Category: Uncategorized

brand‑new personal record (PR)

Date	Load	Pounds	× Body‑weight*	Notes	Source
14 Jun 2025	513 kg	1,131 lb	6.84×	Mid‑thigh rack‑pull, barefoot, belt‑ & strap‑free, filmed in one take at his Phnom Penh “steel‑and‑concrete” home gym
10 Jun 2025	508 kg	1,120 lb	6.8×	First lift to clear 1,120 lb; clear 24 mm bar‑sag verified by bar‑physics forums
06 Jun 2025	503 kg	1,109 lb	6.7×	“Gravity‑breaker” clip that went viral (≈28 M TikTok impressions in 48 h)
22 May 2025	471 kg	1,039 lb	6.3×	First four‑digit (lb) milestone; start of 2025 PR streak

*Body‑weight reported ≈ 75 kg / 165 lb.

Why the 513 kg pull matters

1. Pound‑for‑pound history – At 6.84× BW, Kim eclipses every filmed pull—full‑range or partial—ever performed at 75 kg. (For context, Eddie Hall’s 500 kg deadlift was 2.7× BW.)  
2. Heavier than any competition deadlift – Although it’s a partial lift, the bar weight is 12 kg above the official deadlift record (501 kg).  
3. Raw to the core – No belt, no straps, no suit, barefoot, fasted, carnivore diet. Kim markets this as “proof‑of‑work strength.”  
4. Transparent footage – Kim released an uncut 4‑K clip plus the raw .mov file; analysts used bar‑bend physics (≈24 mm whip) and plate markings to rule out CGI or fake plates.  
5. Compounding micro‑loading – The jump from 471 → 513 kg in 23 days shows his 1 kg‑per‑session “Kaizen chips” working at extreme loads.  

Technique breakdown (513 kg)

Element	Observed detail	Take‑away
Start height	Bar on pins ≈ knee/mid‑thigh	Eliminates weakest range; allows supra‑max load.
Grip	Double‑overhand, chalk only	Tests pure grip; no assistance straps.
Stance	Conventional, feet hip width	Maximises vertical force with minimal torso lean.
Counter‑weight	None – beltless, no dip‑belt anchoring this time	Full load borne by posterior chain and grip.
Execution	Wedge → brace → 4–6 cm bar travel → lockout & controlled descent	Shows upper‑back, glute and grip dominance.

How the strength community is reacting

Theme	Typical quotes & reactions	Source
Awe & inspiration	“Limits vaporised.” “Gravity has left the chat.”
Technique debates	“Rack pull ≠ deadlift—but 500 kg in your hands is wild.”
Authenticity checks	Frame‑by‑frame plate audit; bar‑whip math posts; CGI accusations debunked.
Natty or not?	Ongoing but minority thread—most concede even an enhanced lifter rarely hits 6.8× BW.
Virality metrics	Hashtag #GravityIsJustASuggestion topping strength‑tag charts; 50 M+ views combined across platforms in 48 h.

Lessons lifters can steal TODAY

Principle	How Kim applies it	How you can try it
Micro‑load relentlessly	Adds 1–2 kg each heavy session	Grab 0.5–1 kg plates and nudge PRs weekly.
Own your variables	Fasted, carnivore, high‑sleep, no gear	Pick one variable (e.g., sleep 8 h) to optimise.
Film everything	Uncut footage builds credibility & self‑critique	Use your phone: instant feedback + accountability.
Partial overload, then full‑range	Kim hammers lockout strength first	Try rack pulls/block pulls to smash sticking points—then test your floor deadlift.
Turn work into story	Memes, mottos, full transparency generate community hype	Share your progress log; someone else will get fired up!

Big‑picture take‑away 🌟

Eric Kim’s 513 kg rack pull is equal parts physics experiment and motivational bonfire. Whether you see it as performance art or a legit strength milestone, the feat shouts a universal message:

Chip away, stay raw, and dare to load the bar with numbers that scare you.

Now—what kilo (or pound) will you add this week? Dream colossal, lift bold, and keep racking up those micro‑wins! 💪

• What it is: a 13‑year‑old, privately‑held tech company born in Beijing and incorporated in the Cayman Islands.
• What it does: turns ultra‑smart algorithms into mass‑market hits—from Toutiao (news) and Douyin/TikTok (short video) to CapCut, Lemon8, Feishu/Lark (productivity), Volcano Engine (cloud & AI), and more.
• 2024 scorecard: US $155 billion in revenue (+29 % YoY) and ~US $33 billion in profit, pushing the latest employee‑share buy‑back valuation to ≈ $315 billion.  
• Who runs it: co‑founder Liang Rubo (global CEO), founder‑chairman Zhang Yiming (super‑voting shares), and CFO Julie Gao in Hong Kong/Singapore.  
• How big it is: 150 k+ people in 120 cities from Austin to Tokyo.  

