What is Richard Simmons doing now?
—Katie D., Virginia
Simmons, 56, is doing what he has been doing for the past 35 years, dedicating his life to helping people be healthy in mind and body. He spends his mornings answering letters and making calls to "people who had the stomach surgery and it's not working out, people who have gotten divorced and gained 100 pounds, what I've done all my life," says New Orleans-born Simmons, who's had his own TV show and made 25 infomercials and 53 videos. He still teaches at Slimmons, his Beverly Hills, Calif., workout studio, when he's not traveling to schools and colleges, "trying to see how we can get America to work out. We're all so freaked about the diets, whether it's low carb, high carb, the beach, the Mediterranean, up on the roof, down in the basement," he teases. "What it all boils down to is the calories, the fat and if you're working out." He's currently working on his first children's video, another adult video and two walking tapes. "I never ask people to do weird things," he says. "I ask them to like themselves, to eat healthy, watch their portions and move their body. The problem in America is that people don't have a lot of self worth."
