Jillian Michaels loves the “patriotism and Americana” she found in Wyoming after leaving her hometown. Hometown California.
In June 2021, the 50-year-old fitness guru left Los Angeles with his wife, Deshana Marie Minuto, and their two children, 14-year-old Lukensia and 12-year-old Phoenix, and moved to Miami.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Michaels said he recently partnered with Bill Maher’s media company Club Random Studios to “Keeping It Real” podcast to video She and Minute are rebuilding their home in Wyoming, and the health professional said she and her family plan to spend most of their time there, explaining why she was drawn to the Cowboy State.
“First of all, it’s amazing here. Second of all, I can’t imagine being surrounded by such lovely people,” she says. “They’re so lovely and cool. And there’s just something about the peace of Americana.”
Michaels moved from Los Angeles to Miami and now plans to live in Wyoming. (Getty Images)
Jillian Michaels Explains Why She Left California: “‘Woke Victimology Poker’ Got Too Crazy for Me”
She continued, “I know our country is not perfect. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s a very good place to live. All things considered, there are a lot of flaws. There are a lot of things I would like to change. I think we’ve lost our democracy. I think we’ve become an oligarchy.”
“If I were to list my concerns, they would all be pretty clear,” Michaels added, “but in comparison, I’m so grateful to be here. The fact that I can point out these things shows what a great country we have. And I’m so grateful for all the people who have served, so I can point out the things that are not good about this country.”
“There’s a lot of patriotism and Americana in Wyoming, and I love that. I’m also an outdoorsy person, I love horseback riding and hiking. I love nature.”
VIDEO: Jillian Michaels loves Wyoming’s ‘patriotism and Americana’ after leaving California
But the former “The Biggest Loser” star told Fox News Digital that she and her family will also have a home to retreat to during colder months in Wyoming.
Michaels plans to maintain a home in Miami so he can travel during the colder months. (John Lamparski/Getty Images)
“We love Miami and we plan to keep a little place there,” Michaels said, “especially since we need an escape from the nine-month winter.”
“It’s going to be like Game of Thrones,” she joked. “My neighbor in Wyoming has a dog that looks like Jon Snow’s dog, Ghost, a Northern Inuit dog.”
“I thought there was a wolf in my yard. I called my son and said, ‘Phoenix, there’s a wolf in my yard.’ It was a neighbor’s dog,” Michaels recalled with a laugh.
“So that combination is good for me. I have a lot of winter to get away from the heat, and a little bit of heat to get away from the winter. So it’s kind of the best of both worlds.”
Michaels said another reason he chose to live in Wyoming was because it was close to his hometown of Los Angeles.
Michaels chose Wyoming not only because she enjoys living in nature, but also because it’s closer to Los Angeles than Miami. (Paul Archuleta/Getty Images)
“We love being out west and being close to Los Angeles,” she says. “We still have family there, so we have to go up there every now and then.”
Media personality Michaels has previously spoken out about her reasons for fleeing California. Earlier this summer, Michaels The comments went viral She said on “The Sage Steele Show” that the state had “gotten too crazy for me.”
Jillian Michaels Explains Why She Left California: “‘Woke Victimology Poker’ Got Too Crazy for Me”
“I grew up here. I’m a woman, a gay woman. My mother is Jewish, my father is Arab. I have black children. Believe it or not, my son is half Latino, even though he doesn’t look it,” Michaels said in June. “I’m a million cards in your poker game of victimhood. And when I leave California, you might lose your mind. Just a little! It might go too far, like when you kicked me out of my house.”
Michaels blasted California’s progressive policies, saying they have led to increased crime and exacerbated the state’s homelessness problem.
Michaels explained that he doesn’t see the issue as political, saying some issues affect everyone, no matter what side of the political aisle they’re on. (Manny Caravel/Getty Images)
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Michaels detailed why he doesn’t think the issues with Los Angeles are “political.”
