Richard Simmons is 'healthy and happy' after social media posts spark concern

In this June 2, 2006, file photo, Richard Simmons speaks to the audience before the start of a summer salad fashion show at Grand Central Terminal in New York. (AP Photo / Tina Fineberg, File)

Richard Simmons is “very healthy and happy,” according to his spokesman, after social media posts by the fitness celebrity raised concerns about his current health.

I have some news to tell you. Please don’t be sad. I am ….dying. Oh I can see your faces now. The truth is we all are dying. Every day we live we are getting closer to our death.

Why am I telling you this?

— Richard Simmons (@TheWeightSaint) March 18, 2024

“I have some news to tell you. Please don’t be sad. I am …. dying,” Simmons, 75, wrote in posts on Facebook and X on Monday. “The truth is we all are dying. Every day we live we are getting closer to our death.”

“Why am I telling you this?” Simmons continued. “Because I want you to enjoy your life to the fullest every single day. Get up in the morning and look at the sky… count your blessings and enjoy.”

When reached by CNN, Tom Estey, a spokesman for Simmons, clarified that the posts were meant to be motivational in nature and not a personal announcement related to his health.

“I can confirm with one hundred percent certainty that Richard is not dying,” Estey told CNN. “He’s, in fact, very healthy and happy. The sole purpose of the post was meant to be inspirational.”

In the thread of posts on his X page, Simmons writes about healthy eating and encouraged his followers to check out his workout videos available on his YouTube channel.

“A big hug really goes a long way,” he wrote at the end of his post.

Simmons grew a fitness business and became a television regular in the 1980s, with a reputation as a gregarious health advocate.

He has remained out of the public eye in recent years, but the circumstances surrounding his whereabouts and wellbeing has provided a fair share of internet fodder.

On occasion, Simmons will share personal updates on his social media pages, writing in a January Facebook post, “I just try to live a quiet life and be peaceful.”