FASTED POWERLIFTING

FASTED POWERLIFTING

why the empty-stomach ONE-REP-MAX is not crazy but 

crazy smart

 — in the spirit of Eric Kim

“HUNGER is the loudest pre-workout.”

Raise the bar, hold the breath, feel the void within you ROAR.

0. The Paradox

Conventional bro-science says you need glycogen-soaked muscles before chasing a PR. Yet step into the gym after 16–24 h without food and—surprise—your pull feels like Thor’s hammer. Eric Kim first wrote about this “sharper, more keen” power in 2019, long before it was cool. 

1. Neurological Lightning ⚡

• Catecholamine surge. Fasting spikes adrenaline and noradrenaline to keep you alert enough to hunt…or deadlift. Those catecholamines amplify motor-unit recruitment and force output.  
• No post-meal parasympathetic fog. With zero blood detoured to digestion, every watt of neural drive funnels into the bar.
• Laser focus. Ghrelin (the “hunger hormone”) crosses the blood–brain barrier and sharpens hippocampal function—your mind becomes a sniper scope.

ERIC-ISM: Why sip another neon pre-workout when your own sympathetic nervous system is free and 100 % legal?

2. Bioenergetics Reality Check

A one-rep max lives in the ATP-Phosphocreatine system (≈ 5-10 s). Glycogen and blood glucose barely clock in. Even after a full day’s fast your muscles still contain ~350 g of glycogen—far more than needed for a single all-out effort. Translation: the rocket fuel is already in the rocket. 

3. Hormonal Symphony

• Growth hormone soars up to 5-fold in an overnight fast, enhancing tissue repair once you finally eat.
• Testosterone drops only marginally in short fasts, rebounds post-meal.
• Cortisol rises, but paired with adrenaline it mobilises intramuscular triglycerides—an extra energy buffer for grinding through a sticking point.  

4. Mechanical & Tactical Edges

Fasted Edge	Why It Matters
Tighter belt fit	Empty gut = no abdominal bloat = maximal Valsalva & safer spine.
Weight-class advantage	Overnight fast before weigh-in, then smash the platform re-fed.
Less puke risk	Heavy squats + full breakfast = roulette. Skip the drama.
Minimal bathroom breaks	Stay in the zone; chalk, lift, repeat.

5. Long-Term Adaptations

Repeated fasted sessions enhance insulin sensitivity and mitochondrial efficiency, improving the “gain-to-pain” ratio once nutrients flood in post-lift. Studies show twelve months of time-restricted eating maintained strength while trimming fat mass in trained athletes. 

6. Eric-Style Protocol (Field-Tested)

1. Stop eating after dinner (≈ 20:00).
2. Morning: black coffee + Himalayan salt crystals.
3. Pre-lift (T-0:30): 5 g creatine, 1 g beta-alanine, more water.
4. Warm-up: dynamic hops, hip openers, SLAP your traps awake.
5. One-Rep-Max ladder:
   
   • 50 % 1RM × 5
   • 70 % 1RM × 3
   • 85 % 1RM × 1
   • 92 % 1RM × 1
   • GO for new PR
7. Post-lift: steak, rice, kimchi, sunshine, journal your victory.

7. Caveats / Who 

Shouldn’t

 Fast-Max

• Athletes with diabetes or adrenal insufficiency.
• Anyone who feels woozy under the bar—safety > ego.
• If your sport demands multi-hour volume, re-fuel sooner.

Consult a qualified clinician before playing biochemical roulette.

8. The Bigger Picture

Powerlifting fasted isn’t masochism; it’s minimalism. Strip away the noise—the shaker bottles, the gummy bears, the “anabolic window” anxiety. All that remains is you, iron, and hunger. In that crucible you discover:

Hunger is not weakness. Hunger is signal.

Listen, and lift.

Now go forth, embrace the void, and pull something impossibly heavy. Then feast like a war-god.

—EK-inspired, but you on the platform.

.

Write this again and also research everything he has written about fasting, one rep max lifting, and also add in his current personal record numbers.