There are thousands of people working every day to revolutionize the way people think about health, fitness, and happiness, and every year we recognize those making the biggest impact.
This year's list highlights the power of social media and bloggers, the desire to be strong, body positivity, and a back-to-basics approach to food. You'll also notice a few individuals whose messages or claims have been questioned—and we’ve called that out when necessary.
When trying to determine the most powerful innovators in this space, we looked at several quantifiable factors for each candidate: social reach, research they've contributed to, professional certifications and degrees they've attained, trends they’ve set, products they’ve created, and media coverage, among other things. (You can check out the details on our metrics below the list.) After many discussions (and way too much math), here are the 100 people we determined to be the most influential this year. While we may not always agree with everyone's approach, we can always respect any effort to help make healthy living a little bit easier.
Curious who's making their second (or third) appearance? Click here to check out last year's list.
Photo: Facebook
1. Kayla Itsines
The Fitness Queen of Instagram
Topping our list is Instagram sensation and all-around bikini body badass Kayla Itsines. Founder of the Bikini Body Guides, Istines recently debuted her new app, Sweat With Kayla, which provides weekly coaching tips, quick workouts, and daily menus. Itsines reigns as queen of the largest female fitness community in the world, and if nothing else, her Instagram delivers some seriously fitspirational abs.
Photo: iStock
2. Phil McGraw, Ph.D.
The Tough-Love Talk Show Host
The straight-shooting doctor uses daytime TV as a far-reaching platform to tackle a range of mental health issues, from family and relationships to addiction and bullying. But his expert knowledge goes beyond the brain. Last year, "Dr. Phil," as he's widely known, published The 20/20 Diet, which takes a holistic approach to weight loss, covering mental roadblocks as well as eating and exercise plans. Clearly, people like his tough-love approach: It became the most Googled diet of 2015.
Photo: UFC
3. Ronda Rousey
The Fierce Fighter
MMA's kick-ass queen fought her way to the top last year—at least in terms of public recognition. The super-fit fighter rang in as the most searched athlete (that's right, number one) and the fifth most popular search overall according to Google. Last year she landed both a knockout spread in Sport's Illustrated''s coveted Swimsuit Issue and blockbuster movie roles in Entourage and Furious 7. Girl fights aside, we especially admire her readiness to take on fat shaming and narrow interpretations of body image in Hollywood.
Photo: Sam Livits Photography
4. Cassey Ho
The Internet's Pilates Princess
This YouTube guru didn't stop at creating POP Pilates, her YouTube, blog, DVD, and app sensation. The healthy living blogger-turned-activewear designer continues to expand her reach with a growing library of workout plans and almost too-good-to-be-true recipes. Ho has a remarkable social media presence, sharing her workouts with almost 3 million YouTube subscribers and posting mouth-watering food photos and enviable outfits to an Instagram audience of more than 1 million. This year she took on the haters by taking a stand against online bullies and body-shamers in this post about the "perfect" body.
Photo: Doctor Oz
5. Mehmet Oz, M.D.
The Controversial Media Doc
Dr. Oz is no stranger to the spotlight. With an Emmy-winning TV show, wellness magazine, and millions of Facebook followers, the cardiothoracic surgeon-turned-TV personality reaches a wide audience with his health and wellness recommendations. But even being part of Oprah's #squad hasn't prevented him from coming under fire from the medical community for some questionable conflicts of interest and flawed judgment calls. Despite the flood of criticisms in 2015, Dr. Oz remains on the faculty of Columbia Medical School and still garners excellent patient and peer reviews. His veracity might be debatable at times, but his influence in the health world is not.
Photo: Jeremiah Sullivan
6. Deepak Chopra, M.D.
Alternative Medicine Advocate
Dubbed the meditation maven on last year’s list, Chopra is a guru of mindfulness, spirituality, and alternative medicine. With insights on everything from the all-embracing reality of the universe to the microbiome of your gut, Chopra covers an incredible breadth of holistic health-related topics for outlets like CNN and the New York Times. Last year he released his latest book on spirituality, The 13th Disciple, and celebrated the third year of his global 21-Day Meditation Experience.
