Richard Simmons, legendary fitness icon, dies at 76

Reminiscing on his birthday, Simmons told People in a recent interview this year that he’s “grateful that I’m here, that I am alive for another day.”

In March, Simmons shared to Facebook that he had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, the most common form of skin cancer.

“There was this strange looking bump under my right eye. I had a tube of neosporin which I (sic) would put on I the morning and the evening….it was still there. It was time to call my dermatologist,” he said of his skin cancer discovery in the post.

Simmons continued, “I sat in his chair and he looked at it through a magnifying mirror. He told me he would have to scrape it and put it under the microscope. Now I am getting a little bit nervous. He comes back about 20 minutes later and says the C word. You have cancer.”

In the Facebook post, Simmons explained that doctors attempted to burn the skin twice to remove the cancer, but some cancerous cells remained. But, he said in another Facebook post, when the doctors performed the procedure for a third time, they were able to successfully remove all the cancer cells.

“The third time was a charm,” he had said.

A day before revealing his skin cancer diagnosis, Simmons raised concerns about his health when he made a Facebook post in which he wrote he was “dying.”

“I have some news to tell you. Please don’t be sad. I am ….dying,” he began the post.

“Oh I can see your faces now. The truth is we all are dying,” he continued. “Every day we live we are getting closer to our death. Why am I telling you this? 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.”

In his post, Simmons reminded followers of the importance of having a healthy diet and exercising, as well as maintaining healthy relationships with loved ones.

“There is something else very important that you must do. Tell the ones that you love that you love them. Hug those people and children who you really care for. A big hug really goes a long way,” he wrote. “If you have time I want you to listen to a terrific song. It is by Tim McGraw it is called Live Like You Were Dying. Live today and don’t forget to pray. Love, Richard.”

Simmons rose to fame by opening gyms nationwide and through his energetic fitness videos released during the 70s and 80s, including “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” and “Party off the Pounds.”