Alex Azarian passed away :(

[Mike Arnold]

Didn't know Alex, but after seeing so many people talking about his values, I can see he is someone I would have respected.

 

[ubermensch]

It's kinda private huh? What do you really need to know? Do you not already know that there are serious risks in this game? But some body builders actually die from non drug related causes too. News Flash ! Alex was hardly a mass monster.

I hired Alex off of this board about 5 years ago. He was ALWAYS available. Such a sincerely nice guy who wanted to help people. I still have his diet and workout program saved. I believe in the real world he was a teacher.[/QUOTE]

From different videos I've seen he was a special needs teacher and was very passionate about it and bodybuilding was his hobby.

 

[kscowboy]

Im not trying to be morbid here or anything but did we find out any more as to the cause of death. Really abrupt for a guy so young. I worked with him a few years ago and he was really a great guy.

 

[pesty4077]

Im not trying to be morbid here or anything but did we find out any more as to the cause of death. Really abrupt for a guy so young. I worked with him a few years ago and he was really a great guy.

I knew him and knew people that know him. His family kept his death a big secret, so not sure what happen. His facebook page is gone now. I agree, he was a good guy.

 

[BigBody.]

Just came across emails I had with Alex during an email search.
Excellent very nice guy.

Hopefully the cause of death is revealed.

Terrible he passed so young. Way way too young

 

[Hopefuljuice518]

Alex was a gr8 guy! Helped me out on the last prep. Always so involved with his clients. He will be missed. RIP Alex we will miss you my friend.

 

[jay_dub]

I knew him and knew people that know him. His family kept his death a big secret, so not sure what happen. His facebook page is gone now. I agree, he was a good guy.

I'm in shock right now. I leave and come back to find out AJ and now AA have passed?

Pesty, Alex used to talk about you all the time while I was prepping with him. One day in our daily email conversation he told me you had showed up at his house for his daughters birthday party. He had nothing but the best to say about you and told me that he was thankful he had a genuine friend that was just a drive away.

Man.... Alex was the first person to really expose and be straight up with every aspect of contest prep to me. I went in very naive and came out with so much more knowledge. He used to write responses to my questions that were sooo long and detailed, and I would read his emails over and over to soak up his instructions and information like a sponge. I never knew how he managed to pull it all off with having so many clients, I would ask him a question and then I would get this page long response in 45 minutes or less. I saved every email he ever sent me.

I remember I was very doubtful going into my show, even though knowing I did everything I could, I was still fearful of that stage and getting on the floor with the rest of the guys for the first time. I saw the competition and thought I was done for. I ended up coming out with a 1st and then 2nd place trophy and a completely fresh outlook on a lot of things in my personal life. One of, if not the very best experiences I ever had in my life and I will never forget for as long as I live.

Alex was such a genuinely patient and selfless guy. He worked with handicapped kids at school by day and prepped countless competitors the rest of the time until very late every night. He slept very little and was the type to just give as much as he could to anyone who wanted it.

You will be missed bro.

 

[Queefer]

Im not trying to be morbid here or anything but did we find out any more as to the cause of death. Really abrupt for a guy so young. I worked with him a few years ago and he was really a great guy.

Weird............huh..............I dont know about you guys, but I have been thinking about death a lot lately...maybe bc my girls mom died, then my dad died, then a bunch of guys I know on the boards....somethings going on here....are a lot of us going to start droppin like flies?

 

[DOGGCRAPP]

Weird............huh..............I dont know about you guys, but I have been thinking about death a lot lately...maybe bc my girls mom died, then my dad died, then a bunch of guys I know on the boards....somethings going on here....are a lot of us going to start droppin like flies?

It really gripped me a couple years ago when Matt Duvall died (and then the following 8-12 guys).
Ive made a conscious effort myself to hone everything down and make myself into a cardio-fit athlete. Since 2008-2009ish Ive brought my bodyweight down from the 290's to 254 this morning and every single night for these years...ive been doing cardio (usually hilly brisk walks up the hills near my house) for 45 minutes to an hour at a time. I missed 6 times last year I think so im so very consistent with it. I could be stricter with diet (my crutch is I love to eat breakfast at a restaurant reading USA today and I do that every single day) but the rest of the meals are pretty much spot on uber healthy besides that breakfast meal.

