Eric Kim – originally known as a street photographer and blogger – has in recent years transformed into a self‑styled fitness icon, branding himself as “Proof‑of‑Work incarnate” and promoting what he calls the God Body. At its core, God Body is an extreme regimen of strength training, strict diet, and unyielding mindset, all woven into his public persona. According to his own writings and interviews, Kim’s approach emphasizes maximal lifts, an almost militaristic discipline, and a warrior‑like self‑image . This manifests in both his personal routine and the way he shares content: dramatic slogans, mythic narratives, and cross‑pollination of fitness with his photography brand. The following sections summarize his fitness routines, lifestyle philosophy, and how the God Body theme pervades his creative work and online presence (with citations to his blog posts, interviews, and videos).
Fitness: Training Regimen and “God Diet”
Kim’s training is built around heavy compound lifts at extreme loads. He focuses on rack pulls and partial deadlifts well above typical max – often 6–8× his bodyweight – to force adaptation. For example, Kim notes he regularly rack‑pulled 500–513 kg (≈6.7–6.8× his 75 kg bodyweight) and eventually 582 kg (≈8.2×) . His protocol (“Forge Process”) stresses “Single‑Lift Obsession” – honing a signature lift (like rack pulls) with daily micro‑plate progressions – and doing these lifts fasted and raw to maximize neural drive . He rejects typical gym gear: training barefoot and beltless (#NoBeltNoGlory) to toughen his core and focus on intensity . As he puts it, “Barefoot. Beltless. Raw. No fancy gear. Just my spine, my soul, and the gravitational pull of becoming something more than human.” . The ethos is “no rest days” – Kim explicitly writes “Overtraining is for the weak. You don’t ‘rest’ – you grow stronger between lifts… You go to war, every day… You don’t chase balance. You chase greatness.” .
Nutrition for God Body is similarly austere. Kim follows an almost carnivorous “Anabolic Diet of a God”. He eats primarily red meat, organs, eggs and animal fats, with virtually no carbohydrates or processed foods . His trademark meal plan is one giant carnivore feast each day (often after heavy lifting) – “no breakfast, no lunch, only one massive 100% carnivore dinner” . He shuns powders and supplements: “No powders. No excuses. Just food that echoes through history — warrior fuel” . In Kim’s words, “Every bite is a sacrifice to your future self”, and the goal is to fuel “strength and hormones (‘high T’) like a warrior”, not to count calories or macros . He also rejects conventional bulking/cutting cycles: no sugars, grains or even starches are needed – “Eating meat will not make you fat… The only things which make you fat include … potatoes, fruits, dairy, etc.” . In practice, Kim reports maintaining a lean 10–15% body fat on this regimen while gaining muscle and strength.
<table>
<tr><th><b>Training Principle</b></th><th><b>Description</b></th></tr>
<tr><td>Single‑Lift Obsession</td><td>Daily focus on one signature lift (e.g. rack‑pull) with progressive micro‑plate overload [oai_citation:14‡erickimphotography.com](https://erickimphotography.com/blog/author/admin/page/3/?query-0-page=1&noamp=mobile#:~:text=3,the%20God%20Body).</td></tr>
<tr><td>Fasted Heavy Singles</td><td>Perform maximal single‑rep lifts in a fasted state to recruit maximum adrenaline/catecholamines [oai_citation:15‡erickimphotography.com](https://erickimphotography.com/blog/author/admin/page/3/?query-0-page=1&noamp=mobile#:~:text=pull,%C3%A2%E2%82%AC%E2%80%9C%20Remove%20crutches%3B%20cultivate%20Stoic) [oai_citation:16‡erickim.com](https://erickim.com/home#:~:text=1).</td></tr>
<tr><td>Carnivore Fuel</td><td>Eat almost exclusively red meat, organ meats, eggs, and fats; minimal to zero carbs/sugars [oai_citation:17‡erickimphotography.com](https://erickimphotography.com/eric-kims-god-body-concept-meaning-transformation-training-and-impact/#:~:text=,Just%20food%20that%20echoes%20through) [oai_citation:18‡erickim.com](https://erickim.com/home#:~:text=Zero%20issues%20here,be%20assists%20in%20muscle%20building).</td></tr>
<tr><td>No Belt/No Music/No Mercy</td><td>Train raw (barefoot, beltless) and without distractions; forgo supportive gear to strengthen stabilizers and mental grit [oai_citation:19‡erickimphotography.com](https://erickimphotography.com/eric-kims-god-body-concept-meaning-transformation-training-and-impact/#:~:text=,the%20brink%20of%20his%20limits) [oai_citation:20‡erickimphotography.com](https://erickimphotography.com/blog/author/admin/page/3/?query-0-page=1&noamp=mobile#:~:text=3.%20Carnivore,%C3%A2%E2%82%AC%E2%80%9C%20Remove%20crutches%3B%20cultivate%20Stoic).</td></tr>
