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| The King of Fitness
Jack LaLanne turned 93 on September 26, 2007, and that is hard to believe. He doesn’t look it! In public, young people flock to him and older people feel Jack has found the Fountain of Youth.
Jack LaLanne is America’s Number 1 Physical Fitness Expert and Guru, and is often called the “Godfather of Fitness”. Jack admits it was not always this way. “As a kid,” he flatly states, “I was a sugarholic and a junk food junkie! It made me weak and it made me mean. It made me so sick I had boils, pimples and suffered from nearsightedness. Little girls used to beat me up. My mom prayed… the Church prayed.” It was at the age of 15, when he heard pioneer nutritionist Paul Bragg speak at the Oakland City Women’s Club in San Francisco Bay Area, Jack finally realized that he was addicted to sugar. Bragg promised Jack if he would exercise and eat a proper diet he could regain good health. Jack listened attentively and was fiercely determined to walk away from that lecture ready to build a totally new Jack LaLanne.
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He discovered that the Berkeley YMCA had a set of weights and began experimenting with them and before long, Jack was able to attain the muscular, healthy body of his dreams. “I became a voracious reader and I absorbed everything that would help me to improve myself. Gray’s Anatomy was my bible. During college, I studied pre-med to become a medical doctor and I also went to Chiropractic College and graduated; however, I was more interested in helping people by convincing them to take preventative measures, before they became ill.” Resolving to help others find the secrets to health and fitness, LaLanne opened the nation’s first modern health studio in 1936 on the third floor of an old office building in Oakland, California, paying $45 per month for rent. Jack was a mere 21 years old. “I was 40 years ahead of my time,” he said, “but by then I knew more about the workings of the muscles in my body than most doctors. People thought I was a charlatan and a nut,” Jack says, “The doctors were against me – they said that working out with weights would give people heart attacks and they would lose their sex drive. Women would look like men and even varsity coaches predicted that their athletes would get muscle bound and banned them from lifting weights. I had to give these athletes keys so they could come in at night and work out in my gym. Time has proven that what I was doing was scientifically correct; starting with a healthy diet followed by systematic exercise and today everyone knows it. All world class athletes now work out with weights, as do many members of the general public, both male and female.”
Over time, Jack began to formulate a basic approach to physical fitness and nutrition. His methods would be scientifically sound as he developed the first prototypes of exercise equipment presently available in contemporary health spas. His inventions include: the first leg extension machine and thefirst pulley machines using cables and the first weight selectors. He was the first to have women work out with weights and he also encouraged the disabled and elderly to exercise for health. “There are 640 muscles in the human body,” Jack explains, “and I take every one of them into account as I plan each exercise routine.” |
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Jack’s reputation began to spread and by the early 1950’s, he was given the opportunity to utilize the new medium of television to reach even more people. Ever the innovator, Jack used television to reach out to millions of Americans everywhere with his gospel message of get out of your chair, work out and feel better. He was magnetic and the public responded! His motivational message spread across the country like wildfire and his show was an instant nationwide hit! Jack LaLanne believes in daily, vigorous, systematic exercise and proper diet. “My top priority in life is my workout each day.” Jack LaLanne lives by what he says to others, and he has been doing it for over 75 years. Much of what Jack LaLanne has advocated through his teaching and beliefs has become common knowledge today. Today’s doctors and fitness experts all acknowledge daily systematic and proper diet as the principle keys to a longer healthier life.
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Jack’s wife, Elaine, has written four books including Dynastride, Fitness After 50and Fitness After 50 Workout, as well as a juicing book called Total Juicing. Jack has millions of fans all over the world who have followed his philosophy and have benefited from his teachings. Jack’sbook, Revitalize Your Lifeis geared toward improving your looks, health and overall wellbeing.
   
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Today with the advent of video and digital technology, Jack also has tapes and DVD's available that are designed for results. They are:
 The Jack LaLanne Way - a 60 minute high impact aerobic workout.
The Jack LaLanne Show Commemorative Special - contains two-hours of five-day exercises with original shows from the 50's and 60's.
Jack LaLanne's Forever Young: Exercise at Any Age - ten separate exercise segments plus some helpful tips on fitness and nutrition.
Back to Basics: Chair Exercises.
The Fountain of Youth: Hydronastics Exercise Video - water exercise video.
Face-A-Tonics - designed as a workout for the facial and neck muscles. |
| Additionally, Jack has just released two new projects on DVD and CD: The Jack LaLanne Show Collectors Edition Volume One - a DVD containing five complete Jack LaLanne Shows from the early 1960’s. Full Body Audio – a CDwhich is jam-packed with exercises for the entire body with Jack there every step of the way to motivate the listener.