I think guys as they get into their 40's really need to grasp this stuff hardcore. Got to bring down your bodyfat percentage, got to get cardio fit, really have to do everything in your power anti-cancer wise, anti-diabetes wise, and anti-cardiovascular event wise. There is a reason there aren't unbelievably jacked Nasser like bodybuilders in their 60-70's.....they die much younger. I think if people create limits for themselves as they get into their 40's such as

a) my bloodwork proves out this regimen is healthy (juicewise)...this is the limit that I can use
b) I don't have high blood pressure at this bodyweight.....this is the paramaters I need to stay in

I think you would see a lot of guys who were specimens in their 40's 50's and 60's because they put on the muscle mass in their pre-40 years and honed it down into lean bodyfat percentage "athletes" with muscle past 40

 

[Jblack]

It really gripped me a couple years ago when Matt Duvall died (and then the following 8-12 guys).
Ive made a conscious effort myself to hone everything down and make myself into a cardio-fit athlete. Since 2008-2009ish Ive brought my bodyweight down from the 290's to 254 this morning and every single night for these years...ive been doing cardio (usually hilly brisk walks up the hills near my house) for 45 minutes to an hour at a time. I missed 6 times last year I think so im so very consistent with it. I could be stricter with diet (my crutch is I love to eat breakfast at a restaurant reading USA today and I do that every single day) but the rest of the meals are pretty much spot on uber healthy besides that breakfast meal.

I think guys as they get into their 40's really need to grasp this stuff hardcore. Got to bring down your bodyfat percentage, got to get cardio fit, really have to do everything in your power anti-cancer wise, anti-diabetes wise, and anti-cardiovascular event wise. There is a reason there aren't unbelievably jacked Nasser like bodybuilders in their 60-70's.....they die much younger. I think if people create limits for themselves as they get into their 40's such as

a) my bloodwork proves out this regimen is healthy (juicewise)...this is the limit that I can use
b) I don't have high blood pressure at this bodyweight.....this is the paramaters I need to stay in

I think you would see a lot of guys who were specimens in their 40's 50's and 60's because they put on the muscle mass in their pre-40 years and honed it down into lean bodyfat percentage "athletes" with muscle past 40

I could not have said it better myself. I stay within the parameters and play by the rules of the sport within what I am ok with putting my head on the pillow with at night. I have a tad more issues to watch because of my having OI, but I make sure my blood work is not terrible and I get my heart checked yearly. I also probably last year when I turned 33 decided to stay leaner in the offseason and do more cardio. Yeah my legs are my weakest point and such, but after 18 surgeries they are what they are and I would rather have them be a tad smaller but make it to see my grandkids one day than push every resource possible and wonder what happened as I float away.

These deaths have woken a lot up I believe and because of you as well raising the alarm the dots are easier to connect. Thank you for re-grounding some of us with your posts.

 

[nothuman]

Weird............huh..............I dont know about you guys, but I have been thinking about death a lot lately...maybe bc my girls mom died, then my dad died, then a bunch of guys I know on the boards....somethings going on here....are a lot of us going to start droppin like flies?

It really gripped me a couple years ago when Matt Duvall died (and then the following 8-12 guys).
Ive made a conscious effort myself to hone everything down and make myself into a cardio-fit athlete. Since 2008-2009ish Ive brought my bodyweight down from the 290's to 254 this morning and every single night for these years...ive been doing cardio (usually hilly brisk walks up the hills near my house) for 45 minutes to an hour at a time. I missed 6 times last year I think so im so very consistent with it. I could be stricter with diet (my crutch is I love to eat breakfast at a restaurant reading USA today and I do that every single day) but the rest of the meals are pretty much spot on uber healthy besides that breakfast meal.

