Denise Austin

Austin as a member of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports

Denise Austin (born February 13, 1957) is an American fitness instructor, author, columnist, and former member of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.^[1]

Early life

Austin was born Denise Katnich in San Pedro, California. She started gymnastics at the age of 12, which led to an athletic scholarship at the University of Arizona.

Personal life

In 1983, Denise married sports attorney Jeff Austin, brother of US Open champion Tracy Austin. Denise and Jeff have two daughters, Kelly (b. 1990) and Katie (b. 1993). The Austin family resides in Alexandria, Virginia.

Fitness career

Austin initially attended the University of Arizona on a gymnastics scholarship, reaching the rank of No. 9 in the NCAA on balance beam. She later transferred to California State University, Long Beach, graduating with a bachelor's degree in physical education, and a minor in exercise physiology.^[1][2][3]

Austin at The Heart Truth Fashion Show, 2008

Since then, she has been teaching classes, producing fitness shows, creating exercise video tapes, and writing books and columns on exercise and staying fit. Examples include Shrink Your Female Fat Zones, Pilates for Every Body, and Eat Carbs, Lose Weight. In 2002, she was named as a member of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, and began her second term in 2006.^[1][4]

Austin is known for her emphasis on staying fit naturally, emphasizing that she herself exercises only about 30 minutes a day and does not skip meals. She also prefers the use of sugar and butter over artificial sweeteners and margarine, though she does emphasize portion control, proper nutrient balance, and exercise. Austin encourages people to stay fit at all ages, and conducts research with experts in nutrition, to emphasize realistic, real-life solutions to weight control and fitness.^[5] Austin supports a balanced program of exercise and proper diet, and encourages people to stay away from fad diets or "crazy claims" for quick fixes.^[6] Her exercise programs often integrate a variety of methods including yoga, pilates, cross training, and aerobic exercise.

Austin had a long-running exercise television program Getting Fit with Denise Austin on ESPN2, reruns of which can currently be seen on ESPN Classic and Altitude Sports and Entertainment. The show moved to weekday mornings on Lifetime Television where it was renamed Fit and Lite and Denise Austin's Daily Workout. Austin produced these shows each fall spending four months on location in resorts in the Caribbean and Arizona. Lifetime canceled the shows in April 2008. Austin said she was developing a new TV show later that year.^[7] It was in the planning stages for 2010.^[8][9] According to The Washington Post, Austin was headed back to Lifetime in January 2011.^[10] She is on the morning program The Balancing Act.^[11][12] Austin before had said on her website that she was getting a new show ready for debut in the fall of 2008,^[13] though the show did not debut. When she was interviewed by Erin Whitehead in 2009, it was reported her new show would be back on in the fall of that year.^[14]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports (2005). "Council Members' Biographies - Denise Austin". President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. http://www.fitness.gov/bio_austin.htm. Retrieved September 7, 2007. 
2. ^ Denise Austin. "Denise's Bio". Denise Austin. http://www.deniseaustin.com/public/about-denise/denise-biography.asp. Retrieved September 7, 2007. 
3. ^ "Denise Austin Bio". http://www.mortgageloancalculating.com/denise.html. Retrieved September 7, 2007. 
4. ^ "Fitness Expert Denise Austin Begins Second Term on President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports". United States Department of Health and Human Services. 2006. Archived from the original on April 2, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070402190011/http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2006pres/20060929a.html. Retrieved September 7, 2007. 
5. ^ Mike Falcon (April 27, 2001). "Fitness guru Denise Austin targets 40s flab". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/spotlight/2001-04-27-austin-forties.htm. Retrieved September 7, 2007. 
6. ^ Mike Falcon and Stephen A. Shoop, M.D. (January 13, 2003). "Denise Austin attacks women's fitness problems". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/spotlighthealth/2003-01-13-austin-fitness_x.htm. Retrieved September 7, 2007. 
7. ^ Amy Brightfield (October 29, 2008). "Make Fitness Fun with Denise Austin". Radio WD. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/HealthyYou/2008/10/29/Make-Fitness-Fun. Retrieved August 19, 2009. 
8. ^ Lori Kozlowski (August 17, 2009). "Denise Austin: Q & A with a fitness guru". Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-deniseaustin17-2009aug17-duplicate,0,5032693,full.story. Retrieved August 19, 2009. 
9. ^ Lori Kozlowski (September 6, 2009). "Fitness fitted to real life? Just ask Denise Austin". Chicago Tribune. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2009-09-06/features/0909030274_1_people-overdo-things-exercise-videos-and-dvds-muscle-tone-and-firm. Retrieved November 6, 2009. 
10. ^ Avis-Thomas Lester (August 16, 2010). "What It Takes: Denise Austin build empire by getting in early on fitness craze". The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/13/AR2010081305329.html. Retrieved September 26, 2010. 
11. ^ O2 Media Inc. (October 4, 2010). "O2 Media Welcomes Denise Austin to Hit TV Show ‘The Balancing Act’ Airing on Lifetime Television". PR Log Press Release. http://www.prlog.org/10974093-o2-media-welcomes-denise-austin-to-hit-tv-show-the-balancing-act-airing-on-lifetime-television.html. Retrieved October 4, 2010. 
12. ^ Nick Sortal (January 1, 2011). "Q&A: Denise Austin talks about new fitness segments she's taping in Pompano: Fitness expert to appear daily on Lifetime Channel.". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/health/fl-hk-denise-austin-010211-20101230,0,425255.story. Retrieved January 8, 2011. 
13. ^ Denise Austin (April 1, 2008). "Denise Austin". DeniseAustin.com. Archived from the original on April 1, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080401033805/http://www.deniseaustin.com/. Retrieved February 20, 2010. 
14. ^ Erin Whitehead (February 25, 2009). "FitStars: Denise Austin". fitbottomedgirls.com. http://fitbottomedgirls.com/2009/02/fitstars-denise-austin/. Retrieved January 8, 2011. 

External links

• Official site
• Denise Austin at the Internet Movie Database
• Denise Austin: Diet and Fitness Coach at AOL Coaches

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Name	Austin, Denise
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Date of birth	February 13, 1957
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Date of death
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