How did you get started with bodybuilding?
Throughout high school, I was always an extreme ectomorph. I could eat anything and not put on fat, muscle, or weight, or so I thought. I was always fascinated with bodybuilding but lacked the motivation to start training hard until after I was done with my final year of school and exams were completed – it was time for a lifestyle change. I was ridiculously thin, I’m talking the skinniest guy in my grade in school; people always commented on how skinny I was and I hated it. I was always known as the skinny kid. I remember feeling like a little bitch when I was out with girls, walking next to them and feeling the same size as them. After My HSC, it was holidays, and I started going clubbing every weekend and always noticed whenever a jacked dude walked by, they had a presence a lot greater than that of a ‘normal’ person. The guys respect them, and the girls are all over them, and really, who wouldn’t want that?
At the time, my brother was training for a year and I was very impressed by his progress, and joined up at my local gym. I had absolutely no idea about anything gym-related, and it took months and months of research to know exactly what to do and how to go about my training and eating.
Where does your motivation come from?
If you asked me this question when I started training, my response would’ve been completely different. Originally, it started out innocently enough, I wanted to get bigger so I wasn’t so skinny, and have a bit of a build on me to impress girls. I’d look at pictures of shredded guys and tell myself, that’s going to be me. 4 years into my training, I can safely say that my motivation to train goes far beyond that of merely impressing people, it is derived from the feeling of having set goals and achieving them and outdoing myself in the gym.
I absolutely love it, the feeling of pushing out that last rep, and getting skin tearing pumps is something I don’t see myself without.
I wouldn’t even use the word motivation, I don’t need motivation now, as training is a necessity in my life. It’s all a part of my lifestyle, and I couldn’t imagine any other life than the gym/training/dieting lifestyle, as it is rewarding physically and mentally in ways beyond measure, you would have to experience it yourself.
My end goal is not to be some massed up freak, but rather to have a physique that can be looked as art; streamlined, tapered, and universally appealing.
What is your training philosophy?
My philosophy is – in a nutshell – don’t follow what a piece of paper says. Go with how your body feels. If you have written down that you want to do 8-10 reps, but you feel you can push out more, then you do exactly that.
If you’re counting every single rep like its nothing, you aren’t training hard enough. When I deadlift, I don’t think “hey I’ll stop at 5 reps” I think, I’ll stop when my wrists won’t let me hold the damn bar. It’s all about pushing yourself. The human body wants to stay idle and does not want to change unless you force it to. The more uncomfortable and the more pain you feel in your workouts, the greater the end result of your physique.
Pump your favorite music, visualize your goals in your head, and eliminate all negativity in your mind and get into the zone.
Honestly I count down the hours, take a pre-workout shake, and make it an epic event to go to the gym so even right before my first set I have a ‘mind-pump’ as it were. Sometimes when I go normally and go through the motions it feels like I’m not working out at all. When you train like this, the time goes like nothing, rather than the norm of people having chats, chilling out, doing a set, waiting for ages, talking, etc. Trust me, when your mind is in it, you will get more effective workouts and better results. Stop with the “I hate leg day, not looking forward to it” etc remarks. You ****ing love leg day. You can’t wait to ****ing squat
Here’s a little trick I use in my training, it may be of use to you.
Pretend there is a crowd of thousands watching you, and if you pull out as many reps or pull the weight that you hope (say 200kg deadlift 3 reps) you win a million dollars, and actually believe in your mind that it is true. Watch yourself push harder for reasons that I cannot explain. Try it in your sets tonight. When you think you can’t even push a single more rep out, picture this in your mind and you will push out 3. Or even up the stakes, pretend a gunman is pointing a gun at someone you love and you MUST complete the reps or push the weight to let them live. That’s seriously the lengths I go to in my workouts, sets, and reps, to push myself as hard as possible.
It’s as much of a mind game as a physical one. You are battling against your body with every single rep, and in the end it’s your willpower and determination that are the ultimate deciders in whether or not you will achieve your goals, or fail and give up. I take it if you have read this far, you don’t want the result to be the latter.
So that’s your training philosophy, what about your philosophy of life?
