» Cover Story
The Cooper Fitness Center and Spa, opened in 2006 at Craig Ranch, north of Dallas, is a 75,000-square-foot health and fitness com- plex blending 40 years of scientific research and award-winning programs from the origi- nal Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas.
Assigned to NASA to develop con-
ditioning programs for astronauts, he produced the famed 1.5 mile and 12- minute-mile tests to measure aero- bic capacity. He also developed the Aerobics Points System, assigning points based on type of movement,
duration and level of exertion to 41 exercises. In 1966, journalist Kevin Brown
interviewed Cooper for an article on his work. It was in this article that the term “aerobics” first appeared. They later decided to collaborate on a book.
town,” says Cooper. In the early years, many doctors saw his work on pre- ventive medicine as a threat to their businesses.
“They were trying to run me out of
22 Fitness Business Canada March/April 2009
Aerobics was published in 1968 and quickly became a bestseller. (To date Cooper has published 19 books in 41 languages with over 30 million cop- ies sold.)
Opposition
The success of Aerobics led to a life
changing decision: Cooper resigned his commission in the Air Force and in 1970 moved his family to Dallas where he established The Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research. “I wanted to bridge the gap between faddism and scientif- ic legitimacy in using exercise in the practice of preventive, diagnostic and
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