Mr. America
My notes on my prep for the 2004 WBFA Mr. America:
I tested my bodyfat the morning of the Mr. America show at 1.8% bodyfat with my trusty calipers. I actually believe I've looked better at 3.3%. Getting below 2 percent make it very difficult for me to carb up and get/keep my muscles full. Still it worked out pretty well as I'd dieted for 8 total months that year (did some spring shows) and I did win here. One thing I did decide to try for future shows was to use simple carbs for my immediate post-workout meal to keep good insulin response and minimize post workout catabolism. I would normally avoid all simple carbs until I got below 5 percent. For this show I got a bit of the crazies and didn't follow my own rules. So I didn't use any simple carbs for the whole 16 week cutting phase. I did get my bodyfat down, but it did result in my muscles looking a little flat.
Lessons learned
Get someone to oversee your diet, even if you think you are smart enough to do it on your own. You need an impartial eye to program your nutrition logically. Had I followed the same advice I'd have given to a client, I could have weighed in about 10 pounds heavier, looked harder and bigger at the same time.
Mr. America's Training Partner
Chris Cormier at the 2004 Arnold Classic
This was the year I trained with Chris Cormier. We trained together for the spring shows, when he got second behind Jay Cutler at the 2004 Arnold Classic. Judging by the photos I saw, and what I saw in the gym, was that Chris should have won that show - and that's not just me. A lot of people were saying it. Though Chris was recovering from a back injury, he was incredibly strong. Just as strong as Mike O' Hearn, my training partner from the previous year. Chris was actually stronger than Mike on some stuff. Chris did incline dumbbell presses one day with the 170's. That was the day that I decided that the 160s were enough for me and I'm not going for more on that one.
Anyhow, the Mr. America was being held in the fall and I didn't have any training partners for that show. I usually bounce nutrition ideas off my training partners, so not having one probably kept me from getting that objective opinion on how stuff was going. I was still trying to get leaner two weeks before the show when I should have been filling out for the last 6 weeks. Ah what the hell... Still won!
Mr. America 2004
History of the Mr. America Bodybuilding Competition
The Mr. America bodybuilding competition holds a foundational place in the history of American bodybuilding. Established in 1939 by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), it was originally conceived not just as a physique contest, but as a search for the “ideal” American man—someone who combined muscular development with athletic ability, character, and even public speaking skills. Early winners were expected to demonstrate strength through feats like weightlifting, as well as embody discipline and integrity, which set the competition apart from the purely aesthetic focus seen in many modern bodybuilding events.
Through the 1940s, 50s, and 60s, Mr. America became the most prestigious title in U.S. bodybuilding, launching the careers of iconic figures such as Steve Reeves and John Grimek. During this era, the competition helped popularize bodybuilding as both a sport and a cultural movement, influencing everything from fitness trends to Hollywood casting. It represented a time when physiques were judged not only on size, but on symmetry, proportion, and overall athleticism—standards that still influence how many view the “classic” bodybuilding look today.
By the 1960s through the early 1990s, the contest continued to showcase standout physiques even as the sport began shifting toward the more mass-focused look seen on the professional stage. Athletes like Tony Pearson brought a high level of symmetry, conditioning, and presentation, while competitors such as Tim Belknap and Joe DeAngelis carried forward the tradition of well-rounded development that had long defined the title. Although judging standards gradually evolved, the Mr. America stage remained a proving ground for athletes who balanced size with proportion and polish.
By the mid-1990s, however, the influence of the AAU within bodybuilding had declined as other organizations rose to prominence, and the Mr. America contest was ultimately discontinued. After several years of absence, the competition was revived in the early 2000s, with shows returning in 2003 and 2004 under new leadership. After another absence of competition, a second new organization currently helms the Mr. America title. While these later iterations never fully recaptured the media impact of the original AAU-era contests, they serve as a tribute to the legacy of Mr. America and its lasting role in shaping the foundation of bodybuilding in the United States.
Mr. America Through the Decades: From Classic Physiques to Modern Era
1947 Mr. America Steve Reeves as Hercules
more images coming