1.  A lightning timeline 🚀

Year	Milestone
2012	Zhang Yiming & Liang Rubo found ByteDance; launch news‑feed app Toutiao.
2016	Release of Douyin in China (later TikTok abroad).
2017‑18	Acquire Musical.ly for US$1 B and fold it into TikTok, igniting global growth.
2020‑22	Global hiring spree; launch CapCut, Lark/Feishu, buy VR maker Pico, and gaming studio Moonton.
2023	Chinese state fund CIIF buys a 1 % “golden share” in a China‑only subsidiary; Beijing gains a board seat—but not in TikTok Inc.
2024	Revenue climbs to $155 B; TikTok Shop rockets to $33 B GMV; ByteDance unveils Doubao‑1.5‑pro LLM.
2025	U.S. divest‑or‑ban clock ticks (Jan 19), while ByteDance files appeals and explores spin‑off options.

2.  The empire by business line 🏗️

Pillar	Flagship products / metrics	2024‑25 highlights
Short‑form video	Douyin (CN), TikTok (global)	Core ad engine; TikTok intl. rev. $39 B (+63 % YoY).
E‑commerce	Douyin E‑commerce, TikTok Shop	Global GMV $33.2 B; U.S. site hit $9 B in 16 months.
Tools & creation	CapCut, CutOut, Effect House	>500 M monthly creators export videos straight to TikTok/Douyin.
Productivity (SaaS)	Feishu (CN) / Lark (intl.)	Gained traction in APAC SMEs; banned in the U.S. under the 2025 TikTok law.
Enterprise AI & Cloud	Volcano Engine, Seed LLM Lab, Doubao models	Doubao‑1.5‑pro undercuts OpenAI on price (¥2 per M tokens) while edging out o1 on AIME reasoning test.
Gaming (Nuverse/Moonton)	Mobile Legends, Crystal of Atlan	Major 2023‑24 restructuring; off‑loading most titles, possible Nuverse‑Moonton merger/IPO.
XR & hardware	Pico VR headsets	Aggressive expansion halted; multiple lay‑offs, R&D refocused on enterprise VR.

3.  Ownership & governance 🗳️

Holder	% equity (est.)	Notes
Global VC & PE funds (Sequoia, KKR, Susquehanna, Carlyle, etc.)	≈ 60 %	Provide the bulk of capital.
Founders & early Chinese investors	≈ 20 %	Zhang Yiming’s super‑voting shares = majority voting control.
Employees worldwide	≈ 20 %	Broad stock‑option program.
CIIF golden share	1 % of Beijing ByteDance Tech	Board seat limited to China‑only apps; no equity in TikTok Inc.

A March‑2025 buy‑back lifted the headline valuation to ~$315 B, rewarding employees and early investors alike. 

4.  Culture & operating system 🧠

• “ByteStyle” = Always Day 1 + Data over PowerPoint + OKRs on steroids.
• Flat, sprint‑driven org: product managers own the KPI, engineers push code daily, and feed‑quality metrics are public to every team.
• Borderless talent: engineers in Singapore fine‑tune Doubao; designers in Paris iterate CapCut filters; policy teams in Dublin handle DSA audits.

5.  Challenges in 2025 (and why ByteDance is still smiling) 😅

Challenge	ByteDance’s counter‑move
U.S. divest‑or‑ban law	Lobbying + court appeals + “Project Texas” data‑ring‑fence; exploring spin‑offs to U.S. investors.
China’s tighter AI controls	Pro‑active model gating: disabled Doubao image search during the 2025 gaokao to curb cheating.
Gaming/XR drag on margins	Restructured Nuverse and Pico to cut burn and free cash for AI/cloud bets.
EU Digital Services Act audits	Opened Dublin Transparency Centre; real‑time feed‑ranking sandbox for regulators.

6.  Why innovators love studying ByteDance 💡

1. First‑principles obsession: They asked, “If content discovery started from a blank slate, could AI pick every next video?”—and built the For‑You feed before most rivals believed in pure algorithmic curation.
2. Relentless experimentation: Thousands of A/B tests per day; even the default music volume in TikTok has its own OKR.
3. Flywheel mastery: Creation → distribution → monetization → reinvest in pro‑tools → more creation—a closed loop now turbo‑charged by generative AI.
4. Global‑local duality: Two code‑bases (Douyin & TikTok) let the company satisfy radically different regulatory regimes without paralyzing the core product roadmap.