I think guys as they get into their 40's really need to grasp this stuff hardcore. Got to bring down your bodyfat percentage, got to get cardio fit, really have to do everything in your power anti-cancer wise, anti-diabetes wise, and anti-cardiovascular event wise. There is a reason there aren't unbelievably jacked Nasser like bodybuilders in their 60-70's.....they die much younger. I think if people create limits for themselves as they get into their 40's such as

a) my bloodwork proves out this regimen is healthy (juicewise)...this is the limit that I can use
b) I don't have high blood pressure at this bodyweight.....this is the paramaters I need to stay in

I think you would see a lot of guys who were specimens in their 40's 50's and 60's because they put on the muscle mass in their pre-40 years and honed it down into lean bodyfat percentage "athletes" with muscle past 40

You know what is really bothering me these last few days? The fact I just began training again finally after my aneurysm (and near death experience) took me out of the gym for over 7 months, and my lower body is too sore to do cardio for several days in a row now. I was doing cardio 5-7 days a week religiously ever since my aneurysm because of how health obsessed I became. It's like I have it ingrained in my head that my health will go to complete shit because I can't do cardio for 4-5 straight days. I guess that's the obsessive personality, we, as bodybuilders, always have.

Prior to this, I would go for months without any cardio and I didn't realize how much damage I was doing to myself going without it.

It makes me nervous for guys when I see them bragging about how they never do cardio in the off season or ever. They don't realize how much of a positive impact it has on almost all aspects of their health, mainly blood pressure, resting heart rate, red blood cells (hematocrit, etc) and heart health.

Granted, it doesn't seem like many bodybuilders develop enlarged aortas (however Kris Dim did and didn't do anything about it), but I am pretty much 100% certain it wouldn't have happened had I done regular cardio, checked my blood pressure/resting heart rate, and eaten CLEAN (and I mean a heart healthy diet, with grass fed and free range meats, free of GMO, pesticides, and other crap).

 

[Stewie]

You know what is really bothering me these last few days? The fact I just began training again finally after my aneurysm (and near death experience) took me out of the gym for over 7 months, and my lower body is too sore to do cardio for several days in a row now. I was doing cardio 5-7 days a week religiously ever since my aneurysm because of how health obsessed I became. It's like I have it ingrained in my head that my health will go to complete shit because I can't do cardio for 4-5 straight days. I guess that's the obsessive personality, we, as bodybuilders, always have.

Prior to this, I would go for months without any cardio and I didn't realize how much damage I was doing to myself going without it.

It makes me nervous for guys when I see them bragging about how they never do cardio in the off season or ever. They don't realize how much of a positive impact it has on almost all aspects of their health, mainly blood pressure, resting heart rate, red blood cells (hematocrit, etc) and heart health.

Granted, it doesn't seem like many bodybuilders develop enlarged aortas (however Kris Dim did and didn't do anything about it), but I am pretty much 100% certain it wouldn't have happened had I done regular cardio, checked my blood pressure/resting heart rate, and eaten CLEAN (and I mean a heart healthy diet, with grass fed and free range meats, free of GMO, pesticides, and other crap).

This is just speculation. It may of been a blessing in disguise that you didn't do any extra cardio.

Generally our arterial blood pressure during weight training hits around 280-300 +/- mmHg. With cardio it's around 120-160 +/- mmHg or so. You may have exacerbated your aneurysm to a sudden aortic dissection doing extra cardio...?

 

[nothuman]

This is just speculation. It may of been a blessing in disguise that you didn't do any extra cardio.

Generally our arterial blood pressure during weight training hits around if not over 280-300 +/- mmHg. With cardio it's around 120-160 +/- mmHg or so. You may have exacerbated your aneurysm to a sudden aortic dissection doing extra cardio...?

It's true that I can only speculate. I actually was doing quite a bit of cardio for the 6 or so months leading up to my surgery, but I did look at an old echo cardiogram and noticed it had already begun expanding prior, so my guess is it had reached the point where it would continue growing and there wasn't anything I could do about it. At least I now know it can't expand anymore so cardio almost surely benefits me now. My bp, hr, and blood work are the best they have ever been. Losing 40lbs helped with that too.

