Czech Out the New Super Freak!

Illia ‘Golem’ Yefimchyk Is the Newest Mass Monster

By Ron Harris

Mass Is Still King to Many!

Over the last few years, we have witnessed a trend toward aesthetic physiques, as witnessed by the rise of the Classic Physique division and the 2018 Mr. Olympia title going to a streamlined Shawn Rhoden. Today’s younger generation seems more concerned with V-tapers and abs than huge muscles. But let’s not get it twisted, folks. There are still plenty of fans out there who simply want to see ungodly amounts of thick muscle mass, a level of extreme development that almost defies reality. Bodybuilding has always reserved a special deference for those who build the biggest, freakiest muscles of their era, men like Sergio Oliva, Bertil Fox, Vic Richards, Markus Rühl, Jean-Pierre Fux, the late Greg Kovacs, Paul Dillett, Ronnie and Nasser El Sonbaty. In more recent years, Big Ramy and France’s Morgan Aste have been favorites of those who respect and admire the freaks. One can’t leave the late Rich Piana out of this discussion. Though he stopped competing in 2010, Piana embraced his role as a YouTube celebrity and influencer, with millions of fans around the world who drew inspiration from his larger-than-life, heavily tattooed physique featuring 24-inch arms and his mantra of “whatever it takes.” Rich was the face of 5% Nutrition, and now the company has a new representative in Illia“Golem” Yefimchyk, a mountain of a man who stands just under 6-foot-1, with 25-inch arms and a 61-inch chest at a lean 340 pounds. You may not have heard of him yet, but that’s about to change.

The Boy From Belarus

Illiagrew up in the former Soviet Union Republic of Belarus, a nation roughly the size of Florida with a population of 9.5 million. Though he played sports like soccer and tennis and would ski in the winter, Illiawas not what you’d call strong or athletic. At 15, he already stood at 6 feet but weighed only 150 pounds and could not do a single push-up. But a vision was forming in his mind. “I saw movies like The Terminator and Rambo,” he recalls, “and I wanted to be big and muscular like they were. I wanted to be The Hulk, to be so big that everybody would notice.” But how and where to begin? Fortunately, a gym opened up in his town of 10,000 people just at that crucial time. “It was very small,” he tells us. “There was a bench press with a bar and plates, five machines, and a punching bag.” Illy, as his friends call him, embarked on his fitness journey with zero guidance or instruction. “I had no books or magazines to look at, and Internet was just coming to our area at that time, so it was too expensive for most of us. All I knew was that I wanted to have a chest and biceps like Arnold.” What Yefimchyk lacked in knowledge he made up for in enthusiasm, and within a year he had gained over 20 pounds of muscle. “I didn’t look like a bodybuilder yet, but I felt like I was one,” he says. “I even wrote a letter to Santa asking for 18-inch biceps, which would make me very happy!”

Progress in Prague

Seeking greater opportunities than were available in his homeland, at age 19 Illy moved to the Czech Republic capital city of Prague to study economics. “Within the first semester, I knew it wasn’t for me,” he divulges. “I knew my future was in the gym business. I would first become a trainer and one day have my own facility.” Illy made that dream a reality just four years later when he opened Eagle Fitness. “Everyone told me not to do it,” he laughs, “especially when they saw the stress and lack of sleep it was causing me in the early stages.” Rent was steep in Prague, as were utilities. Since he couldn’t charge much for memberships and he also had a staff to pay, it was a struggle to keep the gym afloat. “It didn’t matter,” he states. “I never wanted to have a normal, boring Monday through Friday, 9 to 5 job.” Making matters worse, he had decided from the outset that Eagle Fitness would be a hardcore gym along the lines of Metroflex Gym in Texas. “People kept telling me that millennials only wanted clean gyms with shiny machines, and nobody wanted to lift heavy and get big anymore, but I kept going anyway.” Eventually Eagle Fitness became a mecca for bodybuilders and powerlifters in Prague, with members like IFBB pro Lukas Osladil and regular visits from Milan Sadek. As for Illy, he continued steadily making gains with the exception of the first year his gym was opened, which had nothing to do with the demands of his business. “I broke my hand during a friendly arm-wrestling match and was out of training for a year,” he tells us. “I lost almost 70 pounds and was so depressed. It made me appreciate being able to train and grow so much more.”

Building a Bigger Beast

People were telling Illiato stop getting bigger years ago, but he didn’t listen. He’s currently 340 pounds, but his goal is to hit a lean 360. How much food would you guess a man this size consumes every day? His daily caloric intake is a staggering 15,000, and that figure is even more surreal when you consider he gets nearly all that from “clean” foods like chicken, beef and rice. “It would be much easier to get all those calories from KFC and Cheesecake Factory, but that would be very unhealthy,” he notes. On a normal day, Illy eats 9 pounds of meat alone on top of enough rice to feed a Vietnamese village. Just as he didn’t get to his current level of size and strength overnight, it also took time for him to build up to this amount of food. “Just two years ago, I was eating 7,000-8,000 calories a day, and I was sure it was impossible for me to eat any more than that,” he says. “My goal was to take in 10,000 calories daily, but I doubted I could do it.” Now, he is thinking that it might take a full 20,000 calories a day for him to add the additional 20 pounds of muscle mass he’s after. If you’re curious as to what the grocery bill for the big man averages, even buying in bulk at Costco he’s spending $500 a week. Illy does allow himself one cheat meal a week. “I will either go to a good bakery and pick a couple of things out, or go to Cheesecake Factory and have two pieces of cheesecake. But the rest of the time I am eating clean.”