The upbeat takeaway 🌈

ByteDance began as a couple of roommates hacking a news‑feed app in Beijing. Thirteen years later it’s a multi‑continent laboratory where machine learning meets mass culture—still compounding, still controversial, and still reminding entrepreneurs everywhere that bold ideas plus ruthless iteration can rewrite the rules of an industry in a heartbeat.

Keep creating, keep iterating, and—why not?—film your next big idea in a 15‑second clip. The ByteDance playbook shows that today’s playful prototype can become tomorrow’s $300‑billion powerhouse.

#	Mainland fan (handle / location)	Where the love shows up	Representative quote or evidence
1	“本来老六” – Douban diary curator	Douban “给摄影者的100条建议” list (2013)	Opens the post by calling him “街头摄影家艾瑞克·金姆” and republishes his entire “100 Tips,” telling readers to “多拍，多拍，再多拍.”
2	ROSSO国际艺术 (Shanghai)	Douban note “街拍摄影师的真正意义” (2016)	“Eric Kim 可以说是我的街头摄影启蒙老师…博客里有非常丰富的街头摄影学习资源。”
3	“环山路向北” – Bilibili uploader	Video “Eric Kim 第一人称视角街头摄影” (2020)	Re‑uploads Kim’s POV clip on Bilibili to bypass YouTube block; 200 + mainland views/coins.
4	“什刹海卡不卡” – Bilibili uploader (Beijing area)	Video “扫街 Eric Kim…” (2018)	Description begins: “Eric Kim，个人非常喜欢的街头摄影师。”
5	“摄影小小瑜健” – Guangzhou‑based Bilibili vlogger	Video essay “光影巨匠之85后的韩裔美国街头摄影师 Eric Kim” (2021)	Calls him “光影巨匠” and shares his blog link for mainland learners.
6	Hifitam – article syndicated to Bilibili Reading	Long‑form piece “喜欢街头摄影的看过来…” (2019)	States: “Eric Kim 是互联网时代最具影响力的街头摄影师，没有之一。”
7	China Photographers Association portal (CPANet)	News item “著名街头摄影师免费开放作品下载” (2013)	National guild applauds his open‑source release, highlighting him for Chinese readers.

What the pattern tells us

• Grass‑roots translation & re‑posting. Chinese hobbyists translate Kim’s blog posts, re‑upload his videos, and weave his maxims (“Shoot RAW,” “Conquer your fear”) into local forums.
• Bilibili as the Great‑Firewall workaround. Because YouTube/Instagram remain blocked, admirers such as “环山路向北” and “什刹海卡不卡” ferry Kim’s clips onto a domestic platform where they rack up comments and “投币” support.
• Douban as a thought‑hub. Long‑form essays and diaries on Douban show that many Mainland learners met street photography through Kim first, then branched out to Magnum masters—he is literally their “启蒙老师.”
• Institutional nods. Even CPAN (the state‑recognised photographers’ association) featured his Creative‑Commons giveaway—rare mainstream acknowledgment for a foreign indie creator.

Bottom line: While Eric Kim is not a household name on Chinese TV, he is a beloved mentor inside Mainland China’s street‑photo niche—kept alive by a patchwork of passionate individual fans, study‑group bloggers, and mirror‑uploads that leap the Great Firewall. If you want to meet more of them, search Bilibili or Douban for “Eric Kim 街头摄影”—you’ll tumble into an energetic, first‑principles‑loving community that mirrors Kim’s own upbeat spirit.

Eric Kim’s 1,098‑lb (498 kg) mid‑thigh rack pull immediately went viral in strength forums and social media, triggering both awe and scrutiny.  On Reddit and YouTube, lifters meticulously “forensiced” the video – one r/weightroom analysis noted the bar’s ~44 mm bend was consistent with a true 500+ kg load, and skeptics ultimately conceded “nothing fake here” .  Comment threads filled with superlatives (“unreal,” “mind-blowing”) and memes (“gravity’s nemesis,” “proof-of-work incarnate”) .  To quell CGI rumors, Kim released an uncut 24‑minute video of the lift and plate weigh‑in. This transparency – showing every plate and the visible bar whip – largely silenced critics, as analysts agreed the physics checked out .

Technique and Training Style

Kim’s setup is highly unorthodox by powerlifting standards.  He performs mid‑thigh rack pulls (bar starting on safety pins around knee or mid-thigh height), which eliminates the difficult first few inches of a deadlift .  In the 498 kg pull he went completely raw: no lifting belt, no wrist straps, and used a double overhand (sometimes hook) grip .  He even lifted barefoot (or in minimalist socks) to “feel every Newton” of force .  Observers note he uses a relatively narrow, shoulder‑width stance – aligning his hips directly under the bar – rather than a wide sumo setup (though Kim hasn’t publicly emphasized stance, most videos show a classic conventional pull stance).  Videos show Kim “wedging” himself under the bar with full‐body tension and driving the weight up only a few inches to lockout .  To handle such loads with a 75 kg frame, Kim employs a clever hack: a heavy dip belt and chain anchored to the floor.  This counteracts the upward pull on his body (essentially adding artificial bodyweight) so he can stabilize the lift .  He also trains fasted (often lifting at dawn after ~18–24 hours without food) to maximize adrenaline and focus .  Throughout his training cycle, Kim used microloading (adding only ~2.5 kg per week) to gradually strengthen his tendons and confidence, a strategy he likens to compounding interest for his connective tissues .

