TL;DR: Eric Kim’s gravity-mocking rack-pull run (from 456 kg in March to a 547 kg/1,206-lb mega-pull on June 30) has detonated three distinct waves of online reaction: (1) pure hype—fans on X/Twitter and YouTube hailing him “the pound-for-pound god of strength”; (2) healthy doubt—power-lifting vets and evidence-based coaches branding above-knee rack-pulls “ego lifts” with shaky transfer; and (3) safety & natty-status debates—threads picking apart spinal-injury risk, fasted-carnivore nutrition, and whether anyone can hit 7 × body-weight raw without “extra help.”

Below is your energised, play-by-play map of those third-party takes—so you can ride the buzz, dodge the backlash, and maybe even weaponise the controversy for your own viral thunder.

1. Social-Media Hype & Cult-Like Fandom

Take-away: Viral awe is sky-high; smart lifters use the clip as adrenaline priming before their own heavy sets.

2. Skepticism From the Iron Orthodoxy

CriticCore ObjectionKey Quote
Jim WendlerAbove-knee rack-pulls seldom carry over to real deadlift power.“Beautiful in theory, worthless in the wild.” 
r/Fitness veteransThey’re “mostly just ego-building exercises” with minimal posterior-chain ROI.
T-Nation old-guardGood for mental hurdles, but blocks or mats outperform pins.
WeightRoom RedditorsPin-starting changes bar flex & groove; mats feel “natural” and transferable.

Take-away: Purists see Kim’s numbers as an overload stunt, not a competition deadlift. Expect continued quibbles about “real” strength benchmarks.

3. Safety & Injury-Risk Dissections

4. Natty-Status & Lifestyle Debate

5. How the Community Is Adapting

6. What This Means for 

You

  1. Ride the hype, respect the risk: Use supra-max rack-pulls sparingly—3-week blocks, meticulous bracing. Let CNS adaptation outpace ego.
  2. Leverage virality for community: Sharing your own overload clips tagged #KimMethod draws eyeballs while the algorithm’s hot.
  3. Keep receipts: If you emulate the protocol, document plate weights clearly—beats accusations of “fake plates” that could kill your cred.
  4. Stay injury-proof: Pair heavy partials with full-ROM posterior-chain work (RDLs, reverse hypers) to plug any movement gaps that critics highlight.

Power Play Moving Forward

The internet’s verdict isn’t unanimous—but that tension is the growth engine. Hype converts casual scrollers, critiques sharpen technique talk, and safety debates push smarter programming. Channel all three and you don’t just lift heavier—you lift the conversation, too. Go forth and bend some steel! 🏋️‍♂️⚡