Jim Morris – Complete Profile: Height, Workout And Diet

Jim Morris was a professional bodybuilder from Brooklyn, New York. He primarily competed in the 1960s and 1970s era of bodybuilding and is best known for being the first African-origin and homosexual competitor to win the Mr. America title.

Morris stayed in good shape into his 70s, creating a positive example for many young bodybuilders and people from all walks of life. This is his complete profile, biography, workout routine as well as diet.

Jim Morris

Born: August 31, 1935

Died: January 28, 2016

Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York City, USA

Residence: Venice, California, USA

Height: 5′ 10″ (178 cm)

Competition Weight: 215 lbs (97 kg)

Arms: 18,5″ (47 cm)

Chest: 54″ (137 cm)

Waist: 34″ (86 cm)

Thighs: 24″ (61 cm)

Calves: 16″ (41 cm)

Jim Morris Biography

Early Life

Jim Morris was born in Brooklyn, New York on August 31, 1935. He started weight training as a teenager and built a significant muscle mass in a relatively short time. People around him were curious about his training methods and approached him to guide them in their pursuit of fitness goals.

Morris started helping people achieve their goals while training intensely to make sure that he could progress as well. Over time, Morris became a well sought-after fitness expert and he started customizing training plans for individual clients.

Eventually, Jim Morris started his Olympic weightlifting team that did well in the state-level competitions. Having gained experience and confidence with different endeavors in the fitness industry, Morris felt confident about taking his career in this field seriously.

But besides fitness and bodybuilding, Morris worked for a while in the US Air Force and also worked as a fireman for the New York City Fire Department. The working hours of this job and the physical fitness requirements enabled Morris to dedicate time to bodybuilding.

He continued to make progress and his career in the sport started taking off.

Early Bodybuilding Career

Although Jim Morris made his bodybuilding debut with a third-place finish at the 1959 AAU Mr. New York Metropolitan, he did not compete for the next eight years for various reasons. However, he re-entered the bodybuilding scene with a bang in 1967, finishing eighth at the 1967 AAU Junior Mr. America and winning the 1967 AAU Junior Mr. USA and Mr. New York Metropolitan title.

Morris became a successful competitor over the next few years but something was still lacking. After Bill Pearl’s advice, the veteran bodybuilder moved to Los Angeles to elevate his career to the next level. The transition certainly helped Morris as he scored the biggest victory of his professional bodybuilding career up to that point.

Winning the 1973 Mr. America

At the 1973 Mr. America, Jim Morris became the oldest competitor to win the show (37 years old). He was also the first-ever African-origin and openly gay champion. However, the victory was necessarily a positive experience for him. There was a lot of discrimination that happened at the time based on race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation.

Morris felt the heat of these societal issues as he was never fully appreciated for winning the show. He said in an interview:

“When I won that contest, that night, standing up there on the stage being booed; horrible experience! Magazines put into question not only the 30-point margin but whether I should have won at all.”

During this whole controversy, Morris’ name was never mentioned and he was never featured on the cover of any magazine as Mr. America. The rejection haunted the veteran bodybuilder till his final days and it motivated him to try and stay ahead of the curve at all times.

“Even though I won Mr. America, I never got the credit. It’s better that it happens now because I probably wouldn’t have stayed in shape. It’s so much more satisfying, and gratifying t me now that I can make a difference in people’s lives. It’s that staying in shape and that lifelong fitness that I have to offer.”

Meeting Sir Elton John and flourishing career

While Morris continued to participate in bodybuilding competitions in the years that followed, his career took a major turn when he met Sir Elton John at a party. The wavelength matched and Morris started working as John’s bodyguard. He continued to work for him for the next 15 years and met several high-profile celebrities as a part of his job during this time.

The increased interactions and proximity with A-list celebrities got Morris a lot of clients and his career as a trainer flourished. Jim Morris eventually started a gym but sold it off after a few years to focus on giving personal training.

Morris retired from competition after winning the 1977 NABBA Mr. Universe in the tall category. However, he returned to the bodybuilding stage almost two decades later to show his talent. Morris finished tenth at the 1996 IFBB Masters Olympia and won the show in the Masters 60+ category that same year.

This proved to be the last competitive appearance of Jim Morris’ bodybuilding career as he never competed professionally again.

Later years and death

In the later years of his life, Jim Morris dedicated his life to training and teaching people the importance of a vegan lifestyle and its benefits. He was also associated with PETA. Morris trained enthusiastically till the very end and maintained an enviable physique and fitness level that belied his old age.

He was dedicated to maintaining good health and also believed in pushing the perceived decay and degradation of the human body in old age. Jim Morris led a healthy life until he passed away on January 28, 2016, at 80 years of age.