<tr><td>Mind‑Muscle‑Mythos Merge</td><td>Infuse lifting with philosophy: recite Nietzsche/Marcus Aurelius between sets, viewing each rep as “philosophy embodied” [oai_citation:21‡erickimphotography.com](https://erickimphotography.com/blog/author/admin/page/3/?query-0-page=1&noamp=mobile#:~:text=3.%20Carnivore,%C3%A2%E2%82%AC%E2%80%9C%20Remove%20crutches%3B%20cultivate%20Stoic).</td></tr>
</table>
His recovery and lifestyle habits also follow this militant theme. Kim maximizes sleep (“sleeping like a lion after the hunt” for ≥8 hours/night) but refuses traditional “rest days” . He practices hormesis (cold showers, sun exposure, fasting) to harden himself . For example, he schedules daily 15‑minute Stoic meditations, visualizing an “iron cathedral” body to cement focus . He alternates ice baths and saunas (“Contrast Therapy Berserker Sessions”) and even polyphasic sleep/light cycles in pursuit of “godlike efficiency” . In sum, the God Body regimen is ultra‑high intensity and volume, driven by an almost “fanatic more weight, more often” mindset . It breaks conventional rules – he himself calls the discipline “divine mania” – but by his own account it produced his dramatic gains (e.g. a 75 kg man hitting 498 kg pull) .
Lifestyle and Mindset
God Body is as much a mental philosophy as a workout. Kim portrays the journey as conquering inner weakness. He repeatedly stresses mind‑over‑muscle: “This isn’t about muscle… It never was. This is about dominance over self,” and he asks himself on hard days “What would a god do? A god doesn’t whine… A god does the work in silence.” . He believes the mind can literally shape the body: “Now when I look in the mirror… I see proof that the mind can carve the flesh into any form it desires.” . His language is grandiose on purpose: coining titles like “Ultra‑Mega‑Hyper‑Man”, calling a 552 kg pull the “God Lift”, or plotting a 666 kg attempt as a mythic “Number of the Beast” challenge . This mythmaking is a tool: framing ordinary workouts as epic battles against gravity turns discipline into narrative and motivation. He even frequently merges this with his Bitcoin interests (e.g. calling himself a “Bitcoin Spartan” or tagging #ProofOfWork) , positioning the God Body as part of a broader self‑sovereign, legendary identity.
Kim’s daily habits and aesthetics also reflect a minimalist, Spartan ethos. He writes extensively about pruning the inessential. As he explains, “minimalism is all about pruning away the inessential, in order to allow you to maximize the essential” . He cites Steve Jobs and Spartans as inspiration: e.g. the Spartans embraced frugality not for show, but “to focus on training, combat, and personal freedom.” . At one point Kim reached an “apex minimalism” (no laptop, only an iPad, one outfit) while living abroad, which “allowed maximum focus, productivity, and creativity” . In practice, he often favors a stark black wardrobe, a stripped‑down tech setup, and disciplined routines (e.g. daily meditation, writing, or exercise) to eliminate distractions .
Self‑empowerment is a constant theme. Kim’s blog uses slogans like “God is in the mirror… You are not your genetics… You are what you build.” . He insists fitness is meritocratic – “No syringe ever lifted 1,200 lbs for anyone. Sweat did. Grit did.” – and that anyone can attain their own “god body” by willpower and work . His language blends Stoicism, Nietzschean “self‑overcoming,” and even anime/hero tropes to drive this home. Overall, his lifestyle advice is an obsessive blend of motivational hard‑style (no excuses, embrace suffering) and minimalist focus (strip out everything but core goals). Followers see habit reminders like “Amor Fati” taped on equipment or hashtags #GODBODYPHILOSOPHY in posts – all reinforcing the mindset that discipline, not genetics or luck, is divine .
Photography & Branding Integration
Kim intentionally fuses the God Body ethos with his street photography brand. On his blog and social media he often uses fitness imagery as metaphors for creative practice, blurring the lines between gym discipline and artistry. For example, he wrote a “Street God” manifesto exhorting photographers to approach the world like deities: “Every photo you shoot is divine intervention… You are the street god.” . In that piece he literally instructs: “Walk Like a God” (move with purpose, announce your presence on the pavement) and “Hunt Daily” (storm the streets at dawn/noon/midnight, like a predatory warrior) . The blogger narrative often blends street scenes and struggle: “The street’s my canvas, and every soul on it is a brushstroke…I became a hunter, a poet, a goddamn philosopher with a lens.” (illustrating his wild, first‑person tone).
