Dennis James: we sit down with IFBB icon Dennis James for a revealing look at what makes him tick, and what ticks him off

Flex, Sept, 2008 by Shawn Perine

There are reasons why Weider Publications has had Dennis James under contract for nearly a decade--since he placed fourth at the 2000 Arnold Classic.

For one, he's popular. Come Arnold Classic and Olympia time, DJ can be found manning the Weider booth (when he's not onstage, that is) surrounded by throngs of fans patiently waiting for a chat with one of the IFBB's most affable pros. Which is a second reason we've partnered with him for so long. He's a good guy--plain and simple. No artifice, no stone-faced indifference or pissy attitude. James is one of the good ones, and everyone seems to know it.

Yet, for all his popularity and affability, it's probably fair to say we wouldn't be so interested in having DJ represent Weider if he weren't such a kick-ass bodybuilder. One of the most massive men in the history of our sport, DJ has consistently been one of its top pros, competing in the Olympia seven times since 2000, where he's placed as high as fourth, in 2003.

At 39 and with a decade of prostatus to his credit, DJ is now a certified veteran. He has a lot of perspective on this sport of ours, and he's getting close to that time when a competitive bodybuilder starts to entertain thoughts of hanging up the old posing trunks. Not that he's there quite yet. As James tells it in this mano a mano interview, there's still a lot of life left in the affable, popular, big guy. And that's good news for anyone who's a fan of bodybuilding, which is to say, anyone who's a fan of Dennis James.

FLEX: You turned pro 10 years ago by winning the overall at the NPC USA. Do you still have the same bodybuilding goals now as then, or have they changed over the course of your career?

DENNIS JAMES: When I started, I wanted to be at the top, no matter what. I put all of my energy into being the best, whether it was going to the gym and lifting as heavy as I could or eating as much as I could. I wanted to be able to hang with the bigger guys in the pro ranks.

Now my approach is a little different, because, after 10 years of being a pro, it changes to the point where you can't afford to injure yourself anymore. I train a little lighter--try not to hurt myself, I'm trying to be more serious because a major injury right now would be career ending, and that was something I never cared about in the beginning. I didn't worry about tearing any muscles or any thing like that. Looking at all the guys who've had major injuries over the past year or two makes you think. It makes you train a little smarter so it doesn't end up happening to you.

It seems a lot of the senior guys in the sport are doing the same thing.

Yeah. Maybe it comes with the age a little bit, but I'm also looking to bring a smaller package--lighter, with the best detail and conditioning possible--to upcoming contests. This type of training helps with that, too. So I'll do the Pro Bodybuilding Weekly show [August 9 in Tampa, Florida] and the Europa Super Show [a week later] in Texas, and my goal is to win both. Those shows will be my only chances to put my name back into the mix with some of the other guys who should be in the top five or top six at the Olympia. I'll bring something back to the stage that people haven't seen in years. That's my goal.

When you think about it--now that you've modified your training a little-if you could go back and train lighter from the start, would you?

Nah. Because I've never had any major injuries, so I don't regret the way I've trained. It's just that right now, when I go heavy, I do think about the injuries that could happen, as opposed to back in the day, when I had no fear. I'd see other people get hurt and I'd think Nah, that's never going to happen to me. But now I see people getting hurt with lighter weight than I use and it makes me think.

I don't want to say I'm scared it will happen. I just don't want to go out [of competition] because of an injury. I want to go out because I've done what I set out to do and feel that I'm ready to leave the stage on my own terms. This year is going to be my eighth Olympia, so I'm already feeling that I don't have much left to prove.

You're 39now, so you've been bodybuilding for 17 years. Twenty-two is a pretty advanced age to start bodybuilding.

I know. And I didn't even start training because I wanted to compete. That was later. I started because I had a bet going with my friend over $100 that I could be better than him within three months or less.

Did you make it?

Yes, of course! Then, later on, I was walking on the beach in Thailand and this guy came up to me and asked if I competed and I said, "No, man. I just do this for myself". He invited me to come to Germany to compete and the rest is history.

I came to the United States in '97 because I wanted to turn pro and I didn't know how to do that. In Europe, you have to compete in the World Championships or you come to the United States and compete in the NPC. So I came to California and spoke to someone who explained how it all works. Then I spoke to Jon Lindsay and did a national qualifier and after that I was able to compete in the Nationals.