Head Coach

Marat Shapilsky

My passion is creating success stories! This is how!

My name is Marat Shapilsky and I’m the Founder, CEO and Coach at Everest Fitness. As a Certified Personal Trainer and Qualified Strength & Conditioning Coach with over 20 years experience in the field of health & fitness I offer a range of personalised training programs that are tailor made to suit my clients’ needs. 

My coaching methods encompass all areas of life including mental, emotional, physical and spiritual to help my clients achieve real, sustainable results that will last a lifetime.

I’m dedicated to helping people change their habits in order to become the best version of themselves. This in turn allows them to make decisions that help them grow through life, not just go through life.

 

MY STORY

How I learnt to grow through life!

my story is about four key moments in my life, that taught me how to grow through life. In SUMMARY these moments were: being new to australia, meeting my mentor, a debilitating injury and the birth of everest fitness.

New Kid On The Block

  • I came to Australia from the Ukraine at the age of eight. As a new kid in school who didn’t speak English and carried more than a few extra kilos I became an easy target for the school bullies. Every day was filled with endless stream of insults, name calling and teasing which sometimes ended in physical violence. This pattern continued throughout High School. As my English improved, but the teasing continued, I began to blame the excess weight for my growing insecurities and complete lack of confidence.

  • At the age of 16 I have finally had enough and joined a local gym. At first, I didn’t know what to do, so I mirrored my training on the “Big Boys” at the gym who lifted heavy weights. Motivated by their bulk and intimidation factor I tried copying everything they did. I thought to myself: “If I could get that big and strong no one would dare bully me anymore!”

Meeting My Mentor

  • Shortly after starting my training journey I was fortunate enough to meet a Senior Personal Trainer, James “Raftosterone” Raftos, who took me under his wing and showed me the ropes of strength training and the art of building immense muscle. Soon after meeting, James became like a second father to me, teaching me how to push through barriers and my own limits.

  • After five years of strength training together I was lifting over 200 kg on my squat and deadlift and benching over 160 kg. This training has completely transformed my body and mind, boosted my self-esteem leaving my high school bullies in my rear view mirror.

  • James didn’t just tell me what to do, he provided me with a complete education, explaining the science behind the movements, how to do them properly and the reasons for doing things a certain way and not another. He taught me the advantages and disadvantages of various techniques, what exercises work best and how to persevere and remain focused on our goals.

The Injury That Changed My Life

  • Like a lot of other 21-year-olds, at this point of my life I was doing a lot partying and leading an extremely unhealthy lifestyle. I believed myself invincible and indestructible and the heavy weights I was now lifting only amplified the feelings of being superhuman. Unfortunately, I was burning the candle at both ends and eventually something had to give.

  • At the age of 23, during one of my deadlifting sessions, I suffered a massive lumbar trauma. As a result I was left with three disc herniations, one of which was a severe bulge constantly cutting off the nerves to my right leg. There were days when a small misstep could leave me sprawled on the ground unable to move for hours. On those occasions I was left waiting for my brother to come home and drag me to the lounge room where he would lay me flat on the floor so I could watch some TV. Any other position caused excruciating pain.

  • At that time my life revolved around lifting, partying and working as a Security Guard all of which required me to be in top physical shape. I feared this injury meant my life was basically over.

  • I consulted with two doctors, a spinal specialist, a spinal surgeon, and a physio all of whom agreed that surgery was my only option for living a normal life again. Most of them told me I’d never be able to lift again and that I should forget about the gym altogether. I was devastated, feeling hopeless and extremely reluctant to have the surgery seeing as none of the specialists could provide me with any guarantee for its success.

  • My monthly catch ups with James convinced me that there was another way. A better way. It didn’t involve surgery, but instead required extensive research, a lot of hard work, commitment, dedication and complete trust in him and his process.

  • I decided that I had nothing to lose and if James’s methods didn’t work there was always the surgery route. Then and there I decided to commit to James 100%! 

  • My subsequent research led me to discover the benefits of cortisone injections, the intricacies of human physiology and the importance of proper nutrition and supplementation all of which play a pivotal role in helping the body repair.  

  • After three months of specialised rehab consisting of mobility & flexibility movements, strength & conditioning programs, several cortisone injections, supplements, improved sleep and nutrition I was again able to perform 100kg partial squats and was still able to bench 140kg. Thanks to James’s guidance, knowledge, experience, patience and constant support I was able to bounce back without surgery.

  • Despite my earlier fears that this injury would be the end of my life, the lifelong impact it ended up having was far more positive and profound than anything I could have imagined. Having James by my side to provide continual support and guidance through all the challenges associated with my injury has made me realise that I too wanted to become that pillar of strength, knowledge, guidance and support for other people. I have found meaning, purpose and a new mission to dedicate myself wholly to helping others live their best and healthiest lives. 

  • I will forever be grateful to James for his teachings and generosity in sharing his vast knowledge and experience and I can only hope that I am able to share some of his wisdom and teachings with my clients and make a positive impact on their lives.

The Birth of Everest Fitness

  • Climbing Mount Everest has always been a lifelong dream of mine, as it signifies freedom, conquering nature’s force and the power of “mind over matter”. It represents goals that seem unreachable at first but could be realised with the right level of guidance, support, perseverance and hard work. By pushing through adversity, the peak of your performance is achievable. With these ideas in mind, Everest Fitness was born. Although, my plans to climb The Goddess of The Sky were never realised due to the 2012 avalanche, Everest Fitness has become one of my greatest achievements to date.  

  • Nowadays, as a father of three boys, my dreams of climbing The Big Mountain have taken a backseat, as setting an example for my kids and being a role model for them and my Everest Fitness family is my number one priority. But as they say,

  • QUALIFICATIONS

    I began my career in fitness world by completing Certificates III & IV with Fitness Institute of Australia and undergoing a yearlong Mentorship Program with James Raftos. Apart from learning and training with James, I was fortunate enough to work alongside him for many years. 

    I continued my studies and training with a Diploma of Fitness as well as completing additional courses including:

    • Level 1 & 2 FMA Strength & Conditioning and Musculoskeletal Rehab Certification

    • 7 Body Basics Course (Which taught me extensive skills in the art of Coaching Self (Self Parenting), Listening to Your Body and Healing Your Relationship with Food and Body Image.)

    • Level 2 Advance Kettlebell instructor

    • Level 2 Bootcamp & Group Fitness Instructor. 

    • Systema (Russian Martial Arts) Siberian Kozak Certificate  

    • Boxing Instructor Certification

    • AUSactive Registered Professional - Level 3

    In addition to achieving my official qualifications I have also continued to broaden my knowledge and expertise by:

    • Gaining over a decade of experience in rope climbing and calisthenics

    • Undergoing 2 years of Systema (Russian Martial Arts) training

    • Completing 2 years of boxing experience at the Tszyu Academy, with Kostya Tszyu himself teaching some of the classes.

    as well as

    • Becoming a Finalist in 2019 Physique & Classic Physique in ICN Natural Bodybuilding Competition.

    As I believe in continual growth and development, I am currently in the Mastermind Group with FMA Strength Institute, with plans to continually grow my knowledge and experience in the field of Health, Fitness, Nutrition and Psychology.