Eating fuels the workouts and recovery, but what about his training? It’s quite varied, as he isn’t committed to any particular style. “My sets can be in the three to six rep range, or as high as 20,” he tells us. “One day my workouts will be more like a bodybuilder with more reps and a faster pace, another day I might rest more and go heavier for lower reps like a powerlifter.” Asking him just how strong he is doesn’t get the cut-and-dried response you were probably expecting, as it’s been a few years since he tested his strength. At that time, he could bench press 600 and get 700 for his maximum squat and deadlift, all without assisting gear like knee wraps. “I don’t try to see what I can do for one rep anymore because I am scared of making an injury, and also because it does nothing for my goal of growing bigger muscles. I prefer to use weights I can control.” That being said, he recently pulled 650 for four sets of five reps that he called easy, and a video posted on his YouTube channel days after our interview showed him squatting 635 for 10.

Move to Miami

After living his entire life in places where it’s winter for half the year, Illy decided last fall to pick up and move to Miami, Florida. “I always hated winter,” he reveals. “To me it symbolizes laziness and sickness. There were times I got sick and couldn’t train hard for a month.” Miami seemed like the best place to go to escape the cold. “I’ve only been here since November, but already I am stronger. I know I have gained muscle too, because even though my weight is still the same, I am leaner now.” Though he’s now adapting to a new language and culture and had to leave his entire network of friends and business associates behind in Prague, Illy is loving his new environment and feels the change will bring many new opportunities.

Coming to an Expo Near You!

With all that muscle, you might think Illy aspires to be an IFBB Pro League pro. Not only has he never competed, but he has zero interest in getting onstage in posing trunks. “I have so much respect for bodybuilders because I have been around several top pros as they prepared for contests. I know how hard contest prep is. I would rather focus on motivating people.” Thanks to his sponsor, 5% Nutrition, he has a platform to do just that. “I wanted to see how people would react to me, so last fall I made an appearance at the Arnold Classic in Spain.” Despite being a complete unknown, there were lines wrapped around the expo waiting to meet and take a picture with him. “Some of them knew me from Instagram,” he says. “Often you see guys there who look like huge monsters, then in real life they are much shorter and smaller than you thought,” he says. “Everyone told me I looked much bigger in person, which made me happy.” Of course, he still gets the occasional person who delights in telling him that they or their friend used to be twice his size back in the day. His itinerary is still adding dates, but as of now you can meet Golem at the 5% Nutrition booth at the LA Fit Expo, the Arnold Classic in Ohio, BodyPower in the U.K., and FIBO in Germany. “After that first expo in Spain, I realized I really can help people change their lives like I did. Anything is possible if you go after your dream with everything you’ve got, and you never give up.”

IG @illiagolem

YouTube: GOLEM Official Channel

Mass Monsters Stack

These are the core products that Illia“Golem” Yefimchyk uses for superhuman size:

• All Day You May. 10:1:1 BCAA and EAA recovery drink.

• Kill It Reloaded. Mid-stim, powerful pre-workout that promotes extreme pumps and energy.

• Real Carbs + Protein. Whole food-based meal replacement powder to support recovery.

• Liver & Organ Defender. Complete vital organ support formula.

For more information, visit 5percentnutrition.com

Why ‘Golem’?

Most people these days probably associate “Golem” with the sniveling, malnourished ghoul from the Lord of the Rings movies who was forever after that magical ring he used to hoard in his cave, which he referred to as “My precious.” Illy got his nickname from a much older source. In medieval Jewish folklore, the Golem was a mythical monster that had been created from clay and given life via supernatural incantations. This legend was prominent in countries like Poland and Czechoslovakia, where Jews in the ghettos looked to it as a protective or avenging figure. “When I moved to Prague and started to get bigger, someone called me Golem one day,” Yefimchyk tells us. “I found out it was this big monster that looked like the Hulk, so I kept the nickname,” he laughs.

“I am not the new Rich Piana”

Illianever met the late Rich Piana, but he reminds many people of that larger-than-life figure. Still, he shies away from labels like “The new Rich Piana” or “The European Piana.” “I respect him and he was a great man, but I am my own person and not trying to copy anyone else. We are similar in that our main goal is to motivate people to grow and change their lives for the better.” Yefimchyk doesn’t even necessarily think it’s all about muscles. “When I see a bodybuilder or a very strong person, I don’t see muscles,” he explains. “I see discipline and self-sacrifice, which are rare today when so many people are just lazy. I want to change that and show them what is possible with hard work and belief in yourself.”

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