Photo: Bill Hayes
7. Marion Nestle, Ph.D., M.P.H.
The Food Politics Professor
The author of several books on food politics and healthy eating is also a professor of nutrition, food studies, sociology and public health at New York University. (Did we mention she also happens to hold a Ph.D. in molecular biology?). This was a banner year for the blogger and thought leader: She took center stage in the debate on "soda politics" and the ethics of corporate funding of food and nutrition research.
Photo: NBC
8. Bob Harper
America's Top Trainer
The CrossFit athlete and favorite Biggest Loser trainer is rising in the ranks. Harper will host the hit reality show's 17th season, adding some competitive new twists (and a heavier emphasis on nutrition). He's got some huge momentum carrying him into his hosting debut: In 2015, the author released his latest book, Skinny Habits: The 6 Secrets of Thin People, and continued to amp up his Black Fire workouts with Daily Burn.
Photo: The White House
9. Michelle Obama
Our Active Lady
With almost 3 million Instagram followers, the First Lady continues to spread her health and fitness gospel to the world. While 2014 was the year of super-viral "Turnip for What?" video, Obama kicked things up a notch in 2015 with "#GimmeFive FLOTUS Style," inviting us into the White House during a personal training session. Seriously, did you see that jump squat?!
Photo: Facebook
10. Mark Hyman, M.D.
The Top Functional Doc
The number one New York Times best-selling author, director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine, founder of the UltraWellness Center and regular contributor to the Today show, Good Morning America, and The Dr. Oz Show, is a busy guy. Still, functional medicine doctor Mark Hyman manages to tackle topics like infertility and acne on his blog. Last year, Forbes called into question his "chemical hypocrisy," revealing that a few of the chemicals he condemns are in products he sells. As the personal health advisor to Bill and Hillary Clinton, his influence continues to grow.
Photo: iStock
11. Oprah Winfrey
The Weight Watchers Media Mogul
With her 30 million Twitter followers and countless other devotees, Oprah has built a huge community for sharing her message of happy, healthy living. Despite providing a platform for several of our health and fitness influencers via O, The Oprah Magazine and the Oprah Winfrey Network, this is Winfrey's influencer debut. This December, the lifestyle guru teamed up with Weight Watchers to launch the Beyond the Scale campaign, which takes the focus off calorie counting in favor of an all-around healthy lifestyle. Now that's something we can get behind.
Photo: Fran Collin
12. Michael Pollan
The "What's for Dinner?" Decider
Pollan is famous for writing about the "places where nature and culture intersect"—whether that's on a plate or in the political arena. The author of The Omnivore's Dilemma (which is now available in a kid-friendly version) is aiming to set the record straight on scary food headlines with his latest endeavor. Premiering at the end of 2015, Pollan's PBS documentary, In Defense of Food, takes him around the globe to investigate cultural culinary habits and articulate his simple food philosophy: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.
Photo: Tone It Up
13. Karena Dawn and Katrina Hodgson
The Girls Turning It Up Online
The besties otherwise known as the Tone It Up girls had a killer year. The super-fit duo make their list debut with a slew of high-profile fitness partnerships, a capsule collection with cool-girl activewear brand Bandier, and more than 30 million views on their YouTube channel under their (tiny-waisted) belts. Between dishing up Instagram-ready recipes, bikini-body DVDs, and even their own line of K+K beauty products, we're not sure they'll have time for anything else in 2016—but we're excited to see!
Photo: Joseph Mercola
14. Joseph Mercola
The Alternative Medicine Evangelist
Google any medical issue, and chances are you'll come up with a host of articles by Joseph Mercola. The alternative medicine evangelist and osteopathic physician has made some major entrepreneurial strides in the past year; however, his line of health supplements—everything from krill oil to vitamin B-12 spray—has been somewhat controversial. Still, the doc (he has a D.O.) continues to churn out thought leadership pieces covering everything from the childhood obesity epidemic to the way cells communicate.
