Corey Dee was born in New York City in 1960. He was first introduced to weight training at the age of 13 by his father - actor Billy Dee Williams. He began martial arts training at the age of 12 with instructor Hugh “Van” VanPutten. “Van was like a big brother to me, but at the time I had no idea how much the philosophies he taught me would impact my life.  I just thought learning Hapkido was really cool.“

Corey developed his passion for fitness and health while working at the prestigious Century West Club at the ABC Entertainment Center in Century City, California at the age of 18. He went on to double his father in several movies and TV shows, including Star Wars “Return of the Jedi.”

He began working as a fitness trainer in 1991 and has worked with celebrities such as Jane Fonda, Mykelti Williamson, Ice Cube, and has also trained WNPF world bench press champion Captain Craig Berlette.

In 1995, Corey was diagnosed with a heart arrhythmia - PSVT, and began to suffer from extreme bouts of fatigue. “It was the most difficult period of my life. I had lived with tachycardia since I was 25, but it started to become totally debilitating.” In 1998, he had heart ablation surgery, and credits his level of fitness and life-long dedication to exercise for getting him through difficult times.