Childhood and youth
Denis Gusev was born on August 11, 1981 in Tikhoretsk, Krasnodar region. He was an active child, so his parents sent him early to sports clubs: wushu and karate, volleyball and basketball. For some time the boy was engaged in ballroom dancing.
Denis Gusev
When Denis was 10 years old, he was noticed by the coach of the athletics section: due to constant training, the boy looked fit beyond his years. Success in this sport came to Denis quickly, and he joined the Russian national team. After graduating from school, the young athlete did not leave the sport. In 1998, he entered the pedagogical faculty of the Kuban State University of Physical Culture, Sports and Tourism.
Denis’s parents were simple workers, raising two younger children, so the financial situation of the Gusev family left much to be desired. To help his parents, in his second year Denis ended his track and field career and got a job. In 2002, the athlete received a diploma with honors as a coach-teacher, and two years later - a master's degree.
Model Denis Gusev
In 2007, Denis moved to Moscow and got a job as a personal trainer at the World Class network of elite sports clubs. His clients were film and television stars, pop artists, and athletes. One day Denis was noticed by representatives of the modeling business and offered to try himself as a model. He appeared on the covers of famous men's publications: Muscle and Fitness. Fintess Magazine, Jorni, “Hercules”, “Iron World”.
In 2012, the athlete left the sports club and entered the Moscow State University of Economics, Statistics and Informatics to become an economist-analyst, graduating with honors. That same year, Denis decided to take part in bodybuilding competitions. This is how the young bodybuilder’s sports career began.
Nutrition and training
The bodybuilder follows his own program, which he also advertises to his fans. The intensity and frequency of training depends on the specific physical condition of the young man (weight gain or loss). Denis has repeatedly given advice and recommendations to those wishing to enter the world of sports.
According to him, those who want to dry out the body should focus on the amount of training. There must be at least 5 classes per week.
But it’s not enough to just sign up for a gym; to properly work out your body, you need to break your classes down into specific parts of the body by day. For example, work your legs on Monday, chest on Tuesday, back on Wednesday, and so on.
If a person wants to gain weight, the frequency of training should remain the same, but the emphasis should be on strength exercises, and cardio training should occupy a minimal part in the training program.
The athlete also willingly talks about his nutrition and has no secrets. He eats a high-quality and balanced diet, monitors food manufacturers, does not skip meals and excludes fast food, carbonated water and fatty foods from his diet. An athlete's morning begins with oatmeal porridge and a glass of milk. For lunch and dinner, the champion prefers protein foods, focusing on chicken breast, cottage cheese and seafood.
The sports master advises using vegetables, fruits or nuts as snacks. He argues that in pursuit of an ideal body, you should not completely give up carbohydrates, otherwise there is a risk of developing health problems.
Sport
Denis Gusev prepared for the first competition for three months. His coach was Dmitry Yashankin, a five-time world champion in fitness, winner of a gold medal at the Arnold Classic tournament. Dmitry compiled a training program and a strict diet for Denis. The efforts bore fruit - the athlete took eighth place and entered the top ten best bodybuilders in Russia, ahead of many experienced bodybuilders.
Bodybuilder Denis Gusev
In 2013, Denis became a Master of Sports of Russia in bodybuilding and decided to make himself known on the world stage. In the fall, he performed at the Arnold Classic Europe festival and achieved stunning success. The ratio of weight and height - 93 kg and 186 cm - allowed Denis to take the gold medal in the Men's Physique category. The bodybuilder became the first Russian to conquer this height. The victory opened the door for him to the IFBB professional league.
2014 brought Denis a bronze medal in the IFBB Pro League tournament, which took place in Dallas. Gusev becomes the first non-American to place in the top three at a professional tournament in the Men's Physique category. However, after this triumph, the bodybuilder slid down: in most competitions he did not even get into the top ten.
Bodybuilder Denis Gusev
Failures are followed by grueling training and diets, and in 2015 Denis again conquered the IFBB Pro League. This time he took first place.
To keep himself in shape, a bodybuilder works out according to a specially designed program. He recommends it to fans and imitators. Depending on what stage of physical fitness he is in (drying or gaining weight), the intensity of the training and the number of repetitions are selected.
Denis Gusev talks about training in the gym
For athletes who are in the process of cutting, Denis recommends exercising six times a week. On Monday, the legs are strengthened: quadriceps and biceps of the thigh and shin, on Tuesday - triceps and biceps of the arms. On Wednesday we continue working on the triceps and back. On Thursday, the emphasis is on the chest and biceps. On Friday, the Monday program is repeated, plus calf work. On Saturday, there should be a dense workout of the muscles of the deltas, trapezius and abs.
When gaining weight, the same sequence of exercises is followed, but with a large number of repetitions and in the absence of cardio training. Saturday becomes a day off, but the diet becomes stricter.
Denis Gusev
Not everyone can eat the way athletes do. Once in an interview, Denis Gusev told what his diet consists of. The day begins with 50 grams of oatmeal with raw milk and a spoon of honey, followed by three more meals consisting of proteins and carbohydrates: red and white fish, beef, for example, with buckwheat.
