Feel the gravitational
glitch
🚀
Eric Kim’s now‑legendary 582 kg (1,283 lb) rack‑pull at roughly 71 kg body‑weight is the kind of number that makes calculators cry. That’s an 8.2× BW lift—far beyond any full‑range deadlift ever recorded, and it’s why fans half‑jokingly call him “invulnerable.”
1 — What did he
actually
do?
- Movement: Rack‑pull from knee height. The bar started on safety pins roughly level with the patella, eliminating the hardest portion of a conventional deadlift.
- Setup: Chalk and lifting straps (no belt or suit), so grip was no longer the limiting factor.
- Verification: Multiple camera angles and plate counts were posted, but the lift was outside formal competition, so it remains an informal record.
2 — Why does the load look super‑human?
| Factor | How it turbo‑charges the number | Sources |
| Shorter range of motion | Removing the first ~20 cm of the pull eliminates the weakest joint angles, letting most lifters handle 20‑40 % more weight. | |
| Straps | Grip is no longer the bottleneck, so you’re limited only by hip/back strength and spinal stability. | |
| Neural over‑load practice | Supra‑max singles teach the nervous system to recruit more motor units, so the bar moves at all under that giant load. | |
| Psychology & persona | Kim treats each attempt like myth‑making—roars, dramatic music, all the theatrics. That adrenaline spike genuinely boosts force output in short bursts. |
Compare: the official full deadlift world record is 501 kg by Hafþór Björnsson—already epic, but only ~2.7× his BW. Kim’s partial‑rep ratio is triple that.
3 — How does a 71 kg human
survive
582 kg on the hands?
- Progressive connective‑tissue conditioning
Kim logged years of incremental rack‑pull jumps—500 lb ➜ 600 lb ➜ 700 lb, etc.—giving tendons, ligaments, and spinal stabilisers time to thicken and adapt. - Favourable leverages
A relatively long torso + average‑length arms means the knee‑height bar sits close to his hip hinge, minimising shearing torque on the spine. - Joint stacking & bracing mastery
He locks the load over the heel, wedges shoulders behind the bar, and uses a huge diaphragmatic breath to turn the torso into a hydraulic cylinder. (Mis‑brace here and the lift simply wouldn’t break the pins.) - Mental “invulnerability” loop
Every successful over‑load rep feeds a self‑image of being unbreakable, which sharpens focus and reduces hesitation—the psychological equivalent of armour.
4 — Is he
really
invulnerable?
Short answer: No human is. Rack‑pulls shift risk from the lumbar discs to the thoracic spine and connective tissue; a mis‑grooved 500 kg+ attempt can still tear muscles or worse. Kim’s “god‑mode” branding is more creative myth‑making than anatomical fact—but myth‑making can be a potent performance enhancer when paired with smart progression and recovery.
5 — Steal the super‑power (safely!)
| Step | Action |
| Anchor form first | Own conventional deadlifts at 1.5‑2× BW before dabbling with partials. |
| Start high, drop slow | Begin with the bar above kneecap, add weight in 5‑10 kg jumps, then lower pin height over cycles instead of piling on plates forever. |
| Limit singles | 3‑5 heavy singles, once every 7‑10 days, is plenty—rack‑pulls are central‑nervous‑system napalm. |
| Balance with core & hamstring work | Heavy bar‑bell good‑mornings, reverse hypers, and planks fortify the tissues that absorb the brunt of supra‑max loading. |
| Use the hype wisely | Crank your music, channel your inner “Double‑God,” but respect the physics—rack the bar if bracing feels off. |
Launch‑pad thought
Eric Kim’s 582 kg moment isn’t a loophole that makes him immortal—it’s proof that smart over‑load + relentless belief can bend (but not break) the rules of what seems possible. Harness the idea of invulnerability as rocket fuel, build your body like a fortress, and keep stacking those PRs—because gravity is only a suggestion when your mindset is max hype. 💥