Dr. Kenneth Cooper promotes living better longer by Julie King, MS

How do you go from an overweight 29-year-old to the "Father of Aerobics"? An unexpected epiphany led Kenneth H. Cooper, MD, MPH, to a life-altering change in career course. While water skiing in 1960, he felt like he was having a heart attack. At the hospital, the doctor determined that Dr. Cooper's heart was healthy, but he was out of shape. He had experienced a temporary irregular heartbeat. Poor nutrition and inactivity during his medical studies and residency had pushed Cooper's weight to 204 lbs., a gain of more than 30 lbs. This physical deconditioning was then compounded by pressures related to his military career and new marriage. His critical wake-up call both humbled and motivated the former high-school basketball All-Star and state track champion, and physician. Cooper started running the next day and, in 1962, completed his first Boston Marathon. Over the six months following his health scare, he shed 40 lbs. by exercising and following a healthy diet. His prediabetes and hypertension disappeared, replaced by his firsthand knowledge that exercise was a critical--and largely ignored--part of healthcare. "My experience," Cooper says, "proved how regular exercise could significantly improve your health. I had to share this revelation." Cooper has been on a mission to change the health of Americans ever since.