Denis does not recommend ignoring vegetables. You should add a tomato or cucumber to every meal. The remaining two or three meals should be without carbohydrates: seafood salad, low-fat cottage cheese or whipped egg whites.
Training program for gaining muscle mass[edit | edit code]
- Monday (quadriceps + hamstrings + calves)
Barbell squat: 8*20,20,20,16,14,10,10,20; - Shin extension: 5*20,20,20,20,20;
- Lying calf flexion: 5*20,20,20,20,20;
- Seated shin flexion: 3*20,20,20;
- Seated calf press: 4*20,20,20,20;
- Standing calf press: 4*20,20,20,20.
- Tuesday (back + triceps)
Pull-ups on the bar: 4 * 20,20,18,16; - Seated row: 4*16,14,14,14;
- T-thrust: 4*16,14,14,14;
- Press down on the block: 4*20,20,20,20;
- Extension of arms from behind the head while sitting: 4*20,20,20,20;
- Dips: 4*30,30,30,30.
- Thursday (chest + biceps)
Bench press: 5*20,20,16,14,12; - Smith chest press: 4*16.14.14.12;
- Mixing in crossover on the upper blocks: 4 * 16,16,16,16;
- Arm curl with EZ bar: 5*20,16,16,16,16;
- Standing dumbbell curls: 4*20,20,20,20 (10 per arm);
- Bending arms in the simulator: 4 * 16,16,16,16.
- Friday (shoulders + trapezius + abs)
Seated dumbbell press: 5 * 20,20,16,14,14; - Shrugs: 4*20,20,20,20;
- Shoulder abduction with dumbbells to the sides: 4*16,16,14,14;
- Seated bench press: 4*16,16,16,16;
- Lying crunches: 3*30,30,30;
- Crunches in the simulator: 3*30,30,30.
Deadlift
. Denis considers [2] the deadlift to be a heavy basic exercise that stimulates the release of anabolic hormones and promotes active growth of muscle mass. Since Denis has already “grown to a certain weight,” he doesn’t need to grow any more. Therefore, Denis does not do deadlifts in his workouts in order to maintain weight and a narrow waist. To work your back, it is better to use bent-over barbell rows. To load your legs, you can do hack squats or front squats.
Denis Gusev now
In the spring of 2022, Denis successfully performed at a tournament in Italy and once again became the best: the first Russian to win an IFBB Pro League tournament outside his native country.
In parallel with his sports career, Denis actively blogs on social networks. On Instagram, for example, he publishes photos from competitions and travel, and also communicates with fans.
Denis Gusev in 2018
On YouTube, the bodybuilder talks about his biography, training and healthy eating, gives useful tips on how to overcome an overweight person, and reviews sports equipment.
In 2022, under one of the photographs, Denis wrote that a person who cannot afford to buy trousers for 70 thousand rubles is “a redneck who dresses from the market.” Criticism immediately poured out on the athlete, and his Instagram “became lighter” by 2 thousand subscribers.
Mass gain[edit | edit code]
At the beginning of preparation for tournaments, he already practically has the necessary mass. Weight in the off-season (i.e., when resting from exercise) is 96-98 kg, on stage 91-92, and at the peak of the mass gain stage 100-101. Accordingly, the maximum you need to gain is 4 kg, which is not a problem. For this reason, it never greatly increases the caloric intake in the diet. He tries to eat with a surplus of 200-300 kcal. What is enough to gain 4 kg within 1.5-2 months? He also does at least 30 minutes of cardio. The main task on stage is not large muscle mass, but maintaining proportions and a minimum of fat.
Awards
- IFBB World Women's bodybuilding and fitness & Men's fitness Championship – 2nd place;
- IFBB Arnold Classic Europe - 1st place;
- IFBB Europa Dallas Super Show (Dallas Pro) - 3rd place out of 34 participants;
- IFBB Pro Dayana Cadeau Classic - 3rd place out of 18 participants;
- IFBB Puerto Rico Pro - 4th place out of 21 participants;
- IFBB Pro Miami Muscle Beach - 6th place out of 29 participants;
- IFBB Pro - Neva Pro Show - 1st place out of 7 participants (qualification for Mr. Olympia-2016);
- IFBB Pro – San Marino Pro – 3rd place out of 5 participants;
- Mr. Olympia - 16th place out of 40 participants;
- Moscow Power Pro Show - 4th place out of 14 participants;
- Galaxy Pro - 1st place out of 11 participants;
- Veronica Gallego Pro - 6th place out of 16 participants.
Personal life
The personal life of the idol worries many subscribers. At the dawn of his career in 2013, the bodybuilder married his beloved.
Denis Gusev’s wife is Ksenia Komissarova, who turned out to be 11 years younger than him. The original couple did not think about offspring due to Ksenia’s young age. But 5 years later, a daughter, Alice, was born into the family.
TV roles
Denis played a minor role in the film “7 Main Desires”. In 2016, he received the role of presenter of one of the sports sections in the “Friday Morning” program.
