By Krrish Edirisinghe
Zyzz, the founder of the aesthetic physique, encouraged me to start exercising. He was a moving current in many lives and helped us even through the darkest periods of our lives. I'm truly grateful for the revolution of Zyzz and how he turned not just me but countless others into thriving human beings. Zyzz was not a person but a way of living life.
“We all have a bit of Zyzz in us, we just don’t know it yet”
The man who inspired millions of insecure teenagers. Zyzz was an influencer before influencers existed. He lived an exciting life and had one of the most impressive transformations of all time. From being an average skinny kid who played video games he turned into a literal god. 11 years after his death, his presence still influences countless lives. The spirit of Zyzz lives on and will forever be remembered and nurtured by the fitness community.
Aziz Sergeyevich Shavershian, better known by his Internet handle Zyzz, was a Russian-born Australian bodybuilder, personal trainer and model. He established a cult following after posting multiple videos of himself on YouTube, starting in 2007.
Zyzz was bullied when he was a teenager by getting his lunch money stolen and he would look to video games as a coping mechanism. He was then inspired by his brother who went to the gym. Zyzz sold his World of Warcraft account for 500 Dollars and used this money to invest in his gym membership. He posted his views and his progress pictures on the bodybuilding.com forum. He gained many followers with his trolling and his character. After 3 consistent years in the gym, Zyzz built an elite physique. He went to festivals with his brother and walked on the streets of Sydney introducing others to the gym.
However, he started being attacked by others on the street. His brother Chestbrah said “He was very, very insecure, and he was in a lot of pain and a lot of hurt… because deep down he was still that skinny kid.” Zyzz would not go anywhere by himself as he was terrified of what people would do to him. He wanted to redefine his image. He completely stopped his trolling and now wanted to focus solely on helping others. Rather than intimidating others with his physique and becoming that stereotyped gym bro, Zyzz became that bright light at the end of the tunnel. He positively impacted others and helped them fall in love with the gym.
Zyzz decided to take a holiday to Thailand and decided to extend his vacation. His brother then received a knock at the door with a police officer holding his death certificate. He had passed away due to heart failure. His brother stated “This whole Zyzz thing got to him in the end, he felt a constant pressure to look good, look the part, be the character, he put pressure on his body and this is what happens I lost my brother.” The fitness industry faced a devastating loss but it helped teach us many important values in life.
Zyzz was not the perfect individual, he partied and he abused PEDs however his flaws helped people avoid making the same mistake. This makes him the perfect role model. As the saying goes “Wise men learn from their mistakes but wiser men learn from others mistakes”.
He helped bring many ordinary people into self-improvement. We learned to be genuine, loving human beings. To be appreciative and most importantly be yourself. As mentioned above Zyzz was a character, Aziz was impersonating somebody who he was not. We can learn a valuable lesson from this to be genuine and sincere in your life.
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