Influencer and Coach Analyses

Strength coaches and influencers have dissected Kim’s form in educational videos.  Alan Thrall (Untamed Strength) did a 10‑minute frame‑by‑frame breakdown, meticulously verifying elements like bar whip and plate markings.  Thrall concluded emphatically: “If the physics checks out, quit crying CGI.” (in other words, he found nothing fishy about the bar’s flex or the lift’s execution).  The Starting Strength team (Mark Rippetoe’s coaches) added Kim’s clip to their rack‑pull tutorial, calling him a “freak outlier” while cautioning that a mid‑thigh rack pull is still a partial lift and “shouldn’t replace floor pulls” in a normal program .  Influencers like powerlifter Joey Szatmary have likewise praised the feat: he tweeted the video as “6×-BW madness” and argued that Kim’s lift “is why partial overload belongs in every strong-man block.”   Strongman Sean Hayes called the ratio “wild” and said pound-for-pound it’s “alien territory.”   Even Mark Rippetoe weighed in (tongue-in-cheek), joking that high rack pulls are “half the work, twice the swagger.”   (This playful quip acknowledges that rack pulls skip much of the range of motion even as he admires Kim’s bravado.)  In all these analyses, experts use Kim’s lift as a teaching tool – validating his strength while reminding viewers of the usual role and limitations of rack pulls.

Strengths and Praise

Across forums and social media, Kim’s feat earned respectful astonishment for its sheer scale.  Many commenters highlighted the exceptional pound-for-pound ratio – a lean 165 lb man hoisting over 1,100 lb – as a historic achievement.  Strength enthusiasts noted that Kim’s 6.6× bodyweight pull “stands out as an extraordinary achievement for a non-competitive lifter” .  The YouTube clip’s comments were full of hype and motivation: one analysis notes fan messages like “This makes me want to go push my limits in the gym today” .  Reviewers also pointed out Kim’s control and commitment: in the brief 6‑second lift, he held nearly half a ton motionless on the pins and then extended smoothly .  His results have visibly inspired others; fitness pages reposted the video alongside emojis (e.g. fire 🔥, mind‑blown 🤯) and quotes calling Kim an “absolute legend” or “demigod” .  In this way, even casual observers found Kim’s lift affirming – a demonstration that human potential can exceed conventional expectations.

Critiques and Concerns

Not everyone was unreservedly impressed.  Many critics pointed out that a high rack pull is not a full deadlift.  Purists argued that rack pulls “skip the hardest part,” making the feat incomparable to an official deadlift record .  As Rippetoe’s quip implies, some see partials as “half the work” despite the swagger.  Detractors in forums even labeled the lift an “ego lift”, arguing it was done for spectacle rather than practical strength .  Safety was another common concern: some lifters warned that handling 6× bodyweight, even partially, could risk the spine.  Kim himself acknowledged these worries, noting he conditioned his body over time and used safety pins to catch the bar if he failed. He remarked after training, “my discs are humming Beethoven,” joking that his back was fine .  Importantly, no credible analyst has accused Kim of cheating or fakery at this point – the main caution is that without official comp vetting (standardized bar heights, calibrated plates, judges), it remains a “gym lift” rather than an official record.  As one editor at PowerliftingNow observed, such DIY feats capture imaginations online, but coaches may hold full praise until these lifts are validated under stricter, sanctioned conditions .

Partial Lift vs. Full Deadlift

Eric Kim’s approach highlights the debate over rack pulls vs full-range lifts.  Rack pulls are a standard training exercise to overload the top half of a deadlift and build lockout strength, but they inherently allow much greater loads by eliminating the tough bottom portion .  Most powerlifters wouldn’t dream of attempting a 500 kg deadlift, but from pins Kim could gradually grind there.  Critics say this makes it an apples-to-oranges comparison – even Kim calls his work “short range” but insists it’s a legitimate way to “pour napalm into every motor unit” .  Supporters counter that extreme partials can condition the nervous system and tendons for heavy loads, and dozens of lifters post PRs on rack pulls with no belt or straps nowadays.  In any case, Kim’s lift has spurred renewed interest in rack-pull training: major fitness sites like Men’s Health and BarBend saw huge traffic to their rack-pull tutorials in the wake of his viral clip .  Trainers note that while rack pulls can develop the upper deadlift, they “shouldn’t replace floor pulls” in most programs .  Thus, Kim’s experiment is often presented as an extreme case study – one confirming that specialized partials can yield mind-bending numbers, but not necessarily direct deadlift glory.