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| Jack also has a fantastic singing voice and has made a record singing with Connie Haines. The Hollywood community recently awarded Jack a Star onthe Hollywood Walk of Fame during his 88th birthday to commemorate his life long achievements.Currently, Jack is recognized around the world for his amazing Jack LaLanne Power Juicer. He makes numerous commercials and infomercials promoting this qualityproduct and also continues to reach people through his television appearances, the videos previously mentioned, and local television spot where he tapes a weekly program of tips for daily healthy living with his wife, Elaine. The show originates from KSBY, an NBC affiliate in San Luis Obispo, CA and is broadcast to many other markets throughout the United States. Jack has recently completed a cookbook named Cooking With Jack - Eat Right andYou Can’t Go Wrong, which will beout in the very near future. He is currently co-authoring a financial planning guide wherein he stresses that “your health account should be as strong as your bank account to live a long and fruitful life.” He also travels together with his wife around the world lecturing and inspiring people to greater heights through exercise and nutrition. When asked about the difference between then and now, Jack laughs and replies with a gleam in his eye, “It is most gratifying for me to see that everything that I was preaching and advocating for over 75 years has come to fruition. Then I was a crackpot and a charlatan, today I am an authority… and believe me I can’t die, it would ruin my image.” |
JACK LA LANNE FEATS
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1954 Age 40: Swam the length of the San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge underwater with 140 pounds of equipment, including two air tanks… an undisputed world record.
1955 Age 41: Swam, handcuffed, from Alcatraz to Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco, CA.
1956 Age 42: Set a world record of 1,033 pushups in 23 minutes on “You Asked for It, a TV Show with Art Baker.
1957 Age 43: Swam the treacherous Golden Gate Channel, towing a 2,500-pound cabin cruiser. This involved fighting the cold, swift ocean currents that made the 1 mile swim a 6 ½ mile test of strength and endurance.
1958 Age 44: Maneuvered a paddleboard 30 miles, 9-½ hours non-stop from Farallon Islands to the San Francisco shore.
1959 Age 45: Completed 1,000 pushups and 1,000 chin-ups in 1 hours and 22 minutes. “Happy” is born and The Jack LaLanne Show goes nationwide
1974 Age 60: Swam from Alcatraz Island to Fisherman’s Wharf, for a second time handcuffed, shackled and towing a 1,000-pound boat.
1975 Age 61: Swam the length of the Golden Gate Bridge, underwater, for a second time handcuffed, shackled and towing a 1,000-pound boat.
1976 Age 62: Commemorating the “Spirit of ‘76”, swam 1 mile in Long Beach Harbor, handcuffed, shackled and towing 13 boats (representing the 13 original colonies) containing 76 people.
1979 Age 65: Towed 65 boats filled with 6,500-pounds of Lousiana Pacific wood pulp while handcuffed and shackled in Lake Ashinoko, near Tokyo, Japan.
1980 Age 66: Towed 10 boats in North Miami, Florida filled with 77 people for over a mile in less than 1 hour.
1984 Age 70: Handcuffed, shackled and fighting strong winds and currents, towed 70 boats with 70 people from the Queen’s Way Bridge in the Long Beach Harbor to the Queen Mary, 1 ½ miles.
1992 Age 78: Academy of Body Building and Fitness Award
1994 Age 80: State of California Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness Lifetime Achievement Award
1996 Age 82: Dwight D. Eisenhower Fitness Award
1999 Age 85: Spirit of Muscle Beach Award
2002 Age 88: Jack receives his very own star on the Hollywood Blvd. Walk of Fame
2004 Age 90: Jack celebrates his birthday with a major media blitz in New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. ESPN Classic runs a 24 Hour marathon of the original Jack LaLanne Shows
2005 Age 91: Received the Jack Webb Award from the Los Angeles Police Historical Society, the Arnold Classic Lifetime Achievement Award, Interglobal’s International Infomercial Award, the Freddie, Medical Media Public Service Award, and he was a Free Spirit honoree at Al Neuharth’s Freedom Fourm.
Jack LaLanne’s Birthdate is September 26, 1914
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JACK LA LANNE - PUBLIC SPEAKER |
| As a public speaker, Jack LaLanne is always in demand because of his superior communication and motivational skills. He casts a spell over people of all ages, from adoring school children to older adults.
Here’s what “Runner’s World” had to say about Jack LaLanne, the platform personality. “As a guest speaker at the Runner’s World Health and Fitness Show, a part of National Running Week in January, Jack LaLanne simply stole the show. Every pair of eyes in the lecture hall was riveted on the whirling, strutting, pontificating figure on the stage. Half-evangelically, half-scientifically, LaLanne orated as smoothly as Billy Graham…hands on hips, feet spread shoulder wide, LaLanne’s voice rose and fell, paused and chattered and brought the crowd under his spell of fitness fervor. After his address, he was besieged by people with health problems, making Jack LaLanne the ‘Dear Abby’ of the fitness set. His gusto for life is transcending, his enthusiasm infections, his charm delivered in megadoses…”
The “Los Angeles Times” says, “LaLanne got his spoken word across lightning fast, packs more punch in one paragraph than a boxing champ in 15 rounds.” |
The following are just a few of the lecture titles given by Jack LaLanne:
Anything in Life is Possible … Make it Happen!