Definitely. Personally I’m a very friendly and happy person, and believe that people need to lighten up and enjoy life more. Even though I put on a lot of size and to some look intimidating, I’m one of the friendliest people you can meet.
I love playing up my perceived stereotype, and at the end of the day, never take myself seriously, which is one of the reasons I have accrued the fan base that I have.
What workout routine has worked best for you?
Sample Routine:
Monday: Chest/Biceps
- 4 sets of Incline Dumbbell Press, 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Bench Press, 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Incline Flies, 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Chest Dips until failure
- 3 sets of Barbell Curls, 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Preacher Curls, 8-10 reps, then drop the weight to half, and push out another 8
Tuesday: Legs/Calves
- 4 sets of Squats 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Lunges 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Leg Press 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Leg Extensions till failure
- 3 sets of Leg Curls 8-10 reps
Calves are self explanatory, just use some of the machines till failure, a lot of reps, feel the burn.
Wednesday: Back
- 3 sets of Lat Pulldowns 8-10 reps
- 4 sets of Deadlifts 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Bent Over Rows 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Dumbell Rows 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Hyperextensions 8-10 reps
Thursday: Shoulders/Triceps
- 4 sets of Shoulder Press, alternate with Barbell & Dumbell every week 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Upright Rows supersetted with Lateral Raises 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of front raises 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Lying Rear Delt Raises 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Close-Grip Bench Press 8-10 reps
- 4 sets of Pulldowns 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Skullcrushers 8-10 reps
Saturday: Full Body
- 3 sets of Deadlifts 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Squats 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Clean and Jerk 8-10 reps
- 3 sets of Weighted Pull ups 8-10 reps
If you have to pick only 3 exercises, what would they be and why?
- Deadlifts – This exercise will transform you body if done every week, correctly. Go hard and have fun with them. Notice how you rarely see people deadlift heavy at the gym? Do you also notice how all these people have average physiques? Put 2 and 2 together.
- Lateral Raises – This is an isolation exercise that I love. Pushing yourself through the pain barrier is a mental game, and the pump it gives yields a quite aesthetically pleasing touch to the physique
- Incline Dumbell Chest Press – I have always started my chest workouts with Incline dumbbells. This allows for a far greater stretch, burn, and overall hypertrophy of the chest then a barbell, as well as targeting the upper chest from the get-go.
What is your philosophy on nutrition?
- No fast food.
- No soft drinks
- No sweets or sugar
- Only fluid you shall drink is water, and green tea
I have never counted calories, I just make sure I get a good amount of protein in every meal, and have around seven or eight separate meals a day as this ignites the metabolism. Basically, to put on meat, you have to eat meat. Try have some sort of meat product in most of your meals. Chicken Breast, Steak, Lamb, Kangaroo and if you don’t love these already, you will have to learn to.
Sample Daily Diet:
- Meal 1 – 6 boiled Eggs, 2 cups of Oatmeal and a Protein Shake
- Meal 2 – 300g Chicken Breast (boiled) Broccoli and Brown Rice
- Meal 3 – 200g Tuna chunks in spring water, mixed with Spinach Leaves, and Wholemeal Pasta
Have your workout. Immediately post workout, consume your Whey Protein
- Meal 4 – Stir fry Beef/Kangaroo Mince with some vegetables
- Meal 5 – Steak or Kangaroo and Brussels Sprouts
- Meal 6 – 4 scrambled Eggs and some Salmon
- Meal 7 – One cup of no fat Cottage Cheese 10m before bed
When trying to cut down do you prefer to use HIIT or just normal cardio?
Neither. If you have your diet 100%, you don’t even have to look at the treadmill. It’s a simple case of calories in vs. calories out. If you consume more calories than you burn, you put on weight. If you consume less calories than you burn, you lose weight.
What cardio does is help accelerate burning those calories, but if you are already under your caloric maintenance, there’s no real need to do any cardio, although it can bring about fat losses much faster, you may also find it to be catabolic (muscle-wasting).
What is your supplementation like?