Crucially, Kim links his physical training to creative focus. In the “Train Beyond the Frame” section of the Street God post, he explicitly declares: “God Physiology isn’t just bench presses — it’s mental toughness. Cold showers…daily runs… fasting. Discipline in the mundane fuels godlike focus behind the lens.” . In other words, the same Spartan practices that harden his body are said to sharpen his vision and boldness on the streets. His branding emphasizes this crossover: photos of him flexing or lifting may accompany photography articles, and he captions images with combative, self‑empowerment slogans (e.g. “Don’t hate me because you wish you were god” as a tweet ).
Visually and thematically, the God Body imagery pervades his creative identity. He has referred to himself as a “demigod” in posts and even produced videos titled “ERIC KIM DEMIGOD BODY FLEX”, posing his physique as “artwork” alongside street images . His content mix (blog essays, photo tips, gym montages) all reinforce a macho, mythic personal brand: the photographer who trains like a hero and treats street snaps like epic proof of existence. In interviews and on his site he bills himself with grand epithets – e.g. “God Body Architect. Bitcoin Philosopher. Iron Addict.” – blurring the line between fitness guru and creative mentor .
Online Presence and Public Reception
Kim actively propagates the God Body concept across his digital platforms. His blog (erickimphotography.com) features numerous God Body posts, manifestos and how‑to guides. For instance, he’s written pieces explicitly titled “HOW I CRAFTED MY OWN GOD BODY” and “Are You Ready to Become God?”, which read like motivational battle journals and detail his carnivore diet, training steps, and commandments . He also maintains a dedicated “God Physiology” page listing tenets (e.g. “Bone‑Deep Strength”, “No Weakness”, “Eat Like a God”) in his trademark punchy style . These posts often mix in street photography themes (calling a neighborhood “your Olympus”) and serve as rallying cries for his followers.
On YouTube, Kim’s channel (~50K subscribers) blends street photography tutorials with workout videos and hype clips. He uploads raw footage of record attempts with bombastic titles (“I RACK PULL THE WORLD”, “When Man Becomes God”) . These clips typically show him in his garage gym lifting enormous loads (often letting out a primal roar upon completion). The over‑the‑top style is deliberate: one video’s title, “I AM GOD!”, accompanied a 561 kg pull, serving both as spectacle and inspiration (or trolling, depending on viewer) . His YouTube shorts and fitness tutorials often end with catchphrases like “Gravity is just a suggestion!” or “#MiddleFingerToGravity”, reinforcing the God Body mythos.
On Instagram and Twitter/X, Kim uses handles like @erickimfit (fitness content) and @erickimphoto (photography) to reach different audiences . He frequently posts clips of his lifts and flexing, captioned with fitness slogans and hashtagged #GodBody, #ProofOfWork, #FitnessGoddomination, etc. . When he achieved a 498 kg rack pull in June 2025, he cross‑posted the footage widely; it went viral with ~3 million YouTube views in 24 hours, and his Instagram Reels of the lift scored over 100,000 plays . Even brief motivational snippets (“24‑hour fast + 1 kg ribeye; record your lifts; tape ‘Amor Fati’ on the rack”) circulate as inspirational memes.
In newsletters and interviews he reiterates the same themes. For example, a background profile notes Kim “has an Instagram (@erickimfit) for fitness” and that “my theory: The more you workout and boost your testosterone, the more creatively inspired, productive, and motivated you will become.” (a quote from his blog) . The upshot: across every platform, Kim’s God Body idea is not a hidden module but a loud, central pillar. He projects himself as a one‑man movement, and his subscribers and followers are encouraged to adopt the persona (“Train like a god”, “Own your body”) alongside their cameras or barbells.
In summary, Eric Kim’s God Body is an all‑in personal brand: it prescribes an intense fitness routine (heavy lifts, fasting, carnivore diet), a militant mindset (no excuses, everyday war), and a minimalist lifestyle (stripped choices to maximize focus). He weaves this into his photographer persona through heroic metaphors and shared rhetoric. All of this is documented on his blog, in flashy videos, and on social feeds – a self‑made mythos that redefines his street photography image as much as it motivates his followers.
Sources: Eric Kim’s own blog posts, essays, and social posts as cited above . (Links are to his official site and content.)