Photo: Jamie Oliver
15. Jamie Oliver
The Celebrity Chef With a Cause
Ever since breaking onto the scene in 1999 as the host of The Naked Chef, Oliver has risen to fame, opened restaurants, and published cookbooks. In 2002, he founded The Jamie Oliver Food Foundation to educate children about food and combat obesity, and last September appeared before the House of Commons to lobby for a tax on sugar in the U.K. His new book, Everyday Super Food, was published in August—and while his business practices have been under scrutiny as of late, we support the message he's trying to spread around the importance of healthy cooking.
Photo: Tara Stiles
16. Tara Stiles
The "Do You" Yogi
The internationally renowned yogi and founder of Strala Yoga in New York City is all about doing what's best for your body. Her Make Your Own Rules Cookbook was released in November and delivers easy plant-based recipes to complement her Make Your Own Rules Diet book, published in 2014. We can't wait to see what the health and fitness pro will come up with in 2016.
Photo: Simon and Schuster
17. Khloé Kardashian
The "Real" Fitness Diva
Love her or hate her, the youngest Kardashian sister had quite the health and fitness year. The author of Strong Looks Better Naked debuted the fruits of her newfound fitness focus on the cover of Complex magazine in 2015 and effectively secured her spot as one of the year's hottest fitness influencers. What we love is that she's not just sharing her hot bod with her 38 million Instagram followers—she's started a serious conversation about using fitness to cope with emotional hardships. But P.S. Be highly skeptical of those waist trainers.
Photo: Rich Roll
18. Rich Roll
The Ultra-Inspiration
The vegan, ultra-endurance athlete gained fitness fame upon the release of his book Finding Ultra—a testament to the importance of willpower. After going from an overweight, sedentary 40-something to one of the world's fittest ultra-marathoners and endurance racers, he's got the first-hand experience to back up the advice he doles out on his blog and crazy-popular podcast (which now has more than 7 million downloads). Last year he shared more of his vegan-fueled secrets with the release of his second book, The Plantpower Way, which goes beyond offering plant-based recipes and taps into the belief that all of us can be better.
Photo: Allan Amato
19. Dave Asprey
The Highly Caffeinated High-Fat Exec
The creator of Bulletproof Coffee, the staple of the Bulletproof Diet, is a favorite among celebs like Shailene Woodley. However, the high-fat, butter-boosted diet, which claims to supercharge your body and upgrade your brain, isn’t so impressive to nutrition experts. Asprey himself seems to be bulletproof when it comes to the critics: This year he released Bulletproof: The Cookbook and opened the first Bulletproof Coffee shop in California.
Photo: David Wolfe
20. David Wolfe
The Raw Environmentalist
A raw foodist, organic farmer, environmentalist, and outdoor adventurer, Wolfe basically embodies the word crunchy. With an intention to make every day "the best day ever," Wolfe's health and wellness teachings are inspirational yet relatable, and he leads frequent retreats to some of the most beautiful locales in the world. Consider him the go-to guy for delicious and healthy smoothie recipes. He's also the spokesperson for our most handy kitchen appliance, the NutriBullet. However, he's caught some heat from science advocates, who scrutinize his preachings and tactics to grow his more than 3 million-strong Facebook following.
Photo: Facebook
21. David Perlmutter, M.D.
The Brain Food Doctor
Making his debut on our list, the neurologist and author of Grain Brain is known for making connections between the things we put into our bodies and the ensuing effects on our brains. Last year, Perlmutter released his latest thoughts on the topic with New York Times best seller Brain Maker: The Power of Gut Microbes to Heal and Protect Your Brain—for Life. But despite his extensive accolades, the gluten-free pioneer has come under fire by some medical advisory groups for dispensing everything from questionable $8,500 brain detoxification treatments to organic foaming hand soaps.
Photo: iStock
22. Gwyneth Paltrow
The Wellness Starlet
The goddess of Goop is no stranger to controversy. Her extreme take on wellness, colon cleanses, and flu remedies has some experts crying fraud. In 2015, she made a particular splash advocating vaginal steaming, which critics were quick to debunk. Still, Paltrow continues to inspire millions of followers on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter and remains a voice in the health and wellness conversation. Adore or loathe her, she's definitely a notable player in the game.
