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The Des Moines Register from Des Moines, Iowa • Page 116

Location:
Des Moines, Iowa
Issue Date:
Page:
116
Extracted Article Text (OCR)

14 THE NORTH COUNTRY REGISTER Sunday, October 7, W4 From weaklimg to Mr, Iowa- By JEREMY POWERS North Country Staff Hr time," said the former Mason City flyweight wrestler. At 3-foot4, Harris was always the small guy, even if he was a fine wrestler. "I guess I always wanted to be big," he says with a rippling shrug. Harris doesnt get picked on any more. His shoulders are nearly twice as big as his waist His muscles are as clearly defined as Webster's words.

The only bulges be has are over other bulges, such as his biceps and pectorals. And that's "out of shape'ac-cording to Harris. Despite a physique that most men would envy, he's about 20 pounds too heavy right now, he says. It isnt 20 pounds of fat in the sense that most of us know fat But according to Harris, Charles Atlas doeit anything on Jay Harris. Harris is Mr.

Iowa, the man whose body is considered the best-developed in the state. He won the honor last spring, in his third year of competition. And now, starting this week, Harris is putting his 190-pound package of muscles into 11 months of training that he hopes will make him a contender for another title, Mr. America, the most coveted amateur bodybuilding honor in the country. Not bad for a 97-pound weakling Just seven years ago.

"I used to get picked on all the i v. -V- i ls I 'i 11 i if fc Outstanding allncather traction. XLM DT steel belted radial. Aggressive all-season tread design for excellent traction in all-weather conditions Low rolling resistance saves fuel Wide block tread gives outstanding handling he has almost a year of work ahead of him if he is to have a chance at the na-tionaltitle. With three hours of training daily for the next 11 months, combined with the strictest of diets for the last three months of training, Harris hopes to have less than one pound of fat left on his whole body.

No dairy products are allowed during those last three months; they make the skin too thick and hide the muscles, he says. "We call it 'ripped'. It's as though all the fat was ripped off of the body and all that's left is the muscle. That's what all the training is for, to make it look as though it's all muscle." The competition isn't for weightlif-ting. There isnt even a barbell on the stage when bodybuilders from all over Iowa meet in Des Moines to see who has it all.

"The mirror is my tool. Nobody cares about measurements or strength. It's all looks." The weightlifting, he said, is Just a means toward the end. In a small, dark room at the Mason City YMCA, Harris and partner Mike Braughton work the weights. Up, down; up down.

Harris is the celebrity of the group, being the only Mr. Iowa there. But Braughton and another partner, Greg Hinderman, are state-class powerlifters themsleves. The grunts and groans of the weightroom sound as if someone is in pain. But, more likely, they are groans of enthusiasm and determination.

The rest of the group is shouting, "You can do it! Come on! One more time!" For Harris, on his second day of "pumping iron," he's just looking to add sheer mass. He wants to get as big as he can so he can shape the muscles later. When he starts cutting calories, he'll work with dumbbells and smaller weights and, by contorting his body slightly, he can develop specific muscles to the desired shape and size. The diet is not a culinary delight One of Harris' favorite meals, among those few things he can eat, is an egg, seven more egg whites, a little onion and the mashed inside of a baked potatoe fried into a sort of omelette. The idea is to get rid of all fat and poor carbohydrates.

Toward the end his diet, Harris' intake is almost strictly egg whites (30 a day), fruits and vegetables. And like anyone else, he gets hungry for all the things most of us devour without thinking. After SIS (0195 FOR SIZE P23575R15 mm LIMITED SUPPLY Jay Harris, right, has changed since high school, above. competing, it's another matter. "After a competition, I pig out.

I eat all the things I couldn't eat," Harris said. Last year, at the Mr. Iowa competition, he brought out a pecan pie his grandmother had baked for him. He ate the whole thing and then stopped for more at Boondocks on his way home. Donuts and malts were consumed in quantity.