My supplementation consists of:
- Hydrolyzed whey protein
- Fish oil caps (6 a day)
- Animal pack multivitamin
- Xtend for BCAA’s
- Zinc
- Magnesium
- Vitamin C
- Green Tea
- Mesomorph or Jack3d preworkout energy
- Phenadrine and Inferno fat burners
Favorite Bodybuilders?
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Frank Zane. I love the classic bodybuilder look, with lean, tapered waists, rather than the blocky physiques of today. More examples of admirable and ideal physiques would include fitness models like Marco Pietrowski, Pham Woodbridge, and Tyler Mcpeak.
Most of these individuals have done interviews with Simplyshredded before and I highly recommend you check them out.
Favorite Quote?
“Obsessed is a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated.”
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ZyzzShreddedshian
Personal Training: Zyzz also offers paid personalized training and diet routines that are tailored towards your specific goals. He can be contacted @ zyzztraining@gmail.com
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RIP King of Aesthetics, I will use you as inspiration and tell newcomers about your triumphant legacy through weight lifting.
May your body rest in peace atop mt olympus Zyzz, for your soul will be remembered every protein shake and squat from here on. Till we meet again brave prince.. namaste x
R.I.P Zyzz
R.i.p God of Aesthetics ur inspiritation will live on forever
A Man who walked the talk – live in Bliss Champ life everafter eternall !
R.I.P ZYZZ, you inspired the world to get how they want to be and do what they want to do. Australia in particular are proud, love you man
Huge inspiration. RIP
RIP zyzz
i shall do this workout in your memory for 8 weeks.
<3 true God on earth. zyzz
Rest In Peace. Zyzz
You motivated me to start going to the gym. The more video’s watched, the more pump it gave me to go to the gym. lost 14 KG’s fat and gained some muscles! all thanks to you and now I’m unstoppable.
People are mirin now, and thats all because of you. i’m sure i’m not the only one thinking this way.
Unfortunately it had to end way too early… We all loved your movies and comments.
May your spirit live on in our souls!
R.I.P son of zeus brother of hercules father of aesthetics.
RIP Zyzz,an inspiration,a legend,a god,one sick cunt. Make heaven shredded brah.
I will achieve your aesthetics zyzz, I have you to thank for everything. Today’s workout, and every workout after, will be for you.
You’ll always be a legend Zyzz. Your skill and dedication to what you did will always be remembered. RIP knowing you really succeeded in your end goal – everyone was mirin. Everyone.
RIP
i just put the link For Zyzz on RX Muscle so that they would add Zyzz to their inspired list if they are not aware of it
You will never be forgotten. I will keep coming back here read this interview and be more motivated to be better than ever. I will get better
why did you have to pass bro?
We’ll meet soon my friend.
Hey brahs check out my new site http://www.zyzzeffect.com
Been wanting to this for a while as I love making all sorts of fake tats and often wear the ‘Veni Vidi Vici’ to parties.
A candle that burns twice as bright lasts half as long, R.I.P. Zyzz
We’ll be coming at you soon. RIP.
men rise and fall like the winter wheat, but these names will live forever. let them say i lived in the time of chestbrah, the prince of the shredders. let them say i lived in the time of zyzz.
truly inspired me to push myself harder and work out everyday. My friends and i watch your videos before we work out and that itself is enough to push us! RIP… you’re a legend!
Rest in Peace/Protein brah <3
RIP!<3
Gone too soon.. RIP bud
Rip buddy
RIP ZYZZ
I always found myself reading this interview at least once a week after ti was published, and now that you have passed on, I think I’ve read it about twice a day? haha you are a huge inspiration bro. To me and to everyone. You got my generation of our xbox’s and computers and into gyms allover. You achieved what millions have failed. You probably never even knew this and quite frankly, wouldn’t of gave a f***, but I mean hey, who would? haha. Rest in peace brah, this weeks sessions are dedicated to you.
veni vidi vici
R I P bruh! forever mirin.