Competition History

• 1996 IFBB Masters Olympia – 1st (masters 60+) place
• 1996 IFBB Masters Olympia – 10th place
• 1977 NABBA Mr. Universe – 1st (tall) place
• 1974 WBBG Mr. International – 1st (tall) place
• 1973 AAU Mr. America – 1st (most muscular) place
• 1972 AAU Mr. USA – 1st (most muscular) place
• 1972 AAU Mr. America – 3rd (most muscular) place
• 1971 IFBB Mr. International – 2nd (tall) place
• 1970 AAU Mr. Los Angeles – 1st place
• 1970 AAU Mr. California – 1st (overall and most muscular) place
• 1970 AAU Mr. America – 7th place
• 1970 AAU Mr. America – 8th (most muscular) place
• 1969 AAU Junior Mr. America – 5th place
• 1968 AAU Mr. America – 10th place
• 1967 AAU Mr. USA – AAU – 9th place
• 1967 AAU Mr. New York State – 1st place
• 1967 AAU Mr. New York Metropolitan – 1st place
• 1967 AAU Junior Mr. USA – 1st place
• 1967 AAU Junior Mr. America – 8th place
• 1959 AAU Mr. New York Metropolitan – 3rd place

Jim Morris Workout

At every stage of his life, Jim Morris set goals for himself and worked accordingly to achieve those goals. He was never complacent with training and constantly added new elements to get the most out of his training.

While explaining the secret behind his good health at an old age, Jim Morris explained:

“I do what everybody knows but they don’t do. I pay attention to what I eat, I get exercise and keep my activity levels up and I keep stress levels down. That’s it. Those three things.”

Morris followed a three-day-on, one-day-off training routine for the vast majority of the time. He split the week in two three-day circuits followed by an off day.

A typical training week in Jim Morris’ routine looked like this:

Sunday 

Squats or Leg Press – 5 or 6 Sets

Thigh Extensions – 5 or 6 Sets

Monday 

• Lat Pulldowns – 5 Sets
• Cable Flyes – 5 Sets
• Dipping Machine – 5 Sets

Tuesday 

• Dumbbell Side Laterals – 5 Sets
• Forward Laterals on Low Pulley – 5 Sets
• Triceps Pushdowns – 5 Sets
• Straight Dumbbell Curls – 5 Sets

Wednesday

Rest Day

Thursday

• Squats or Leg Press – 5 or 6 Sets
• Leg Extensions – 5 or 6 Sets

Friday

• Lat Pulldowns – 5 Sets
• Cable Flyes – 5 Sets
• Dips Machine – 5 Sets

Saturday

• Dumbbell Lateral Raises – 5 Sets
• Forward Laterals on Low Pulley – 5 Sets
• Triceps Pushdowns – 5 Sets
• Straight Dumbbell Curls – 5 Sets

Jim Morris Diet

Jim Morris was brought up as a vegetarian during his childhood. However, he started eating meat and other animal products to build and maintain a massive physique during his bodybuilding career. Morris followed a typical bodybuilding diet that was high in protein. As a result, he consumed meat in high quantities and it worked well for him up to a point. However, he took a 180-degree turn in the latter half of his life.

But irrespective of the type of diet he had to follow, Morris stayed away from unhealthy and processed foods at all times. This not only helped him during his bodybuilding career but also enabled him to stay in excellent shape to the last breath.

Turning vegetarian and adopting a vegan lifestyle

Towards the end of his bodybuilding career, Jim Morris was beginning to have digestive issues that were slowly intensifying. In his personal opinion, these issues were likely caused due to meat consumption.

After studying the material related to diet and the human digestive system, Morris was convinced that the human body was not built to digest animal products. When he was 50, the veteran bodybuilder turned vegetarian and completely stopped consumption of meat and processed animal meat-based products.

Over the next 15 years, Morris slowly transitioned to the vegan diet. He attributed his health and performance longevity to his vegan lifestyle and advocated it. Morris spoke extensively about his experience of being vegan on several occasions and highlighted some interesting facts about it.

Morris adopted a vegan diet to eliminate the perceived danger of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and other health issues caused by meat consumption. However, he was surprised by some of the other benefits that the vegan lifestyle brought to his life.

“There were some benefits that I had expected but there were also some that I did not expect. For instance, my joints – from eating all the meat and stuff – I built a lot of toxic stuff in my system. I had arthritis and joint problems. They cleared up and I didn’t expect that.”

Morris firmly believed that the body can spend energy cleaning and healing itself if it doesn’t have to deal with the burden of digesting animal products. The veteran bodybuilder religiously followed a vegan lifestyle till the last day of his life and looking at the things that he was able to do, it undeniably suited him.

To Conclude…

Jim Morris’ life journey proves that excellence is a habit and dedication is the uncompromisable truth. Despite the hate and discrimination against him, Morris continued to stay focused on his goal of staying healthy and spreading the message of fitness and a good lifestyle until the very end of his life. He achieved this not by speaking but by being a great example to follow.

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