Starvation is the part Harris enjoys the least He knows it's necessary, but he still doesnt have to like it. "You can't do it very long. It'll kill you. You get a little strange in the head," he said, making a face and pointing to his skull. Despite the emotional and physical stress of fasting, making faces during competition is a no-no, Harris said.

A big part of the competition is making it all look easy. "A big smile helps. It's really important how you carry yourself, They're looking at the body, but when you smile it makes a big difference," Harris said. And smiling isnt always easy not while the body is moving in a fluid routine like a gymnast, flexing every muscle. For the Mr.

Iowa competition, "I never worked harder in my life for anything. And I'll have to work harder for the Midwest Open. I'D need to gain 10 to 15 pounds and be 20 to 30 percent better," Harris said. If he does well at the Midwest Open, he'll move on to Mr. America.

For his efforts last year, Harris was awarded a five-foot trophy that won't MASON CITY TIRE SERVICE 1823 South Monroe Mason City, Iowa Phone: 424-2561 Lon Barkema, Manager fit on the mantle, and he is now ineligi competition, an event open by Invitation only. It's considered an honor just ble to compete for the title again. "I have to move on, and I'm glad; I don't want to be stagnant." And above Midwest competitions and the Mr. America title are further titles. Some men make it a profession.

They can give seminars, demonstrations and exhibitions. But that still isn't the pinnacle. At the top is the Mr. Olympian international to be invited, Harris said. But, even Harris admits, that's a ways off yet.

Right now, it's the 11 long months of training, ending with three solid weeks in a Minneapolis gym. Then it's the meets and, hopefully, the Mr. America contest. "Right now," Harris muses, "I hope to finish up in the top five. If I do, that'd Sporting Goods and (fatfoi JV HEADQUARTERS 9, MYib-f'' ct- I iTUTIr gHtES Entire Stock Of Name Business developments Check Out Our Pre-season Sale Prices On Most Hockey Equip ment-Including Skates, Sticks And Clothing, Name Brands Like: COOPER CANADIAN BAUER CCM Select Group I States As low as Brand Athletic Turf Shoes NIKE CONVERSE SPOT BILT PUMA Sizes 1 to 14 $50FF REGULAR PRICE 0 Buy a Ls TORO now "wJ: IB00 PAIR i i Fait Winter Ski Clothing COMFY SKI SWING' WEST BRAND Entire Stock For Children, Right now every Toro 20" single stage snowthrower is $40 off during Toro's 40 Below 3ale.

Choose from 3 models, each with Tor o's 1 2-year limited warranty Close-Out Sale Select Group SILVA EPOKE Cross-Country Ski Packages women 2nd Men. while its 40 below COATS 5k New developments in the Mason City business community include the change of ownership at the Pheasant Run restaurant and site preparation for the new Hy-Vee West store. Pheasant Run General Manager Jim Artes and partner Vinnie Kopacek are pictured above, Kopacek manages the Best Western Bavarian Inn in Des Moines. They purchased the restaurant from Tom. and Kathy Barlas October 1.

The new owners are both natives of Britt Also pictured above, contractor Reno Delia Vedova and Hy-Vee West Manager Don Cornett show plans for the new 27,640 square-foot store to be completed next spring. The store will include a dell with catering service, meat, produce and frozen food departments, Here's a list of businesses planning to move into the Southbridge Mall: Younkers, J. C. Penney, Bergo's, Central States Theater (five screens), Walgreen Drug, B. Dalton, Jean Nicole, Regis Hairstylists, Nutrition World, Fanny Fanner Candies, The Dahl House, Brooks' Fashions, The Closet, Claire'j Boutique, Kinney Shoes, Trader Home Shoes, Paperweight, The Gold Mine, Radio Shack, Kay Bee Toy Hobby, Service Optical, Two Plus Two, Costume Jewelers and Studio Jewelers.

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About The Des Moines Register Archive

Pages Available:
3,433,172
Years Available:
1871-2024