Editing Jim Fixx

{{Short description|American fitness advocate and author (1932–1984)}}
{{Infobox person
|name=Jim Fixx
|birth_name=James Fuller Fixx
|birth_date={{birth date|1932|4|23}}
|birth_place=[[New York City]], U.S.
|death_date={{death date and age|1984|7|20|1932|4|23}}
|death_place=[[Hardwick, Vermont]], U.S.
|alma_mater=[[Oberlin College]]
|occupation=
|parents = [[Calvin Fixx]]
|children = 4
|known_for=''[[The Complete Book of&nbsp;Running]]''
}}
'''James Fuller Fixx''' (April 23, 1932 – July 20, 1984) was an American who wrote the 1977 best-selling book ''[[The Complete Book of Running]]''; he&nbsp;is credited with helping start America's fitness revolution by popularizing the sport of running and demonstrating the health benefits of regular [[jogging]]. Fixx died of a [[Myocardial infarction|heart attack]] while jogging at 52 years of age;<ref name=lmtfdwr>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=vYNfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zjAMAAAAIBAJ&pg=3226%2C1976691 |work=Lewiston Morning Tribune |location=(Idaho) |agency=Associated Press |title=Jogging author Fixx dies while running |date=July 22, 1984 |page=5A}}</ref> his genetic predisposition for heart problems and other previous lifestyle factors may have caused his heart attack.<ref name=obitnyt>
{{cite news
|first = Jane
|last = Gross
|title = James F. Fixx Dies Jogging; Author on Running was 52
|work = The New York Times
|url = https://www.nytimes.com/1984/07/22/obituaries/james-f-fixx-dies-jogging-author-on-running-was-52.html
|date = 22 July 1984
|access-date = 13 August 2015}}</ref>

==Background==
Born in New York City on April 23, 1932, Fixx graduated from [[Trinity School (New York City)|Trinity School]] in New York and [[Oberlin College]] in [[Ohio]]. His father, [[Calvin Fixx]], was an editor at ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' who worked with [[Robert Cantwell]] and [[Whittaker Chambers]].<ref>{{cite book|first1=Whittaker |last1= Chambers |title=Witness |url=https://archive.org/details/witnesscham00cham |url-access=registration |publisher=Random House|year = 1952| isbn= 0-89526-571-0|pages=[https://archive.org/details/witnesscham00cham/page/478 478], 494–495}}</ref>

==Career==
Fixx was a member of the high-IQ club, [[Mensa International|Mensa]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.us.mensa.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Marketplace|title=Mensa.org|access-date=2008-10-09|archive-date=2021-01-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126131109/https://www.us.mensa.org/AM/Template.cfm/?Section=Marketplace|url-status=dead}}</ref> and published three collections of puzzles: ''Games for the Super-Intelligent'', ''More Games for the Super-Intelligent'', and ''Solve It!'' The back flap of his first book says: "...&nbsp;He spent his time running on the roads and trails near his home, training for the [[Boston Marathon]]."

Fixx started running in 1967 at age 35. At that time, he weighed 214 pounds (97&nbsp;kg) and smoked two packs of cigarettes per day. Ten years later, when his book, ''The Complete Book of Running'' (which spent 11 weeks at number one on [[The New York Times Best Seller list|''The New York Times'' Best Seller list]]) was published, he was 60 pounds (27&nbsp;kg) lighter and smoke-free. In his books and on television talk shows, he extolled the benefits of physical exercise and how it considerably increased the average life expectancy.

The cover of his book ''The Complete Book of Running'' featured Fixx's muscular legs against a red cover. The book sold over a million copies.  In 1980, Fixx wrote a follow-up book titled ''Jim Fixx's Second Book of Running: The Companion Volume to The Complete Book of Running''.  In 1982, Fixx published ''Jackpot!'', the story of what happened after the publication of ''The Complete Book of Running'' when he experienced the "Great American Fame Machine", becoming richer and more celebrated than he could have imagined.

==Death==
Fixx died on July 20, 1984, at age 52 of a [[myocardial infarction|heart attack]], during his daily run on [[Vermont Route 15]] in [[Hardwick, Vermont|Hardwick]].<ref name=lmtfdwr/><ref name=obitnyt /> The autopsy, conducted by Vermont's chief medical examiner, Eleanor McQuillen, revealed that [[atherosclerosis]] had blocked one coronary artery 95%, a second 85%, and a third 70%.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.marathonandbeyond.com/choices/emmett.htm|title=Marathon & Beyond -- The web site for marathoners and ultrarunners.|website=www.marathonandbeyond.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| title = Calvin Fixx| newspaper=The New York Times | url = https://www.nytimes.com/1950/03/04/archives/calvin-fixx.html | date = 4 March 1950 | access-date = 15 December 2016}}</ref>

