels will return to ''The Biggest Loser'' in Season 14. Michaels also returned for Season 15, which premiered on October 15, 2013, on NBC, but did not return for Season 16 which aired in the fall of 2014.


''Losing It With Jillian''

On June 1, 2010,
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
debuted ''Losing It With Jillian'', a spin-off of ''The Biggest Loser''. In the show, Michaels visits the home and workplaces of family members for a week. ''Losing It With Jillian'' originally ran on NBC in June and July 2010. As of January 2012, all eight episodes of the series are available for viewing online.


Contract with CBS Television Distribution

On May 6, 2011,
CBS Television Distribution CBS Media Ventures, Inc. (formerly CBS Paramount Domestic Television and CBS Television Distribution) is the television broadcast syndication arm of CBS Studios, a division of the CBS Entertainment Group, in turn a division of Paramount Global, ...
announced that Michaels had signed a multi-year deal to become a co-host of the panel-discussion show ''The Doctors'', as well as to serve as a special correspondent on the CTD program '' Dr. Phil''. Michaels had been a guest on ''The Doctors'' several times previously. On the show, Michaels hosted a recurring segment called ''Ask Jillian'', which dealt primarily with nutrition and diet topics. Michaels left ''The Doctors'' in January 2012 after half a season, because, she said, the arrangement "wasn't the fit both the show and I hoped for".


Charity work

Michaels works with a variety of charities including the
UNHCR The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and Humanitarian protection, protect refugees, Internally displaced person, forcibly displaced communities, and Statelessness, s ...
, the NFL's Play 60,
Stand Up to Cancer Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) is a charitable organization that was established as a division of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF). In 2022, SU2C was separately incorporated and was recognized by the IRS as a Section 501(c)(3) public charit ...
, Working Wardrobes, Hope for Haiti, Sow a Seed, and Dress for Success. She also devotes time to animal welfare causes, and helped
PETA People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA; ) is an American animal rights nonprofit organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president. Founded in March 1980 by Newkirk and animal right ...
rescue a racehorse from a slaughterhouse in 2012.


Criticism

The company ''Basic Research LLC'' and Michaels were sued in a class action suit for false advertising when marketing ''Jillian Michaels Maximum Strength Calorie Control,'' which claimed to promote weight loss by only taking two pills before a meal. Basic Research was given the "Most Outrageous" award for
Quackwatch Quackwatch is a United States-based website focused on promoting consumer protection and providing information about health related frauds, myths, fads, fallacies, and misconduct. It primarily targets alternative medicine, questionable health cl ...
's 2010 Slim Chance Awards, which is awarded to "... promoters of weight loss schemes." Michaels was sued multiple times over the diet pills with her name on them. The lawsuits were eventually dismissed.


Personal life

Michaels publicly came out in 2012, but has stated, "Let's just say I believe in healthy love. If I fall in love with a woman, that's awesome. If I fall in love with a man, that's awesome. As long as you fall in love... it's like
organic food Organic food, also known as ecological or biological food, refers to foods and beverages produced using methods that comply with the standards of organic farming. Standards vary worldwide, but organic farming features practices that cycle resou ...
. I only eat healthy food, and I only want healthy love!" She has credited the music video for
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
's 1990 song "
Justify My Love "Justify My Love" is a song released as a single by American singer Madonna. It does not appear on any of her studio albums, but is included on her first greatest hits album, ''The Immaculate Collection'' (1990). The song was written by Lenny ...
" with helping her acknowledge her sexuality. From 2009 to 2018, Michaels was in a relationship with Heidi Rhoades. They adopted a two-year-old daughter from
Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...
in May 2012, while Rhoades gave birth to a son that same month. They became engaged at an unknown date, but announced the end of their relationship in June 2018. In 2018, Michaels began a relationship with fashion designer Deshanna Marie Minuto. They became engaged in November 2021 and married in July 2022.


Political views

In 2016, Michaels labeled President-elect Donald Trump's running mate
Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
"the number one anti-gay politician in the country right now." In 2024, Michaels frequently expressed support for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on his presidential campaign, praising his views on chronic health. In a reversal to her prior comments regarding Trump, Michaels announced she had voted for him in the 2024 presidential election.


Bibliography

* ''Winning by Losing: Drop the Weight, Change Your Life'' (September 2005), William Morrow, * ''Making the Cut: The 30-Day Diet and Fitness Plan for the Strongest, Sexiest You'' (April 2007),
Harmony Books Harmony Books is an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, itself part of publisher Penguin Random House. It was founded by Bruce Harris, a Crown executive, in 1972. The imprint has been used for such books as: * Jill Freedman, ''Circus Days'' ...
, * ''Master Your Metabolism: The 3 Diet Secrets to Naturally Balancing Your Hormones for a Hot and Healthy Body!'' (April 2009), Crown, * ''The Master Your Metabolism Calorie Counter'' (April 2010), Three Rivers Press, * ''The Master Your Metabolism Cookbook'' (April 2010), Harmony Books, * ''Unlimited: How to Build an Exceptional Life'' (April 2011), Harmony Books, * ''Slim for Life: My Insider Secrets to Simple, Fast, and Lasting Weight Loss'' (April 2013), Harmony Books, * ''Yeah Baby!: The Modern Mama's Guide to Mastering Pregnancy, Having a Healthy Baby, and Bouncing Back Better Than Ever'' (November 2016), Rodale Books, * ''The 6 Keys: Unlock Your Genetic Potential for Ageless Strength, Health and Beauty'' (December 2018), Little Brown,


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Michaels, Jillian 1974 births Living people 21st-century American LGBTQ people 21st-century American businesswomen 21st-century American women writers American exercise and fitness writers American exercise instructors American sports businesspeople American talent agents American television talk show hosts American women philanthropists American women podcasters American women television personalities American people of Syrian descent American people of Austrian-Jewish descent California State University, Northridge alumni Diet food advocates Lesbian businesswomen LGBTQ podcasters LGBTQ people from California American LGBTQ broadcasters American LGBTQ businesspeople American lesbian sportswomen American lesbian writers Participants in American reality television series Businesspeople from Los Angeles Philanthropists from California Sportspeople from Los Angeles Writers from Los Angeles Sportspeople of Syrian descent American agnostics