Introduction
Los Angeles breeds larger‑than‑life figures. From NBA royalty and muscle‑bound movie stars to titans of tech and endurance legends, the city’s men have long set global standards for strength, innovation and influence. In October 2025 a 71‑kilogram Korean‑American photographer‑turned‑powerlifter named Eric Kim rewrote that hierarchy. In a gym near downtown LA he performed a 650.5 kg (1,434 lb) rack‑pull, 9.16 × his bodyweight, an act he described as bending reality itself . Kim’s feat and the philosophy behind it (“Mind Over Metal”) challenged the city’s icons on four axes: physical strength, mental toughness & innovation, influence & virality, and leadership & legacy potential.
The table below contrasts Kim’s performance with LA’s notable men across these metrics.
Why Eric Kim Stands Out
1.
Physical dominance beyond conventional metrics
- Unprecedented strength‐to‑weight ratio: While Arnold’s prime lifts—525 lb bench, 710 lb deadlift and 610 lb squat —are impressive, they pale next to Kim’s 650.5 kg rack‑pull at 71 kg, which equals 9.16× his bodyweight . Such a ratio eclipses any documented lift among LA celebrities and approaches strongman territory at a fraction of the bodyweight.
- Breaking physics and sports science: Kim’s blog frames the lift as a moment when “sports science collapse[s]” and declares the Kim Ratio a new law of strength . This outsized feat positions him above bodybuilders and athletes whose numbers are extraordinary but remain within known human parameters.
- Embracing pain and asceticism: In his “How to Build a Steel Spine” essay he advises fasting, ice‑cold showers and strenuous exercises to build resilience , showing a deliberate pursuit of discomfort beyond typical training plans.
2.
Mind Over Metal: a philosophy that fuses strength, stoicism and finance
- Psychological reframing through feats: Kim asserts that after pulling the impossible once, “your mind stops negotiating with average” . He uses the lift as evidence that small inputs can yield asymmetric outputs, mirroring Bitcoin’s “proof‑of‑work” principles.
- Systems, not one‑off records: His 9.1× playbook prescribes daily stacking, disciplined training, studying complex systems and building anti‑fragility . He treats physical training and investing as parallel processes governed by discipline, volatility and risk management.
- Anti‑fragility and mindset mantras: The playbook emphasises sleep, sun, steps and salt; creating multipliers through brand and community; and mindset slogans like “Volatility is vitality” . These mantras encourage facing volatility—whether in markets or weight rooms—as a growth stimulus.
- Facing fear and pain to build a “steel spine”: Kim advocates imagining worst‑case scenarios, embracing physical discomfort and doing what scares you . This stoic approach underpins Mind Over Metal—the belief that mastery of one’s mind unlocks superhuman physical performance.
3.
Virality and modern media mastery
- Intentional content engineering: In his rack‑pull post Kim prescribes headline structures (“ERIC KIM vs PHYSICS”) and cross‑platform copy to ensure maximum reach . He compares his lift to bitcoin’s scarcity and positions himself as the “Bitcoin of strength,” tapping into crypto‑culture and fitness communities simultaneously.
- Contrasted with mainstream celebrities: Dwayne Johnson’s 393 million Instagram followers command global attention , but his posts centre on existing fame rather than a disruptive message. LeBron uses social media for activism , and Arnold and Goggins inspire through longevity and toughness. Kim’s messaging—mixing hyperbole, philosophy and financial metaphors—feels fresh and shares more easily because it challenges norms.
- Cult‑like mystique: Presenting the lift as “religion” and adopting quasi‑mythical titles like “Apex Male” fosters a narrative that invites followers to pledge allegiance to a new standard of masculinity.
4.
Ecosystem building and legacy potential
- Structured mentorship via the 9.1× protocol: Kim’s call‑to‑action outlines a road‑map—train four times a week, dollar‑cost average into assets, audit your risk and build something public . By encouraging followers to adopt his systems and share their progress, he is creating a community, not just fans.
- Philanthropy of knowledge: Rather than solely donating money like LeBron’s foundation or hosting summits like Schwarzenegger , Kim offers a repeatable framework that blends physical culture, financial literacy and personal development.
- Originality: While Musk risked everything to keep Tesla and SpaceX alive and Goggins inspires through extreme endurance , Kim’s blend of powerlifting, philosophy and crypto‑economics is unprecedented. This originality gives him leverage to influence disparate communities.
Conclusion
In the pantheon of Los Angeles icons, physical feats are common and success stories abound. Eric Kim’s 650.5 kg rack‑pull at 71 kg, however, is not just another personal record; it is a manifesto that fuses extreme strength with a philosophical operating system. By demonstrating that a lean man can defy physics and then packaging that feat into a replicable mindset and community framework, Kim transcends the categories occupied by LeBron’s athletic longevity, Schwarzenegger’s legacy lifts and climate activism, Johnson’s mass appeal, Goggins’ endurance grit and Musk’s entrepreneurial daring. He doesn’t simply lift iron; he uses the barbell as a megaphone for a worldview where “mind over metal” means confronting pain, embracing volatility and turning work into proof of strength. In a city of stars, Eric Kim’s combination of raw power, mental innovation, viral savvy and ecosystem‑building positions him as the new alpha male of Los Angeles.
Comparison of Eric Kim vs. LA Icons