Photo: Food Babe
23. Vani Hari
The Reigning Queen of Controversy
The activist and founder of Food Babe and her healthy-eating empire came under serious fire last year from critics who dub her claims about chemical additives to be based on suspect science. But 2015 wasn't without its Food Babe victories: This fall Starbucks pulled the artificial coloring from the perennial favorite Pumpkin Spice Latte thanks to Hari's lobbying. She also released her first book, The Food Babe Way, last February and has kept up a stream of downloadable clean eating guides and meal plans.
Photo: Mark Bittman
24. Mark Bittman
The Plant-Based Convert
As the lead food columnist for the New York Times, Bittman was able to share his thoughts on the power of food with a massive audience. However, his decision to leave to co-found and serve as Chief Innovation Officer at vegan start-up The Purple Carrot late in the year meant less talking and more doing. Clearly, Bittman puts his money (and veggies) where his mouth is, and his flexible plant-based philosophy is gaining steam by offering an alternative to the typically more restrictive and exclusive vegan lifestyle.
Photo: Fully Raw
25. Kristina Carrillo-Bucaram
The Raw Food Proselytizer
The raw, vegan food blogger was a triple major in kinesiology, specializing in health science, raw foods, and fasting. She's also been competely raw for more than nine years. Girl's got cred. The Fully Raw blogger is a major advocate within the local, organic food movement and also the powerhouse behind FullyRaw juices, which went from simple blog recipes to full-on sister company that delivers the creations right to your door. She's not losing steam heading into 2016—her first book, The Fully Raw Diet, will hit shelves this month. If brightly colored, jaw-dropping raw food dishes are your obsession, follow her on every social media platform.
Photo: Natalie Minh
26. Natalie Jill
The Fit, Super-Relatable Digital Darling
Watching a video of Natalie Jill crushing a HIIT workout can be intimidating. Of course she makes it look easy—she's ripped! But then you learn the story of how she struggled to find helpful resources to get her physical and mental health in check after giving birth and getting divorced, and you realize she totally gets how difficult everyone's health journey is. It's that I-get-you persona, mixed with her super-clickable 15-second videos on Instagram, that makes her a social media fitness queen—and definitely deserving of her massive following.
Photo: Dr. Drew
27. Drew Pinsky, M.D.
The Mental Health M.D.
As mental health finally moves from hush-hush conversations to mainstream America, Pinsky (often referred to as "Dr. Drew") is one of the field's few go-to experts. So it's no surprise that you see the addiction medicine specialist all over your TV. He appears weeknights on Dr. Drew on Call and in the past hosted the show Celebrity Rehab. The latter program won him praise for talking about addiction and recovery in a frank way, but he's also been criticized for encouraging and allowing the typical reality show tropes of petty fights and emotional outbursts to boost ratings. Pinsky made headlines this past year when he opened up about using marijuana and cocaine in college—a subject the doctor had otherwise shied away from.
Photo: Fit Bottomed Girls
28. Jennipher Walters and Erin Whitehead
The Fit-Everything Gurus
The co-founders of wildly popular site Fit Bottomed Girls launched it in 2008 as a way for real women interested in health and fitness to connect and access easy-to-follow fitness advice. From their humble beginnings as a blog, the Fit Bottomed Girls have had a meteoric rise, including sister sites for nutrition and moms, and an insane social presence. Their book The Fit Bottomed Girls Anti-Diet has been praised for its approachable, no-BS tone and convenient 10-minute exercises. Check out their recently created SnapChat for the latest from the duo.
Photo: Facebook
29. Kelly Starrett
The Physical Therapy Godsend
For Starrett, it's not the workout but the prep work that's most important. After founding a CrossFit box in San Francisco and watching numerous athletes injure themselves, the physical therapist and coach realized that virtually all orthopedic injuries are preventable with a basic understanding of body mechanics. Starrett went on to create MobilityWOD and write two best-selling books (with a third on its way). He also teaches movement and mobility courses to elite military troops and NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB players—helping both big-time athletes and people like us eliminate pain, prevent injury, and improve performance.