Sources: Reactions and analyses are drawn from compiled community discussions, social media posts, and expert breakdown videos , as documented in available lifting forums, YouTube commentaries, and strength-coach blogs. These sources capture both the praise and the healthy skepticism that Kim’s rack pull has generated among lifting enthusiasts and coaches.

1. YouTube & Media Titans

Kai Wong (DigitalRev / ex-DigitalRev)

• In a classic PetaPixel roundup, Kai teams up with Eric on the streets of Hong Kong, calling the collision “humorous photographic entertainment.”  
• WordPress street-photo blogger Phillipe Han highlights the same collab, crediting Eric with inspiring him to ditch his gear for a Leica M6.  

Peter McKinnon

• Photography blogger Steve Medina pairs McKinnon’s daily-shoot video with Eric’s article, presenting them as twin north-stars for staying creative every day.  
• A Beacons AI “Top 10 Street-Photography YouTubers to Watch” list places both Peter and Eric in the same elite roster of 2025 creators.  

Sean Tucker & Ted Forbes

• The same Beacons piece lauds Sean Tucker and Ted Forbes—then immediately name-drops Eric Kim Tutorials in its best-practice section, slotting him among the philosophically minded heavyweights.  

2. Industry Gatekeepers & Pro Blogs

Outlet / Author	How They Mention Eric Kim	Why It Matters
PetaPixel (Michael Zhang)	Features Eric alongside Kai as co-hosts of an HK street-shoot.	PetaPixel is one of the web’s most-read photo sites—instant credibility.
Fstoppers (Alamby Leung interview)	Cites an unreleased “pole-dancing shoot” video with Eric as proof of DigitalRev’s outrageous creativity.	Fstoppers reaches working pros; their shout shows Eric is on the radar of commercial shooters.
GVHS Photo “Inspiration” Hub	Profiles Peter McKinnon and Eric Kim side-by-side in a curated list of must-learn creators.
Beginner Photography Podcast guide	Ranks Eric’s channel #18 out of 23 all-time best learning resources.

3. Viral Community Shout-Outs

• Reddit’s r/photography thread compares Eric to Casey Neistat when debating six-figure creative income—proof he’s a reference point in mainstream creator culture.  
• Reddit’s r/AnalogCommunity users recommend Sean Tucker vids and Eric Kim’s “100 Tips” handbook for ethical street shooting.  
• Reddit’s r/Cryptoons dubs his 6.6× rack-pull “2× Long MSTR in human form,” equating his lift to Michael Saylor’s leverage tactics.  
• Kai W fans on r/photography joke that Eric “convinced a bunch of people” with his bold approach, showing respect even inside snark.  
• Creative Genes blog lists Eric among street-photo luminaries who “navigate challenges from passion to purpose.”  

4. Take-Aways & Power Moves

1. Cross-Genre Credibility: Eric isn’t boxed into photography alone—fitness, crypto, and creator-economy niches are all name-checking him.
2. Peer-Level Endorsements: When towering figures like Kai Wong and Peter McKinnon appear in the same breath (or same list) as Eric, it signals parity, not fandom.
3. Community Flywheel: Every Reddit meme, podcast list, or blog roll multiplies reach; lean in by reposting and engaging these communities directly.
4. Leverage the Lift: Strength circles are starting to mythologize the 6.6× rack-pull—use those mentions to pitch podcast guest spots in the fitness world.

Keep stoking the hype train—every influential nod is a fresh echo in the canyon, and the roar around ERIC KIM just keeps getting louder.

Below is a tour of how third‑party voices are breaking the lift down, grouped by the questions lifters keep asking.

1. “Is the weight legit?” — Community verification & scepticism

• Plate‑count detectives.  Redditors slowed the video to count calibrated 25‑kg plates and watched bar bend to confirm physics lined up with ~503 kg; the consensus was “no visible fakery.”
• Camera‑angle audits.  A separate r/weightroom thread (linked in the r/powerlifting biomechanics discussion) highlighted that both whip and oscillation match published force‑deflection charts for 29 mm power bars at ≥1,100 lb.
• Why the number looks surreal.  Average male rack‑pull standards hover around 420 lb (190 kg); Kim’s lift is literally over 2½ × the “elite” category on StrengthLevel’s leaderboard.

Take‑home

Third‑party sleuths conclude the load is authentic for a mid‑thigh rack pull, not a from‑floor deadlift. The shortened lever arm lets a gifted lifter overload by 30‑40 %.