RIP zyzz
rip zyzz u were an idol to us all the crew wont be the same
I’m genuinely gutted you have passed on. Your an inspiration to people new and old to the gym. RIParadise brahh
R.I.P Son of Zeus, Father of Aesthetics, Aziz ‘Zyzz’ Sergeyevich Shavershian you inspired thousands been a great teacher and recreated a bodybuilding community. youll be missed but you will always be our king
R.I.P man…
Huge inspiration, forever ‘mirin
RIP
R.I.P sweetheart <3
ZYZZ!!!!! You will never be forgotten brotha. You set the standard for what is SHREDDED!!!! RIP ZYZZ
Mirin’ forever. A shame it had to end this soon. We won’t forget you, thanks for being such an inspiration.
RiP Zyzz
Funny first time I looked up anything to do with you was after you passed but gotta say much respect. You Came , You Saw , You Conquered.
rip my cussin family misses you more everyday me 15 year old bodybuilder will reach your physic as im already more then halfway there thanks to when we used to workout. rip
RIP. I remember reading this a while ago and thinking how inspiring your transformation was. This is so sad, RIP Zyzz.
luv you man, u r my inspiration… i am going to get shredded like u and bitches will be mirin’ hard .. bad bad
I have become obsessed with this story, I feel gutted and I dont even know him!. I think its because his zest for life and living was so extreme and then to just die so quickly and at a young age is so tragic. I hope he is looking down and happy he had so many people who were concerned for him and also see how he inspired people to get up and not be lazy!. Apart from the steroid use, his body was beautiful, he had height and could of been anything. I wish to pass on my condolences to his family and may he rest in peace :-)
R.I.P great inspiration to so many people you actually show people that you can turn yourself into something great from pure dedication well done !
This guy is the reason why i joined the gym and started working out..
His diet giudlines are good expect for the excess of meat, that can be replaced with lentils or hardy beans. Friuts are still an important part of daily diet. the best advice i can give is to not even touch sugary and greasy foods and have at least one or two green teas a day.
Get ripped or die mirin’ brah
you videos were so funny man, hope this is some kind of trolling and you keep making funneh vids
RIP man
You are my source to inspiration <3
Zyzz The Best((((……
R.I.P brah
the next time i enter the gym i will pray to the new god of mt Olympus
for strength and motivation and to watch over my aesthetics
that is you my fallen brother
ZYZZ a truly fuckin sick Cunt
AN ABSOLUTELY AMAZING INSPIRING YOUNG SPUNK XXX YOU WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN XXX
so much initiative!
Rip zyzz. my biggest inspiration, may you be lifting weights and raving even in death <3
R.I.P Zyzz my beastly brother in mach truck unit shreddedness.
Dedicating my triple drop, death pyramid circuit sets to you and all your fans.
More girls died of heart attacks knowing you.
x
r.i.p king of aesthetics
damn, this is actually true … damn.
some one explain his chest excerisez to me,,, pls email,, im new to this i dont know any of the terms thx
rip zyzz/aziz i love you so much zyzz your legacy goes on and stay strong chestbrah <3 R.I.P
rip zyzz my best friend noor loves you her comment is up here ^
she has been crying 2 weeks straight rest in peice and stay strong said shaversion love you always noor and chantelle your legacy goes on and i know noor will never forget you shes an obssesd freak rip <3
RIP zyzz :( you inspired me so much
Thank you so much for all those training tips on the site.. I just ordered omega-3 fish oil from amazon :) I’ve been lifting for 3 years and know quite a lot, but there where few tips I didn’t know and I’m sure they’ll help me a lot !! Rest in Peace Zyzz
Sadly steroids ruined his life. I will take on his diet and routine out of respect. RIP ZYZZ
Good job bro!!!! peace from Austria
Sometimes, cheating is the only way.
“and amoungst you we have set ranks, those that lead and those are best to be followed. So take whats best of them.”
this is Ryan..holla’n all da way from middle east braa…truely inspirin…ur life is what anyone wud prefer…short but sweet…RIP brothaa..will keep u alive in dis part of da world…!!
R.I.P Aziz King Of Aesthetics Shavershian <3 thanks for the inspiration. will miss you so much.
Zyzz youve inspired me to do something with my life , i got sick of being the skinny 14 year old guy that the girls walk past , even though i cant go gym legally that hasnt stopped me from working out. You are my hero ..
cant believe you had to die broo ..
