Meet the Founder
Gilles Essiembre is the founder of O2Max Fitness Inc. and a specialist in metabolic and respiratory performance. Based in Halifax and Moncton, Canada, he works with clinics, teams and individual clients across North America, including a growing network of partner clinics in the United States.
For more than a decade, Gilles has used breath analysis to help people understand how their bodies produce energy, and to build training that actually moves the numbers. His guiding question: don’t just measure VO2 max, ask why.
The O2Max System
Assess. Identify. Optimize. Reassess.
Breath-by-breath metabolic testing
VO2 max and resting metabolic rate measured with a PNOE portable metabolic analyzer.
Spirometry
Breathing volume and flow measured with a Pulmo70B spirometer.
Heart rate variability
Recovery and stress tracking with Elite HRV and a Polar H10 chest strap.
Personalized protocols
Training zones, breathing work and recovery plans built from each person’s results.
O2Max Today
- Partner clinics: integrative, longevity and performance clinics across the U.S. and Canada offer O2Max assessments and programs
- Programs: creator of the six-month VO2 Max Optimization Program and the O2Max VIP one-on-one coaching program
- Education: speaker for longevity and medical audiences, including a 2026 seminar in New Jersey on what VO2 max, metabolism and breathing reveal about how we age
- Athletes and teams: breathing and VO2 max programs for professional and youth hockey and other sports
Coaching Background
Gilles earned his personal training certification in 2015 and was recognized by GoodLife Fitness for top training hours and as a top-3 team trainer. He went on to specialize in metabolic and respiratory performance, using breath-based testing, spirometry and heart rate variability to build training programs around each person’s data.
He works with a multidisciplinary network of professionals, and believes that with clear goals, good data and good coaching, people can do more than they think, at any age.
A Lifelong Competitor
Growing up in Campbellton, New Brunswick, Gilles played hockey, badminton, volleyball, golf and more. Highlights since:
- 2001 New Brunswick Bodybuilding Champion, and 2nd place at the 2001 Canadian Bodybuilding Federation championships
- Bantamweight winner at the 2002 Canadian National World Qualifier
- Top 10 in the over-40 category at the 2015 Spartan Beast in Ottawa, Ontario
- Top 20 at the 2017 Ultra Spartan Beast in Stoneham, Quebec, qualifying for the Ultra Spartan World Championship in Iceland
- A 10-hour mental health fundraiser: 60 km (37 miles) of running, 10,000 feet of elevation, 200 burpees and 100 chin-ups
- Completed the Fundy Footpath in 2021: 63 km (39 miles) with over 9,000 feet of elevation, in 15 hours
Work With O2Max
Whether you run a clinic, coach a team or want to know your own numbers, start with a quick call.