“In other words, I don’t see this as a right- or left-wing issue,” she said. “This should be a nonpartisan issue. Crime affects everyone. Should we be worried about the homeless crisis? It’s not right-wing or left-wing. How do we help these people? Because we can’t just say, ‘Yeah, whatever. Just put a tent on the street and do it.'”
Michaels continued, “I mean, obviously these people have a lot more issues. They have addiction issues, they have mental health issues. I’m not an expert, but I’ve interviewed experts on my podcast and I think there’s clearly a better way. This is not good for homeless people. This is not good for the city.”
“We’ve had laws passed that I absolutely don’t agree with when it comes to protecting children,” she added. “Some are really extreme, like a law that says a 24-year-old man can have sex with a 14-year-old girl and not have to register as a sex offender.”
WATCH: Jillian Michaels explains why LA issues are ‘bipartisan’: ‘Crime affects everyone’
Michaels was referring to California’s SB 145, which eliminated the requirement for adults convicted of certain sexual acts with minors under the age of 10 to register as sex offenders. The bill passed both houses of Congress in 2020 and was signed into law by California Governor Gavin Newsom.
Michaels expressed disappointment with the bill, which was signed into law by California Governor Gavin Newsom. (Daniel Zucnik/Getty Images)
“I tried to forget about it. It’s so upsetting. And it has to do with LGBTQ rights,” Michaels said. “And if a 24-year-old touches my 14-year-old, I just thought, ‘You don’t go after them. I’ll go after them myself.’ That’s what I said to Sage Steele.”
“That’s not a good idea,” she added with a laugh. “That’s a bad idea. Look, I don’t need to become a full-blown vigilante. I’m just looking for a place where the world is more sane, where people live in harmony.”
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Michaels recently partnered with Bill Maher’s Club Random to expand his audio podcast, “Keeping It Real,” into video.
of “Keeping It Real” podcastThe new video format will “further expand the conversation with incredible guests and tackle tough topics that are most important in helping us better understand ourselves and the world around us,” the news release said.
Michaels recently partnered with Bill Maher on the podcast “Keeping It Real.” (Paul Archuleta/Getty Images)
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Michaels explained how the podcast has evolved since it launched in 2011.
“At first it was just audio and it was about fitness and nutrition,” Michaels said of “Keeping It Real.”
She continued, “Then the conversation started to expand. I interviewed different doctors and PhDs.”
Michaels recalled that he decided to team up with Maher to do a video podcast after appearing on the HBO talk show “Real Time with Bill Maher” and then appearing as a guest on the “Club Random with Bill Maher” podcast.
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“We had a heated discussion about a wide range of health topics: drugs, vaccines, pharmaceutical companies, big food lobbyists, and all the things I’ve been talking about behind the scenes with investigative journalists, PhDs and physicians for years,” she said.
Michaels interviews experts on a variety of topics on his podcast. (Face the reality)
Michaels continued, “And Bill basically said, ‘Why is no one saying this?’ And the reality is that there is a degree of medical McCarthyism, with the pharmaceutical cartels attacking doctors as if they have nothing to do with it, some of it being censored on social media, and for a variety of reasons, it’s hard for the truth to come out these days, or we’re not even allowed to have a thoughtful conversation to explore the truth, even if we’re wrong, or the assumptions are wrong.”
After the conversation, Michaels explained that Maher approached her about producing a video format for “Keeping It Real.”
WATCH: Jillian Michaels tackles tough issues with Bill Maher on the video podcast “Keeping It Real”
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“Bill, being a truth seeker himself and very against cancel culture, basically said, ‘I want to weaponize you so that you can have conversations with the people you feel are most qualified and most able to have the conversation in a way that can’t be cancelled,'” she recalled.
“And so our partnership with Bill began,” Michaels says. “It’s been a journey.”
Michaels partnered with Maher after the pair discussed the controversial topic. (Dia Dipaspil/Getty Images)
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Fox News Digital’s Lori Bassian contributed to this report.