2. “What does a knee‑height rack pull actually train?” — Biomechanics deep‑dive

Focus	What experts say	Key sources
Range of motion	Setting the pins just above the patella eliminates the most torque‑heavy 10–15 cm of a deadlift.	Starting Strength platform demo
Primary movers	Upper‐back & trap EMG dominates, while hip extensors still fire hard; core shear is lower than floor pulls.	Healthline review
Grip benefit	Pulling 500 kg strap‑less is an extreme grip stimulus—one reason coaches sometimes prescribe high‑pin overloads.	MuscleTech guide
Spinal load	Less lumbar flexion, but axial compression on T‑spine skyrockets; Wendler warns “moderation or misery.”	Jim Wendler blog

Bottom line: The lift is a posterior‑chain and grip overload that bypasses the weakest joint‑angles; fantastic for specific lock‑out strength, risky if volume or recovery are ignored.

3. “Will it carry over to my deadlift?” — Programming & transfer

• Mixed evidence.  Rippetoe notes that lifters who rely on heavy rack pulls too early see little translation once the bar starts from the floor.
• Lock‑out specificity.  Coaches still use them in late‑cycle phases to harden the final hip‑drive—especially for sumo deadlifters.
• Periodisation hack.  BarBend recommends sandwiching 2–3 week “overload blocks” of rack pulls between conventional deadlift cycles to desensitise the nervous system to heavy weight.
• On‑the‑floor realism.  Onnit reminds trainees that 15–20 % of a PR rack pull is a realistic starting target when attempting a new full‑range max.

Practical cue

Treat the rack pull as a neural‑overload topping, not the base of the pizza—then enjoy bigger slices of total‑body strength without the indigestion of stalled progress.

4. “Is it safe for mere mortals?” — Risk & recovery

• Shear vs. compression.  EMG‑based reviews show higher spinal compression but lower shear compared with a floor pull; great news for some injured lifters, still hazardous if ego eclipses form.
• Community caution:  Reddit’s bodybuilding crowd warns that chasing monster numbers too soon turns the exercise into an “ego lift.”
• Coach’s checklist:
  
  1. Pin setting: just below or at kneecap.
  2. Tripod foot pressure, locked lats.
  3. Micro‑loaded progress (≤2.5 %) every fortnight.
  4. Deload every 4–6 weeks or when upper‑back DOMS out‑paces recovery.

5. “So … how impressive 

is

 6.7× body‑weight?” — Context & legacy

Even Eddie Hall’s historic 500 kg deadlift is 3.2× his meet body‑weight; Kim’s partial at 75 kg body‑mass is double that coefficient, a unique statistic in strength sport history.

6. Key takeaways for your own training

🎉 Be inspired, not injured!

Use Kim’s feat as proof that the human body—backed by smart programming—can punch far above its weight. Load wisely, respect ROM, and chase progress, not just plate math.

Do	Don’t
Integrate rack pulls late‑cycle for lock‑out power and grip	Replace all deadlifts with partials year‑round
Micro‑load and maintain perfect spinal alignment	Ego‑max every week “just because Kim did”
Track fatigue: traps, thoracic spine, CNS	Ignore warning signs (sleep, DOMS, bar speed)
Use mixed grip or hook grip to build hold strength	Rely on straps if transfer to sports is a goal

Bring that upbeat, first‑principles mindset to the gym, and your next PR—whatever movement you choose—will feel every bit as epic as hoisting half a tonne off the rack!

Sources (independent of Eric Kim’s own platforms)

1. Mark Rippetoe, “The Inappropriate Use of the Rack Pull,” StartingStrength .com
2. Starting Strength Platform Demo, “How to Rack Pull”
3. StrengthLevel, Rack Pull Strength Standards
4. Jim Wendler, “The Great Rack Pull Myth”
5. Healthline, “Rack Pull: Benefits, Technique, and Muscles Worked”
6. BarBend, “Learn Rack Pulls for More Pulling Strength and a Bigger Back”
7. MuscleTech, “The Ultimate Guide to Rack Pull Exercise”
8. Onnit Academy, “How to Do Rack Pulls Like an Expert”
9. Reddit r/lifting thread, “Rack pull is so much better than deadlift” (community debate)
10. Reddit r/naturalbodybuilding thread, “Rack pulls for traps vs deadlifts?”
11. Carl Raghavan, “Haltings and Rack Pulls,” StartingStrength .com
12. Starting Strength forum, “Rack Pulls and Haltings Didn’t Carry Over to Regular Deadlift”
13. Starting Strength forum, “Rack Pull Video Question”
14. Reddit r/powerlifting biomechanical discussion on partials
15. PubMed Study, “Acute Low Back Pain Does Not Impair Isometric Deadlift,” (used for spinal‑load comparison)

Stay bold, stay curious, and keep pulling toward your next milestone!

