Extreme challenges multiply and thrive online. Ice baths, 4 a.m. routines, the constant pursuit of “optimization.” But few influencers took the arms race as far as Dmitry Nuyanzin, a Russian fitness coach who believed he could prove that weight loss was possible under any conditions.
His plan was simple in concept and brutal in execution. He would gain at least 25 kgs (around 55 lbs) by force-feeding himself junk food, then cut it all back down in front of his followers. He never reached the second act.
According to the Daily Mail, Nuyanzin spent weeks consuming up to 10,000 calories each day. His self-designed program involved pastries and cake for breakfast, nearly two pounds of mayonnaise-coated dumplings for lunch, and a burger with two pizzas for dinner. He snacked on chips between meals.
Fitness Influencer Dies After Eating 10,000 Calories a Day in Extreme Weight-Gain Stunt
By Nov. 18, he announced on Instagram that he had hit 105 kilograms, gaining 13 in a month. He looked tired in the video, casually eating chips and admitting he felt uncomfortable, but no one expected actual danger.
The day before his death, he cancelled training sessions and told friends he felt unwell and planned to see a doctor. He died in his sleep soon after. Local outlets reported heart failure.
Health experts have been blunt about how dangerous his experiment was. Vani Krishna, Lead Clinical Nutritionist at SPARSH Hospital in Bangalore, told NDTV, “Blood sugar level increases very sharply, cholesterol surges, blood pressure rises, and in such conditions the heart is forced to work harder.” She added that these sudden changes can trigger palpitations, gastric distress, dehydration, and severe insulin fluctuations.
Certified Health Nutritionist Preety Tyagi said that 10,000 calories of fast food “can be dangerous and has caused deaths in rare cases.” She said the problem isn’t the calorie number alone, but the extreme overload of fat, salt, and volume. The body can experience acute sodium toxicity, heart rhythm disruptions, choking or aspiration, and even sudden pancreatitis.
Nuyanzin’s followers described him as “bright” and “positive,” with tribute posts flooding Russian social media. His challenge, which promised cash prizes to clients who lost 10 percent of their bodyweight, now reads like a tragic warning rather than inspiration.
He wanted to prove that anyone could lose weight “no matter the starting point,” but experts hope the lesson lands in a different direction. Extreme eating and extreme dieting are both punishments that the body doesn’t forgive easily. His final message still sits online, unaware that the experiment he built was already overwhelming his heart.
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