From Fat to Fit - A Minor Adjustment
Don't Let Your Next Meal Go to Waist
No Pain, No Gain - Take it From LaLanne, There's Time to Refrain |
JACK LA LANNE - "LA LANNEISMS"
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| Jack LaLanne fervently believes every human being can attain maximum body health and fitness if they will practice moderation, eat the most natural foods, and exercise on a regular basis. Over the years on national television, radio talk shows and in feature stories written about Jack, certain ideas stated by Jack have become little gems known as “LaLanneisms” |
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Here are a few of Jack's words of wisdom:
Anything in life is possible and you can make it happen.
Your waistline is your lifeline.
Exercise is King, nutrition is Queen, put them together and you've got a kingdom.
Don't exceed the feed limit.
The food you eat today is walking and talking tomorrow.
Ten seconds on the lips and a lifetime on the hips.
Better to wear out than rust out.
Do - don't stew.
People don't die of old age, they die of inactivity.
First we inspire them, then we perspire them.
You eat everyday, you sleep everyday, and your body was made to exercise everyday.
Work at living and you don't have to die tomorrow.
I can't die, it would ruin my image.
If man makes it, don't eat it.
If it tastes good, spit it out.
What's it doing for me?
Your health account is like your bank account: The more you put in, the more you can take out.
If one apple is good, you wouldn't eat 100.
It's not what you do some of the time that counts, it's what you do all of the time that counts.
Make haste slowly.
Eat right and you can't go wrong. |
JACK LA LANNE "FIRSTS"
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Opened the first modern health spa
The first to have a nationally syndicated exercise show on television
The first to have athletes working out with weights
The first to have women working out with weights
The first to have the elderly working out with weights
The first to have a combination Health Food Bar and Gym
The first to have a weight loss Instant Breakfast meal replacement drink
The first to have a Coed health club
The first to combine weight training with nutrition
The first to have an edible snack nutrition bar
The first to sell vitamins and exercise equipment on television
The first to teach scientific body building by changing the program every 2 to 3 weeks
The first to encourage the physically challenged to exercise… to work around their disabilities
The first to do feats of strength and endurance to emphasize what exercise and nutrition can do for you
DEVELOPED THE FIRST:
Leg Extension Machine
Weight selector machine
Cable/Pulley machines
Calf machines
Wrist roll machines |
JACK LALANNE
Creator of Exercise for Fifty Years
Since the mid 1930’s, Jack LaLanne has been developing various types of exercise routines. Many of the exercise movements used as standard ways to improve physical fitness were created by America’s number one physical fitness authority, Jack LaLanne. |
The following is a list of some of Jack’s exercises:
The Exterminator – helps firm up the entire body
The Fighter – a punching exercise
Stretchnastics – LaLanne stretching moves
Fannie Firmer – helps firm buttocks
Jumping Jacks – cardiovascular warm-up
Backwards Leg Extensions – single leg tucks and extensions
Posture Improver – pretend to try and crack a walnut between your buttocks
Rockette Kicker – overhead kicks
Get up and Get down – lie on the floor, get up, lie down, and repeat several times
Lower Body Firmer – leg scissors, lying on your side
Towel Breaker – series of exercises using a towel
Broom Stick – series of exercises using a broomstick
Chair – LaLanne chair routines, made famous by Jack on TV |
Others are the Pincher, the Killer, the Face Saver, the Eradicator, the Rotator, the Lifter, the Eraser, the Fat Burner, the Gut Buster, the Waist Away, the Gooser, and the TensionFighter, just to name a few. |
JACK LALANNE
National Recognitions
Jack LaLanne, America’s foremost physical fitness instructor, has been honored by many organizations throughout the country and has received many awards, just to name a few: |
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Founding member of President’s Council on Physical Fitness under President Kennedy
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President’s Council of Physical Fitness Silver Anniversary Award
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2007 President’s Council on Physical Fitness Lifetime Achievement Award
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Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness Lifetime Achievement Award
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The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans
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American Academy of Achievement
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American Cancer Society
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American Heart Association
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American Medical Association
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WBBG Pioneer of Fitness Hall of Fame
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APFC Pioneer of Fitness Hall of Fame
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Patriarch Society of Chiropractors
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NFLA – Healthy American Fitness Award
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Received an Award from the Oscar Heidenstam Foundation Hall of Fame
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Received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
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Received National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
Gold Circle Award commemorating over 50 years in the Television Industry
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IHRSA Person of the Year Award
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Arnold Schwarzenegger’s The Arnold Lifetime Achievement Award
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Jack Webb Award from the Los Angeles Police Historical Society
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Interglobal’s International Infomercial Award
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The Freddie, Medical Media Public Service Award
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Freedom Forum Al Neuharth Free Spirit Honoree
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| JACK LALANNE
Author
In addition to the hundreds of television broadcasts since 1952, Jack LaLanne has also written many books, among them are the following: |
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Also, several vintage “self help” pamphlets are available.
How to Reduce Your Waist
Help For Your Hips and Thighs
Your Figure
Meat Makes the Meal
My Daily Dozen (For Children)
Mothers-To-Be
Set-O-Matic: Exercises for Men
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