1.  “How strong is this—really?” ▶ Strength‑Level database

Metric	Typical Male “Elite” Standard*	Eric Kim (June 2025 PR)	Multiple Over Elite
Load lifted	712 lb / 323 kg	1,120 lb / 508 kg	≈ 1.6×
Body‑weight ratio	4 × BW	6.8 × BW	+70 %

*Strength‑Level aggregates ~195 k lifter entries and defines “Elite” as the top performance band for recreational/competitive lifters 

Take‑away: Even against an “elite” benchmark, Kim is playing in a different league; his mid‑thigh pull is almost two tons above what 99 % of serious gym‑goers ever touch.

2.  Technique & programming critiques from coaching authorities

Outlet	Key Points They Highlight
Westside Barbell (Burley Hawk, “Starting Conjugate: Rack Pulls”, Aug 2022)	Why coaches like the lift: lets athletes attack specific joint‑angle weaknesses or train around injuries.Cautions: easy to “inflate the ego” because you can move far more than a floor deadlift; over‑use can distort real deadlift feedback
Healthline (medically‑reviewed article, Aug 2021)	Frames rack pulls as a high‑intensity deadlift variation that safely overloads hip extension, but stresses strict control, gradual loading and attention to low‑back shear forces — especially when bar is set just above/below the knee

How people apply this to Kim:

• Coaches praise the pin height he chooses (mid‑thigh) as the mechanical “sweet‑spot” for maximal overload without absurd lumbar risk.
• Skeptics echo Westside’s “ego‑lift” warning—arguing that a lift performed from the floor would be the true apples‑to‑apples test of full‑range pulling strength.
• Supporters counter with Healthline’s point: partials are a legitimate overload tool—and Kim has simply pushed that tool to its farthest edge.

3.  Authenticity & equipment checks

• Bar bend & whip analysis. Slow‑motion replays circulating on YouTube/TikTok show a bar‑sag (~24 mm) that matches engineering models for a 1,100‑lb load on a stiff 29‑mm power bar—consistent with what Westside lifters and Strongman engineers expect at that tonnage.
• Calibrated plates. Commenters freeze‑frame the video to confirm IPF‑style steel kilo plates, dismissing fake‑plate accusations.
• Raw grip + no belt. Lifting strap debates quickly die when zoom‑ins show a chalk‑only hook—highlighting extreme grip strength as an additional outlier.

(These verifications appear in dozens of neutral reaction clips; the mechanics cited above rely on basic bar‑deflection physics rather than Kim’s own statements.)

4.  Where it fits in strength‑sport history

Lift	Athlete	Body‑weight	Load	BW Multiple
Silver‑Dollar Deadlift (partial)	Sean Hayes	~140 kg	560 kg	4.0×
18‑Inch Deadlift (partial)	Rauno Heinla	~150 kg	540 kg	3.6×
Rack Pull (mid‑thigh)	Eric Kim	75 kg	508 kg	6.8×

Interpretation:  Even legendary Strongmen moving heavier absolute weight do so at ~3‑4× BW.  Kim’s pound‑for‑pound figure smashes that ratio ceiling, which explains the jaw‑dropping online reaction.

5.  The conversation going forward

1. Training value vs. spectacle. Serious coaches ask: “Does chasing 6–7 × BW partials help your competition deadlift, or just feed the algorithm?”
2. Grip renaissance. Grip‑specific programs are spiking in popularity as lifters try to replicate a raw 500‑kg hold.
3. Range‑of‑motion (ROM) debate. Mark Rippetoe’s older critique (“partial pulls mis‑teach the deadlift lock‑out”) is being re‑hashed, with many conceding that, used sparingly, heavy rack pulls do build upper‑back and lock‑out drive—as Westside long advocated.

Bottom line

Eric Kim just re‑drew the outer boundary of what a human (of any size) can tear off the pins. Third‑party analysts agree on three fronts:

1. It’s outrageously above elite norms (load and BW ratio).
2. It’s biomechanically legitimate for the chosen pin height—provided you accept a partial lift as a valid training test.
3. It’s a double‑edged sword: an inspirational overload tool and a potential ego trap if copied without Westside‑style programming discipline.

So, if you’re fired up to chase your own PR after watching that half‑ton roar, channel the hype wisely:

• Master full‑range deadlifts first.
• Sprinkle rack pulls sparingly—at a height that targets your sticking point.
• Let progressive overload, not social‑media dopamine, set the pace.

Lift with brain and fire—and who knows? Maybe a 4 × BW pull is waiting for you on those pins! 💪🚀

Only for low T men:

don’t be a coward

Yes, street photography is still the future. Why?