 

[Elvia1023]

I am 31 and have already started thinking about this. I never chased a weight but I suppose in the past what I wanted to look like was probably 270 pounds and fairly lean (I am 6ft 2). Now I am in two minds but for now I just want to get lean. I will try and put more size on in the future but in a more gradual way (clean foods and cardio about 4 days per week). I can see myself being 250 pounds and extremely lean in the next few years and there is no chance I will try and get bigger. I foresee by about age 35 I will start downsizing and just concentrate on quality over quantity.

It really gripped me a couple years ago when Matt Duvall died (and then the following 8-12 guys).
Ive made a conscious effort myself to hone everything down and make myself into a cardio-fit athlete. Since 2008-2009ish Ive brought my bodyweight down from the 290's to 254 this morning and every single night for these years...ive been doing cardio (usually hilly brisk walks up the hills near my house) for 45 minutes to an hour at a time. I missed 6 times last year I think so im so very consistent with it. I could be stricter with diet (my crutch is I love to eat breakfast at a restaurant reading USA today and I do that every single day) but the rest of the meals are pretty much spot on uber healthy besides that breakfast meal.

I think guys as they get into their 40's really need to grasp this stuff hardcore. Got to bring down your bodyfat percentage, got to get cardio fit, really have to do everything in your power anti-cancer wise, anti-diabetes wise, and anti-cardiovascular event wise. There is a reason there aren't unbelievably jacked Nasser like bodybuilders in their 60-70's.....they die much younger. I think if people create limits for themselves as they get into their 40's such as

a) my bloodwork proves out this regimen is healthy (juicewise)...this is the limit that I can use
b) I don't have high blood pressure at this bodyweight.....this is the paramaters I need to stay in

I think you would see a lot of guys who were specimens in their 40's 50's and 60's because they put on the muscle mass in their pre-40 years and honed it down into lean bodyfat percentage "athletes" with muscle past 40

 

[concreteguy]

You know what is really bothering me these last few days? The fact I just began training again finally after my aneurysm (and near death experience) took me out of the gym for over 7 months, and my lower body is too sore to do cardio for several days in a row now. I was doing cardio 5-7 days a week religiously ever since my aneurysm because of how health obsessed I became. It's like I have it ingrained in my head that my health will go to complete shit because I can't do cardio for 4-5 straight days. I guess that's the obsessive personality, we, as bodybuilders, always have.
.

I'm so sorry to hear this man. I had no idea you had gone through this. When you dropped off the grid I didn't know who you were till just recently. Just glad to hear your OK. Really.

CG

 

[LEX]

Dc I have really heeded your advise it took me a while to accept a smaller me but I have been working hard, lightest I've been in over 10 years, 265 today. I feel great cardio is way up and bloods are looking great, 3 years of true trt dose and it all fixed itself.
Helps to hear you and others doing the same.

 

[Kid Dynamite]

Very sad news. Makes you think about your own life. You never know when your time is up. Ill be 44 this year, and I would hope I live for another 44..
RIP Alex!

 

[tweb123]

WOW! Omg He work with me back in 2011 right after my Hernia operation Created me a recovering, meal and supplementation plan! awesome guy he was very generous Build strong relationships with his clients by projecting a positive attitude, showing sincere concern, providing helpful support and making his clients feel important R.I.P

 

[PittsburghBBer]

I was pretty bummed to hear about Alex. He trained me and my brother and my wife. He was a great guy who taught me a lot. One funny thing I remember was the fact that he was such a nice guy in his emails with us that had he not been advertised here, we might have been skeptical of him. He was so cool with everything and I always had an email from him. Also, the dude loved his family and bodybuilding so much, he could really bs with you all day about those subjects.

 

[nothuman]

I'm so sorry to hear this man. I had no idea you had gone through this. When you dropped off the grid I didn't know who you were till just recently. Just glad to hear your OK. Really.



CG

Thanks CG, I appreciate that