Best known for his role as Winston Bishop in the hit Fox sitcom New GirlLamorne Morris is known on screen (and off) as the class clown. That’s because he – there is rarely a moment where he is not cracking a joke. Even in the gym, the only thing that really gets him motivated is “talking shit.”
Coming out of filming for FX’s fifth installment Fargo, Morris was in rare form. He played Witt Farr in the series, a trusted North Dakota deputy sheriff. For Morris, that meant building a big, husky build for the role. Now, between recordings for his podcast, The Lamorning Afterhe has been putting work into the gym to get back in shape. And boy, did he: he dropped more than 40 pounds, reducing his body fat percentage from 30 to 13 percent in just four months. We sat down with him in early June to get some insight into how he does it.
Men’s Health: What caused this transformation?
Lamorne Morris: For Fargo I put on weight. The image that comes to my mind [for the role of Witt Farr] that Carl Winslow from Family matters. I am snacking a lot. Plus, the food scene in Calgary is awesome, so I was enjoying every minute of it. When I returned, I realized: here we go again. I’m out of shape. And, it’s no fun chasing after your kids when you’re out of breath all the time.
One of my best friends, Glen Powell, is always in shape. So he always said shit (joking, obviously). We always compete back and forth, but he has the same coach. We go to the same gym, at Ultimate Performance Fitness. Eddie Baruta is a man. He is my body of shame. Every morning I get a text from him, asking me, “how do you look? Send me a photo.”
When we train, he does it every day, and still does it every time we don’t train. He would ask me, “did you eat like shit today? How much alcohol did you have? Why did you do this to yourself?” He is always watching. So, when I came back from Fargo, I went back with him.
The goal for this is just health, to be honest with you. It doesn’t necessarily look a certain way, even though I’m surrounded by people like Glenn Powell and Billy Magnussen, who are always shredded. We went on vacation for my birthday and we went on a boat, and I thought it would be all about me. Then these two bastards took off their shirts and every girl present didn’t care that it was my birthday again. Then, they say, “hey Lamorne, let’s jump in the ocean.” And I was like, damn, I’ve had a terrible swim, so this is going to be embarrassing too. Then, the whole trip will be ruined based on the fact that I did not do enough sit-ups. Suddenly, I was in a corner for no reason. That’s when you realize you need to get a body too.
MH: What changes do you need to make to get that body?
LM: Well, it starts in the kitchen. I had a lot of help from David Allen, a nutritionist here in LA.
The key is to cook for myself whenever I can. But, I always move around. so [when I’m eating out]I will order some of the most basic foods you can find. And, I’m not going to lie to you—it was miserable at first, but I got used to it. And then you start figuring out these little cheats and hacks where you can add flavor and do things like that. I season the best, keep the salad dressing on the side of the salad, marinate a little meat—things like that.
my favorite [snack] cut the sweet potato and add a little salt, a little pepper, a little cinnamon, and bake it in some coconut oil. And it’s better than going out and buying Doritos. Doritos are my favorite – Doritos, if you’re listening, please make healthy Doritos.
A tricky part is alcohol, because I am still a social drinker. My trick with alcohol is, if you’re going out, have one drink. But make the most expensive drink. Instead of ordering cocktails, like in the past or a negroni (my two go-tos), I will find the most expensive tequila they have. Take a shot of it because you won’t want to buy it all night. Na, just a sip shot that night. People think you’re a party, just to drop the dollar.
MH: What was the hardest part of changing your diet?
LM: I would probably say sugar was the hardest thing to cut. You don’t realize how many things contain sugar and how it affects you. I seriously want a withdrawal. I feel like Chris Rock New Jack City. I was like ‘help me, I’m going to die.’ I woke up in a cold sweat. I’m not exaggerating when I say I had a dream about Snickers-I really do.
I won’t lie to you, it took me a while to get tight with it. At first I would cut it for two days and then I would go, ‘oh I’m two days clean!.’ Then, I will come back a little bit to celebrate. I want a little bit, and then before you know it, I’ve only taken two days off sugar. So I’m going to try again. Once I got serious, I’d say it was probably about a week after cutting it became easier. I don’t have any weird headaches or cravings or anything like that.
MH: What does your workout routine look like?
LM: Three to four days a week I’m in the gym with Eddie. With him it usually starts with a lot of banter back and forth. We talk a lot of shit. We start with some stretching before jumping into traditional strength training. There isn’t a lot of gimmicky stuff. It’s something anyone can do: bench press, push-ups, dumbbell press, etc.
We’ll do some leg days, too—which I hate. People who say, “I love going to the gym”? That bastard. I don’t. But, I’m 40 and I want to make sure I stay healthy for the rest of my life. My goal is to be in the best shape of my life in my oldest age. And, I’m better now then I was in high school, which is weird.
We usually end the training with some kind of sprint, some kind of burst of cardio. Sometimes it’s an AssaultBike, sometimes it’s a sled on a track. fun fact: I beat Glenn at the track every time. I just want to put it out there. I beat him in the pull-up and I beat him in the track.
MH: You workout with Glenn a lot. Who else would be a dream training partner?
LM: I want to work with Kevin Hart. He is super cute in the gym, and I always wonder how he does anything? That is similar to me. I just said shit all day at the gym and was shocked that I was done.
And The Rock, obviously. He is in inspiring form. I don’t want to be that big. I want to be able to wash off in the shower again.
MH: What advice would you give to someone who wants to make a similar health change?
LM: For me, it all starts with why. I lost my father last June. My father was very athletic, but he had other problems: diabetes and alcohol problems. When he died, it was a call to get my life together. I want to be around for my daughter. I want to be around for my friends and family.
Once it becomes important to you, you find a way to do it. For me, it’s getting a coach to push me. Eddie and I have such a cottage. He knew the only way I would get out was if he insulted me or said shit to me. So it’s about finding the right coach.
Plus, only choose activities that you can go to and do regularly that don’t involve you sitting down. It’s about being active, and it should be fun. Whether it’s pilates, or yoga, or playing basketball.
MH: What is the purpose now?
LM: Well, during training I was asked to do another movie called SNL 1975. I play Garrett Morris. Garrett Morris was about 155 pounds, which was one smaller than me. When I got that call, I thought I was 185 pounds. So, I knew I had to lose weight to play this character. But it’s too small for me—I told Eddie I got skinny for this character, and now I want it bigger. Obviously still the definition, though.
I can eat more now. I basically have three meals a food.
MH: What are you going to do with this new crew? Will we see you in a DC or Marvel movie?
LM: Let’s say I want to go to one of the locations you named. I won’t say anything… I just say I’ve knocked on their door for long enough.
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