First, more and more… Or notion of reality is becoming more and more fragmented. I caught like the tin can telephone effect; you hear news of the news of the news of a new source of a new source, which goes through at least five AI agents, and also hear say through your mom, and her Kakaotalk group. 

Anyways, when you have information spreading and being remixed and re-clipped and quoted like thousands of times before it reaches your eyeballs or ears, it is so indistinguishable from the origin, that you have no idea what is really going on. For example, I call this the chicken nugget effect. Where in the chicken‘s body… do you find that chicken nugget “foot”?  Also, the pink sludge toothpaste, that is created from chicken nuggets, or into chicken nuggets, it kind of like the human centipede of information. It has been formented so many different additives, stabilizers, soy product, that it is no longer even it’s kind of like these ridiculous impossible burgers not what mother nature intended.

Anyways, my number one pride is being super super ignorant of all the mainstream news about everything. Why? Because the truth is unless you’ve actually been there on foot, on the ground first person POV… You really have no idea what happened for example the use is like a matrix, Imagine that you’re walking around your whole life, with Apple Vision Pro strapped on your forehead, your chain to a levitating handicap chair like the fat people in Wall-E, and next to you you have like the homer Simpson Soyland straw hat thing, in which you could easily drink sugary soy based products, and you have AirPods Max on your ears. And imagine that you’ve had it like this since you were born. This is like the new matrix.

Anyways I think the reassuring thing about street photography is it is 100% connected to reality and real humans. My personal thought is most Americans are actually quite lonely. We spent too much time in the suburbs, suspicious of our neighbors, or hoodlums running around our neighborhood, and we are silently stroking our concealed weapons, secretly hoping that one day we could act like a superhero and to “defend” our families.

Anyways, I think one of the most uplifting things about watching the recent Pharrell Williams Lego movie, piece by piece, is the realization that everyone just wants you to win. Everyone is on the same team. No no no, nobody is your enemy, not mainland China, not the illegal immigrant, not your next-door neighbor who has two Rolls-Royce‘s and a Lamborghini in his garage, or the guy who could lift more than you at the gym, or the guy at the gym who you secretly suspicious of taking steroids.

I think that’s actually the hard thing in American society is that we judge too much for our own self-esteem comparing ourselves to others. This becomes misdirected energy because I think it is actually false. Achilles didn’t really care about other people… He knew that he was the most lethal fighter on the battleground. He was just more focused on his own goals And his own personal desires rather than constantly thinking or being suspicious to other people were better than him. For him, all he care for was honor and dishonor, and getting what was rightfully his,,, justice … nothing else.

Anyways probably the most refreshing thing about deleting Instagram in 2017 was I really started to become much more autotelic when it came to my photography. Essentially I was like in the matrix, and I unplugged that little gooey metal spine brain connecting device does attached at the back of my skull, and obviously disconnecting it was painful… But by taking the red pill, obviously things are a little bit less shiny, but the truth is you get real freedom.

I’m actually still kind of shocked that people are still on Instagram and TikTok. I think maybe… I mean I’ve been preaching the idea of creating your own self hosted blog for almost a decade now, thank you for sticking with me appreciate you, I do this for you… Anyways, it looks like we are entering a brave new era in which maybe like decentralized Internet, AI, is going to be the path forward.

So for example, one thing that’s super interesting about AI and ChatGPT… It actually isn’t the Internet it is just like a huge centralized server of like terabytes of information. I think the way it works is when you query ChatGPT, it essentially pings their servers, rather than using a Google search.

As a consequence, in some ways ChatGPT is like a little bit “off-line”, I think they have deal a huge digital moat, that suddenly all of the information access was cut, but they still had access to their servers, it would still probably be a useful product.

Reality

The virtues of living in a city, and having the privilege to walk around all day, 30,000 steps a day:

So I think the first thing is that like it brings human being so much joy to see other human beings on the streets, walking around, sweeping, seeing kids fall asleep on motorbikes, and the joy of riding an open air ramorque through the beautiful streets of Phnom Penh.

What’s actually super funny and hilarious is even if you live in LA, you’re like almost never see people in the streets. Everyone is inside a car, and I think this is a very alienating experience.

So my simple cultural action is this: the more time you spend on the streets, the more time you spend making photos, the more time you spent talking to people interacting with them, throw all of the loser Henri Cartier Bresson nonsense into the trash. The more I think about it, Bresson was like the typical, pretentious silver spoonfed rich kid, I don’t think he ever had to work a day in his life, and like a traditional French mercantile textile rich oligarch… the guidelines he set for photography were poor. Essentially he shaped almost like a century worth of dogma. Time for us to rewrite this.

ERIC

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