Meet Oprah’s personal trainer, Bob Greene: they met at a Colorado spa in 1992 and he helped her take control of her life and weight – he’s since become a fitness guru, author and personal friend

Nov 15 , 2024

Who is Oprah’s personal trainer, Bob Greene? Photo: Getty Images

Oprah was at her heaviest weight when she met Greene during a last-ditch attempt to get a handle on her diet; over 30 years, Greene has helped her heal her relationship with food and handle her life

Oprah Winfrey may be famous for hosting memorable interviews with the likes of Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and Tom Cruise, but her struggles with weight – and her relationship with her personal trainer, Bob Greene – have also played a key role in her narrative.

Oprah majored in communications at Tennessee State University and made history by becoming the youngest and first Black female news anchor at Nashville’s WLAC-TV. But moving to Baltimore to become a co-anchor at WJZ-TV proved to be a pivotal moment in her life, too.

TV host and media mogul Oprah Winfrey has been open about her long struggle with her weight. Photo: @oprahsbookclub/Instagram

She faced a range of challenges – particularly in maintaining objectivity – and, to cope, she “ate those emotions, and along with them, just about everything I could buy at the mall food court”, per her website. The issue was compounded when her new role came with “more money than I’d ever imagined” and suddenly, an extended circle of friends and family began asking for a piece of her financial pie. Wanting to help as many people as she could, Oprah rarely declined these requests, but her generosity backfired. Overwhelmed, she turned to food to soothe her nerves.

Over the following years, Oprah struggled with her weight. It wasn’t until 1992 that she reached a breakthrough. At her heaviest, she made a last-ditch effort to gain control over her health by visiting a spa in Colorado. It was here that she met Bob Greene, the man who would change her mindset, become her personal trainer and support her for more than three decades.

Exercise physiologist Bob Greene attends the “Go Active” American Challenge at McDonald’s in 2004, in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Getty Images

Greene was born in 1958 and earned a master’s degree from the University of Arizona. After graduating, he began his career working at a small spa in Colorado, where he met Oprah, his very first client, per The New York Times.

But what else do we know about Bob Greene, the man who helped Oprah Winfrey get a handle on her relationship with food?

Bob Greene healed Oprah’s relationship with food

Oprah Winfrey and her trainer Bob Greene participate in a Mother’s Day Walk at New York’s Central Park. Photo: Getty Images

Greene met Oprah when she visited the Colorado spa where he was working in a last, desperate attempt to control her weight. During their first meeting, she feared he would judge her and assume she was “fat and out of control”, per JustJared. To her surprise, Greene was not judgemental at all. “He really understood,” she recalls.