Fitness influencer suddenly dies after marketing stunt

A Russian fitness guru has died after pushing his body to the brink with an extreme fast-food binge designed to “prove” the power of his own weight-loss program.

Dmitry Nuyanzin — a popular trainer and influencer from Orenburg — had been shovelling down mountains of junk food for weeks as part of a self-styled “marathon” challenge he claimed would motivate his followers to lose weight with him.

The 30-year-old was reportedly smashing up to 10,000 calories a day in a bid to pack on at least 25kg, before showing fans how fast he could shed it again as part of a bold marketing push for his weight-loss program.

His meals included pastries and cake for breakfast, dumplings drenched in mayonnaise for lunch, and a burger with two small pizzas for dinner, with packets of crisps to snack on between meals.

The fitness fanatic — who had spent a decade training high-level athletes after graduating from the National Fitness University in St Petersburg — also promised to pay 10,000 rubles (about $195 AUD) to anyone who weighed more than 100kg and lost 10 per cent of their body weight by New Year.

By November 18, Mr Nuyanzin hit 105kg, stacking on at least 13kg in one month.

But just one week later, Mr Nuyanzin fell sick and was forced to cancel training sessions.

He told friends he planned to see a doctor, but that night, Mr Nuyanzin’s “heart simply stopped beating in his sleep”.

His devastated friends flooded social media with tributes, describing him as bright, positive and “an amazing person”.

His death follows another high-profile case in September, when Belarusian bodybuilder Ilya “Golem” Yefmchuk — who reportedly consumed 16,500 calories a day to maintain his 158kg frame — also died of cardiac arrest.