Jim Fixx

James Fuller Fixx (born April 23, 1932 in New York , † July 20, 1984 in Hardwick ) was an American runner and non-fiction author. He was the author of a large-circulation book and best seller from 1977 onwards, The Complete Book of Running , which appeared in many countries. By popularizing the running movement and its health effects, it made him one of the pioneers of the worldwide fitness revolution in the 1970s. His early death after running training caused a sensation and triggered many discussions.

Life

The son of an editor at TIME , Fixx graduated from Oberlin College in Oberlin (Ohio) and then worked as a journalist.

Fixx began running training at the age of 35 in 1967. At that time he was very overweight (110 kg) and smoked two packs of cigarettes a day. Ten years later he weighed 30 kilograms less, had competed in marathons and was a non-smoker. At that time, his publication The Complete Book of Running was out , which topped the bestseller list for 11 weeks and had a circulation of millions. The book found enthusiastic readers all over the world. In his books and on television, he propagated the health benefits of running training based on his personal experience, especially with regard to the increase in average life expectancy. The latter prognosis tragically did not apply to him.

In 1984, at the age of 52, Fixx suffered a second death on the way home from daily running training .

Cause of death

The autopsy of Jim Fixx yielded a severe atherosclerosis of all three coronary arteries (95, closed 85 and 70%). The sports doctor Kenneth Cooper listed the risk factors that could have contributed to the deaths of Fixx. According to this, there was a genetic burden (his father died of a heart attack at the age of 43, Fixx himself had a congenitally enlarged heart ), he was a heavy smoker and considerably overweight until he started running at the age of 36. He had been through a stressful job and had a second divorce.

Fonts (selection)

• The complete book of running . Random House, New York 1997, ISBN 0-394-41159-5 (EA New York 1977).
  • The complete book about running . Fischer Taschenbuch-Verlag, Frankfurt / Main 1994, ISBN 3-596-23326-7 (EA Frankfurt / M. 1979).
• Jim Fixx's Second Book of Running. The all-new companion volume to "The complete book of running" . Random House, 1980 ISBN 0-394-50898-X .
• Maximum sports performance. How to Achieve Your Full Potential in Speed, Endurance, Strength and Coordination . Random House, New York 1985, ISBN 0-394-53682-7 ( published posthumously on behalf of the Nike Sports Research Laboratory ).