In 1986, [[exercise physiologist]] [[Kenneth H. Cooper|Kenneth Cooper]] published an inventory of the risk factors that might have contributed to Fixx's death.<ref>Kenneth Cooper (1986, 1987). ''Running Without Fear: How to Reduce the Risk of Heart Attack and Sudden Death During Aerobic Exercise''. Bantam Books.</ref> Granted access to his medical records and [[autopsy]], and after interviewing his friends and family, Cooper concluded that Fixx was genetically predisposed—his father died of a heart attack at 43 after a previous one at 35,<ref name=NYTobit>
{{cite news
| title = Calvin Fixx
| newspaper=The New York Times
| url = https://www.nytimes.com/1950/03/04/archives/calvin-fixx.html
| date = 4 March 1950
| access-date = 15 December 2016}}</ref> and Fixx himself had a congenitally enlarged heart—and had an unhealthy life: Fixx was a heavy [[cigarette smoking|smoker]] before beginning running at age 36, had a stressful occupation, had undergone a second [[divorce]], and gained weight up to 214 lb (97&nbsp;kg).<ref>Chin, Francis (September 2006). [http://bystander.homestead.com/run_heart_attack.html "When fit people get heart attacks"]. Bystander.</ref> Medical opinion continues to uphold the link between moderate exercise and longevity.<ref name=bloomberg.com>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=email_en&refer=&sid=a4emdcRyNi3M|title=In the Long Run, Older Runners Live Longer, 21-Year Study Finds|author=John Taddei|access-date=August 11, 2008|work=Bloomberg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150128132202/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=email_en&refer=&sid=a4emdcRyNi3M|archive-date=28 January 2015}}</ref>

==Legacy==
''Maximum Sports Performance'', a book by Fixx published posthumously, discusses the physical and psychological benefits of running and other sports, including increased self-esteem, acquiring a [[Neurobiological effects of physical exercise|"high" from running]], and being able to cope better with pressure and tension.

A carved granite monument—a book with an inscription to Jim Fixx from the people of Northeast [[Scotland]]—now stands in [[Hardwick Memorial Park]] in [[Hardwick, Vermont]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://philip.greenspun.com/images/pcd4554/hardwick-fixx-memorial-49|title=hardwick-fixx-memorial-49|website=philip.greenspun.com}}</ref>

Comedian [[Bill Hicks]] frequently made Fixx the subject of a stand-up routine, humorously suggesting that Fixx's death while jogging should be an argument against exercise (Hicks was a heavy smoker for many years like Fixx, and died from [[pancreatic cancer]] aged only 32). 
Portions of that routine were alleged to have been plagiarized by [[Denis Leary]].<ref>{{Cite book| first=Cynthia| last=True| title=American Scream: The Bill Hicks Story| year=2002| publisher=Harper Paperbacks| isbn=0-380-80377-1| url=https://archive.org/details/americanscreambi00true |page=196}}</ref> Australian band [[The Fauves (group)|The Fauves]] referenced Hicks' material in the song "I'm Jim Fixx and I'm Dead Now", on their 2006 album ''[[Nervous Flashlights]]''.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.smh.com.au/news/gig-reviews/the-fauves/2006/08/11/1154803061274.html | title = The Fauves | last = Palathingal | first = George | work = [[The Sydney Morning Herald]] | publisher = [[Fairfax Media]] | date = 11 August 2006 | accessdate = 25 January 2018 }}</ref>

==Works==
* Fixx, James, ''Games for the Super-Intelligent'' (1972)  Doubleday
* Fixx, James, ''More Games for the Super-Intelligent'' (1976) Doubleday
* Fixx, James, ''The Long Distance Runner: A Definitive Study''—preface by James Fixx, edited by [[Paul Milvy]] (1977) {{ISBN|0-89396-000-4}}
* Fixx, James, ''[[The Complete Book of Running]]'' (Hardcover), Random House; first edition (1977) {{ISBN|0-394-41159-5}}
* Fixx, James, ''Solve It!'' by James F. Fixx (1978), Doubleday
* Fixx, James, ''Jim Fixx's Second Book of Running'' (Hardcover), Random House; first edition (1980) {{ISBN|0-394-50898-X}}
* Fixx, James, ''Jackpot!'' (1982) Random House; {{ISBN|0-394-50899-8}}
* Fixx, James (with Nike Sports Research Laboratory), ''Maximum Sports Performance: How to Achieve Your Full Potential in Speed, Endurance, Strength and Coordination'' (1985) {{ISBN|0-394-53682-7}}

==Videos==
* Fixx, Jim, ''Jim Fixx On Running'' (Laserdisc), MCA Videodisc, Inc.; (1980) Color, 53 minutes

==See also==
* [[Cardiovascular disease]]
* [[Cholesterol]]
* [[Healthy diet]]
* [[Obesity]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* {{Find a Grave|6353418}}
* [https://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/18/sports/long-distance-tribute-to-jim-fixx.html Long-distance Tribute to Jim Fixx]{{subscription required}}
* [http://www.runningpast.com/jim_fixx_shoes.htm Running's Ruby Slippers—Jim Fixx and his Famous Red Shoes] 
* [http://slashcomment.com/everythingelse/health/nearly-forgotten-oddities-of-past/ Nearly Forgotten Oddities of the Past]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Fixx, Jim}}
[[Category:1932 births]]
[[Category:1984 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:American exercise and fitness writers]]
[[Category:Hardwick, Vermont]]
[[Category:Mensans]]
[[Category:Oberlin College alumni]]
[[Category:Puzzle designers]]
[[Category:Trinity School (New York City) alumni]]