The son of Dick and Bernie Haines, John has been doing body building for more than 10 years.
His first competition was in 1984 when he placed third in the Upper Midwest Body Building Championships.
In 1989 he competed in the Southern Minnesota Body Building championship in the heavyweight division. This year he won his title in the middleweight division.
When he placed in his first contest, he had only trained a short time, eight months. For the Mr. Minnesota title, Haines trained a year. "If you want something hard enough, you have to set aside your life for a year and focus all your attention on your training," Haines said.
His training centered on body building, dieting and muscle tone. Haines lifted weights five times a week, for an hour to an hour and a half daily. Then five months prior to the competition he concentrated on his diet...no donuts, pizza, or frozen foods, everything has to be all natural (fruits, vegetables, meat and potatoes). He also biked to burn off body fat a half hour three times a week.
Four months prior to the contest, he started working on his presentation. Haines said he posed in front of a mirror and before his coaches. "Posing is the hardest part of the contest," he said. "It takes a lot of concentration to hold your muscles tight for the required time before the judges."
Haines explained when the judges call for a tricep pose, you don't just tense the triceps, but the whole side of your body. "The judges are looking for your weak points. They pick you apart," he added.
In a contest, the contestants are required to do 11 poses, holding each pose for 30 seconds. "You flex everything from your ankles to your head," Haines stressed.
The contestants are divided into five weight classes: bantamweight, 143 pounds and less; lightweight, 144 to 154 pounds; middleweight, 154 to 176 pounds; light heavyweight, 176 to 198 pounds and heavyweight, 198 pounds and heavier.
Haines said Paynesville should be proud to have four body builders who have won competitions. Ron Iverson Jr., won the teen division in 1979; and Bob Holper placed third in the heavyweight division in 1993; Weber and himself.
Haines now advances to the national competition. The Junior U.S.A. contest is set for April 19, 1997, in Chicago. If he places in the top five there, he is eligible to compete for Mr. U.S.A. title on June 28, 1997.
When asked what his training routine or program consisted of, he replied during the off season he consumes between 3,000 and 3,300 calories per day. When in training, depending how fast you want the fat to come off, he drops his calorie intake to 2,000 per day. "It's either drop the calories or ride the bike more," he said. "Timing is everything, you don't want to peak too soon."
Haines explained everything you do in training is written down...the time of day you eat, how much you eat, times you lift weights, ride your bike, etc. "If you want to see a change in your body you need to monitor yourself," he said. "I carry a tablet everywhere I go. If you're serious about winning, you concentrate on your workouts."
Haines said his average day during training starts at 6 a.m. By 6:30 a.m. he is on his bike riding for a half hour. Then he has breakfast which consists of eight to nine egg whites and a baked potato. By 7:30 a.m., he is training again. At 10 a.m. he eats eight ounces of chicken breast and a fourth cup of rice and then heads to the Twin Cities Gym in Roseville to lift weights for an hour and a half. Each day at the gym he works on a different body part. "You can't work on everything at once. For best results you need to work on one part of your body at a time," Haines said.
When he is done at the gym, he eats another light meal of chicken, ground turkey or fish. "I usually eat about six meals a day. You can't think about what you are eating, you just do it," Haines said.
After lunch he heads to work. Haines is a personal trainer in Minneapolis when he isn't training himself. Once done with work, Haines is back on his bike by 5 p.m. and then stands in front of his mirror posing for an hour.
Haines stressed that body building is a sport and not a health kick. He added a good age to start body building is around 16 years of age. "As long as you keep exercising, you won't lose your muscle tone," Haines said.
Previous Article
Next Article
[ Return to Previous Menu | Archived Press Stories Menu | Return to the News Page ]