MySpace Hottie of the day - Jillian Michaels

Today, let's meet Jillian Michaels, a personal trainer, fitness coach, author, and television personality from Los Angeles, California. Jillian is mostly known for her role as a personal trainer on the NBC reality TV series The Biggest Loser, in the USA and Australia. She's written two fitness books and is the co-owner of Sky Sport & Spa in Los Angeles, the setting for another reality TV series, Bravo’s Work Out.

Jillian was born on February 18, 1974 in Los Angeles, California. By the time she was an adolescent, she was significantly overweight. As a result of her weight issues, Jillian’s mother decided that her daughter needed to participate in hobbies that were physically invigorating. So Jillian soon began attending martial arts classes. The initial foray into a life that put physical awareness at the forefront was a turning point in her life.

Jillian instantly fell in love with everything that martial arts stood for. Though this admiration is arguably the primary reason she chose a career as a personal trainer, it was not her initial job. She once worked as a motion picture literary agent for ICM, one of the top five talent agencies in Los Angeles.

Nevertheless, her passion to help overweight individuals soon overshadowed any other job. After leaving her job at ICM, Jillian shifted her focus to personal training. Her martial arts background includes heavy training in both Muay Thai and Akarui-Do.

In 2004, Jillian Michaels became one of three weekly personalities on NBC’s The Biggest Loser, along with then-host Caroline Rhea and fellow trainer Bob Harper. The show featured overweight contestants who tried various tasks and diets in an attempt to lose the most weight possible.

She became a bit of a celebrity after her stint on the first season, and she went on to offer her expertise as a guest on daily talk shows like Live with Regis and Kelly.

For two installments of The Biggest Loser, Jillian was the trainer who led the red team. However, after the second season, she was replaced with Kim Lyons, another personal trainer. According to WHO Magazine, Jillian left the show because she was unhappy with the way she was portrayed after the editing process.

“A big part of my issue with the American show is because it’s only an hour a week, Bob and I are only on for five minutes. And the five minutes I’m on, I feel like I’m an archetype and a caricature of who I really am and that’s why I quit.”

Though her stint on the U.S. version ended in 2006, Jillian continued her affiliation with The Biggest Loser franchise as a trainer on the Australian version of the show. Her experience in Australia is something that she seems extremely grateful for. While she claims she was annoyed with the editing process (and thus, her image) on the U.S. show, the Australian version is different.

“With the Australia show I feel like who I really am and what I’m really about actually comes through, for better or for worse. Here, what you see is who I am, that is my truth. What you see is what you get and it’s real.”

Jillian eventually returned to the U.S. verison of the show in 2007.

When not filming her appearances on The Biggest Loser, Jillian still spends her time attempting to help others. She released a fitness DVD, authored two fitness books and is a celebrity advisor to the National Day of Dance for Heart Health, which her homepage describes as “an organization that encourages people to make exercise fun and to laugh, learn and dance to a healthier heart."

In June 2008, she teamed up with eDiets.com, Inc. and created a program in which they distribute meal plans for home delivery (The Jillian Michaels Meal Delivery Plan).

If you would like to know more about this sexy fitness disciple, check out her profile at http://www.myspace.com/jillianmichaels.