Photo: Tracy Anderson
30. Tracy Anderson
The A-List Body Sculptor
Tracy Anderson has been sculpting celeb bodies for years—and the tiny trainer remains just as popular with the latest crop of Hollywood darlings. Anderson is kicking the butts of everyone from Lena Dunham to Jennifer Lopez and still manages to find the time to yell at the rest of us mere mortals to "put on our adult diapers and show up for our health." Last year she launched her #TamilyTales newsletter to share the things that inspire her and promote her new livestream workouts. Her legacy doesn't stop there—she's inspired a new class of former Method trainers, like Simone De La Rue and Katia Pryce, who have taken her teachings to studios of their own.
Photo: Ballet Beautiful
31. Mary Helen Bowers
The Ballerina to the Stars
The founder of Ballet Beautiful—a favorite of Victoria Secret Angels Lily Aldridge and Gigi Hadid—Bowers has an otherworldly talent for marrying art and fitness. The former New York City Ballet dancer's methods skyrocketed to popularity after she served as Natalie Portman's Black Swan trainer. And now she's sharing her techniques with the masses via custom workouts, live-streaming classes, and a growing library of books and DVDs. With a budding list of celeb devotees and an Instagram worthy of all your ballet-filled fantasies, Bowers is one to watch.
Photo: The Balanced Blonde
32. Jordan Younger
The Balanced Blogger
The food blogger, formerly known as The Blonde Vegan, sparked a virtual firestorm in June 2014 when she announced her departure from veganism. She described how she'd developed nutritional deficiencies as well as an eating disorder called orthorexia—catapulting the term into the national health conversation. While some followers were incensed (some even sent death threats for "blaming" veganism for her issues), she persevered and re-named her blog The Balanced Blonde. In November 2015, the 25-year-old published a memoir, Breaking Vegan, detailing her journey toward a balanced, happier lifestyle.
Photo: Joy Bauer
33. Joy Bauer
Television Nutritionista
The official nutrition expert for the Today show and nutritionist for the New York City Ballet believes that life is hard enough—food should be easy. The registered dietitian added her own line of gluten-free, dairy-free, GMO-free, vegetarian snacks to her existing empire of books and media contributions. And since its launch in 2014, Nourish Snacks have found a solid niche in an overcrowded food space. Still, this busy mom finds time to whip up quick, nutritious meals from scratch.
Photo: The Food Network
34. Lisa Lillien
No-Longer Hungry Health Guru
A decade ago, Lisa Lillien showed the world that healthy food doesn't have to leave you hungry. Her Hungry Girl brand has grown by leaps and bounds: What started out as a daily newsletter with easy recipes has turned into dozens of cookbooks and a show that airs on the Food Network and Cooking Channel. This year, Lillien released another book, The Hungry Girl Diet, her first-ever meal plan. She continues to evolve with the times—in a few months, she'll be publishing a cookbook focused on clean eating.
Photo: Facebook
35. Rachel Brathen
SUPer Instagram Yogi
Internationally beloved yoga teacher Rachel Brathen's wildly popular Instagram account has more than 1.7M followers, which she touts as the largest yoga account in the world. And now she's a New York Times best-selling author, thanks to the release of her first book, Yoga Girl, in late 2014. In 2015, she was busy co-founding new philanthropic company 109 World, when not teaching stand up paddleboard yoga in Aruba (where she lives).
Photo: Chris Powell
36. Chris Powell
The Life Changer
The personal trainer-turned-Extreme Weight Loss coach is a true transformation specialist, helping his clients with triple-digit weight-loss goals. Along with his co-host, fellow trainer, and wife Heidi Powell, he took his fit marriage secrets to the masses in the most recent season of their hit ABC show by training couples. Whether it's his thoughts on carb cycling or checking your ego, Powell is certainly out to transform the weight-loss game.
Photo: Dr. Axe
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