Michael Shah may be a real estate developer worth $300 million, but he gets no respect in the basement of his luxurious Union Square apartment. As the 38-year-old CEO and principal of DelShah Capital grunts through a set of lat pulldowns, his trainer, Hamid Castro, points to a corner of the subterranean gym.
“Pushups!” he commands. “Time is of the essence.”
Castro is accustomed to powerful men listening to what he says — and why wouldn’t they? More personal transformer than trainer, he receives as much as $15,000 a month to turn Wall Street heavyweights into svelte chick magnets.
He applied a crash-course live-in regimen for one Wall Street whale who needed to drop 100 pounds in 11 weeks for his wedding. The client, Joe D., who declined to give his last name for privacy reasons, lost a total of 112 pounds — and gave Castro a $25,000 bonus.
Another client, bond broker Matt D’Avanzo, 41, reached out to Castro after being called “a fat f - - k” by his wife. Four years later, his weight has dropped from 230 pounds to 165; he’s now in the midst of a divorce and dating a 29-year-old hottie.
Characterizing himself as “Hitch on steroids,” Castro — lean, muscular and disarmingly confident — is his own best advertisement. He’s also a secret weapon for would-be players who excel at the office but fall short in gyms and can’t close deals in nightclubs.
“No woman has ever turned me down,” says Castro, 26. “There’ve been some who were married, but they don’t count — and I still made them smile.”
Castro was born in New York City, raised on Long Island and attended NYU for business management. Currently residing in NoLita and dating a woman who works in media, he hoped to work on Wall Street but got into training instead. His first big-time client, about six years ago, was a family friend in financial services. Using what he learned from a lifetime of sports and exercise, Castro whipped the guy into shape, and word soon spread.
Castro began working with Shah in January 2015. While business was booming for the real estate mogul, his personal life was tanking. His girlfriend had just dumped him. “I called her to see what she was doing on New Year’s Eve,” he remembers, “and she told me she was going out with another guy.” His weight had ballooned to 240 pounds, he was drinking too much, sleeping poorly, and feeling irritable and depressed. One morning, Shah’s regular trainer couldn’t make it. Castro arrived in his stead.
“No woman has ever turned me down. [Some were married, but] I still made them smile.”
- Hamid Castro
Shah unloaded to Castro about his weight gain, the girl and his desire for personal improvement. “I told him he could just mess around and keep going through the motions, or he could really make something happen,” says Castro.
Shah committed to an overhaul.
He gave Castro an apartment key, and each day at 7 a.m., Shah found himself roused with a protein shake — before the torture sessions commenced.
“Hamid sensed I was at a low point in my life,” recalls Shah. “He said, ‘I’ve taken on the most disgusting slobs and turned them into statues. You will be a piece of cake.’ ”
They worked out for 75 minutes in the morning and for 60 minutes at night. Shah’s high-protein diet included a big breakfast (eggs, fruit, oatmeal), a bunless turkey burger, fish or beef for lunch and ended with what Castro calls “a pauper’s dinner: kale salad or less.”
The supertrainer kept Shah motivated by flashing him Facebook photos of his ex’s new, well-built boyfriend. “I broke him down with a lot of interval training,” says Castro. “I was in his face and head, talking about getting the girl back.”
Today, Shah is 30 pounds lighter and rocks a 34-inch waist (down from 37). But the transformation went well beyond weight loss.
As Shah’s body hardened, Castro took him clothes shopping in Soho. On his trainer’s advice, Shah remained incommunicado with his ex for 30 days before arranging a sit-down in March. Castro came along for moral support; the girlfriend brought a few siblings.
Eventually, Shah and the girl met for a one-on-one dinner. He told her about his desire to have a serious relationship. By early May, they were an item again.
Two months after that, Shah brought Castro with them on a trip to Miami. “Michael didn’t want to go on vacation and gain 10 pounds,” says Castro. (Shah and his girlfriend just split up again; he is contemplating his next move.)
Closeness to his clients is not unusual for Castro. A particularly challenging titan gone to tub, investment banker Michael Smith was only 26 and miserable at 265 pounds. “I would have spent my entire salary to get my life back,” he says. “Over a two-year period, I wound up paying Hamid $200,000 — it was completely worth it.”
Castro moved into Smith’s two-bedroom Tribeca apartment, subjecting the financier to grueling workouts. When they went out for dinner, the intensity ratcheted up. “I’d eat grilled salmon, and Hamid would order a cheeseburger,” remembers Smith, now 28. “He did it so I could get used to eating healthy even if other people at the table were eating whatever they want. Then he took me to the dermatologist. I also got my teeth whitened and went for a good haircut.”
Smith lost 30 pounds in six months and gained as much in fortitude. Then they hit the clubs. “Hamid taught me that no girl could hurt me,” he says. “I learned not to care about getting turned down. My confidence soared.
“Now the word ‘no’ gets me motivated. If I saw Taylor Swift surrounded by a bunch of guys, I’d walk up and ask her to have a drink with me, no problem.”