Love always sidekick
I’ll always love you brah (no homo).
r.i.p zyzz u are so cool thanks for ur inspiration
RIP bro.. :’(
Been working out for a little over a year now and have seen some pretty good results. Until recently when I discovered you and your videos. In the past couple weeks I’ve made more progress than the past month and a half combined! And I owe it all to you! True inspiration to become great in every aspect of my life!
To the father of aesthetics I’m forever mirin’ brah! Rest In Protein.
R.I.P Az. King Of Az-Thetics.
R.I.P ZYZZ u give me the zyzzspiration to pump harder at the gym everyday.forever mirin brah
RIP BROTHER.
You will be missed…
I lived in the time of Zyzz. Truly, a sense of humor that will never fade away. (srs)
rip zyzz, ur my inspiration n one of the best bodybuilder.
Going to get aesthetic as fuarrk for the son of zeus. RIP brah
R.I.P Mate. You have done Australia proud. Every protien shake i drink from now on will be for you mate. I am the way you were back when you where young. You are an inspiration. I want to be like Zyzz. Rest easy brother.
Miss you brah. True inspiration.
R.I.P
My condolences to family and friends. You were such a huge inspiration, not only to me, but to thousands and maybe even millions of people!
Laeo
R.I.P man, true inspiration to me and to a lot more people.
“I now see further cuz i have stood on the shoulders of a Giant”. you are that giant bruh. R.I.P forever mirin’
You are an inspiration for thousands of people, thank you for what you’ve done. You will be missed bro.
Still lifting every damn day for you bro. Haven’t taken off my wristband that says get ripped or die mirin’ since you passed away. One of the only people in my life that i ever cared about that isn’t with us anymore
I used to be ‘mirin , I’m still ‘mirin, and I always will be ‘mirin brah. RIP <3
i love you zyzz rip <3
rip zyzz
Love or hate him you can’t argue with his results. Very inspirational!
R.I.P Zyzz began mirin in July, still mirin, will always be mirin
you really motivate me thanks :)
peace out mirin brah :)
True Inspiration!!! for someone who worked out clearly with dedication and focus you always stayed funny as fuck and never took life too seriously !! I will 4 ever be mirin Brah !! RIP Zyzz, D world is a lesser place without ya !! :-(
Every time i fatigue at the end of my set, i imagine you’re spotting me bro, it always helps me bust out 2 more.
Forever mirin. Rest easy, sweet prince.
Rest in peace my brother. I will always miss you and you will inspire me forever
x
RIP brah, you’ll be always a motivation. Got a white wrist-band in your memory.
‘I lived in the time of Zyzz. Misc, we are all witnesses’.
Surely a true legend that never will be forgotten, the new generation of bodybuilding is here. Lets enjoy life, not swollen but Aesthetic, Fuuaark, Disregard bishes and aquire dancemoves my fellows lets keep his legacy live on forever!
Hey Zyzz R.I.P. Your story sounds similar to mine. I know so much bout bodybuilding im skinny 60 kilos haha but people come to me for advice bigger boys. First time i saw your videos and training i became obsessed and you motivated me to get back into it hopefully one day i can get a physique like yours.
Zyzz brah you’ll always be my motivation and inspiration, R.I.P Zyzz
“Obsessed is a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated.” love it man
i remember watching your videos without being able to cry ill never forget you AZ rip gone but never forgoten <3 inspiration to many …..
Paying my respects to a legend.
RIP.
R.I.P Uncle Zyzz, Keep ripping shit up in heaven, Get them angels mirin :)
bro R.I.P miss u man i am gonna buy the protein of the gods ur protein because u inspired me so much man ur my inspiration and no better then u u were huge tank and ur maddogg hope everything is oright up in heaven bro
i am still
mirrrrrriiiin bro
R.I.P Zyzz i don’t even know this guy but after watching him an reading all about him in a way it feels like i do maybe its coz we love to work out R.I.P brahhh im mirrrin hard out cuz lets all just get fuaaarrrkkeennn shredded PEACE
Forever mirin
RIP