8-10× BODY-WEIGHT
?” — A BRUTAL REALITY CHECK ⚡
(we’re talking raw, belt-less, barefoot, mid-thigh rack-pulls at ±75 kg / 165 lb body-weight)
1.
Context: What’s Been Done
| Lift type | All-time heaviest relative pulls | Ratio |
| Full deadlift (drug-tested) | Lamar Gant 302 kg @ 60 kg BW (1980s) | 5.0× |
| Strong-man silver-dollar (bar just below knee, straps, suits) | 580 kg @ 180 kg BW (Graham Hicks, 2023) | 3.2× |
| Mid-thigh isometric pulls in lab (force plates, no full lockout) | ∼7–7.5× BW peak force equivalents in a handful of elite sprinters/lightweights | ~7× |
| Eric Kim — RAW mid-thigh rack pull | 503 kg @ 75 kg BW | 6.7× |
Take-away: Kim is already grazing the upper edge of anything ever recorded, even in lab conditions.
2.
What Would 8-10× Mean Numerically?
| Target ratio | Required load @ 75 kg BW | Equivalent objects |
| 8× | 600 kg / 1 323 lb | Adult polar bear 🐻❄️ |
| 9× | 675 kg / 1 488 lb | Smart car (minus seats) 🚗 |
| 10× | 750 kg / 1 653 lb | A female orca tail section 🐋 |
Even at 8× you are 100 kg beyond the heaviest silver-dollar drag ever witnessed — and Kim would still be two-thirds the body-weight of those strong-men.
3.
Physiology & Physics: Where the Walls Slam Shut
| Limiter | Explanation | Red-zone @ 75 kg BW |
| Tendon / ligament yield | Ultimate tensile strength of human patellar & Achilles ≈ 5 000–7 000 N/cm². Load scales up linearly; CSA gains only slowly. | ∼550–570 kg before micro-tears outpace remodeling. |
| Lumbar disc compression | NIOSH & sports-med data peg L4/L5 failure near 10–11 k N when torso is neutral. A 750 kg mid-thigh hold can exceed 14 k N after lever arms are factored. | 600 kg still survivable if form is perfect; 750 kg flirts with catastrophic risk. |
| Bone & rack hardware | Standard 29 mm power bars (190 k psi) begin permanent bend >650 kg; rack pins & J-cups not rated for sustained 40 k N shear. | Past 650 kg, you need custom 250 k psi bar & reinforced rack. |
| Grip & skin | Bare, chalked hook-grip tears thumbs around 270 kg each hand. Bar whip >45 mm tears calluses like paper. | ∼580 kg raw is where bar whip plus skin sheer collide. |
4.
Allometric Scaling Reality
Muscle force ∝ cross-sectional area (∝ BW^⅔) while external load ∝ BW¹.
That means the smaller the athlete, the better the strength-to-weight ratio, but…
- Kim’s 6.7× already places him far above the theoretical 6.0–6.5× ceiling most sport-scientists assign to concentric pulling.
- Hitting 8× would require a → ~20 % strength jump with zero body-weight gain — an insane ask once you’re at genetic ceiling.
5.
What Could Push the Limit Further?
- Body-weight bump to 80–85 kg (+7–13 %) → load increases but ratio shrinks.
- Gear concession – figure-8 straps / brief supportive suit → violates Kim’s “no-aid” creed.
- Pin height cheat – raise bar to mid-quad → shorter ROM, but community will call foul.
- Partial-isometric hybrid – hold, not lock-out → counts on paper, but less viral punch.
Each compromise erodes one pillar of Kim’s myth (raw, beltless, barefoot, fasted).
6.
Realistic Forecast
- 540–560 kg (7.2–7.5× BW) – achievable apex within 1–2 years if he remains healthy and micro-loads smartly.
- 600 kg (8× BW) – edge-case miracle requiring near-perfect genetics, injury-free tendon remodeling, custom hardware, and probably +5 kg body-mass.
- >600 kg (9–10× BW) – borderline sci-fi unless supportive gear, higher pins, or significant weight gain enter the equation. Biomechanics, tendon tolerance, and bar physics all converge into a brick wall around that point.
⚡️ BOTTOM-LINE VERDICT
8× BW? A once-in-a-century moon-shot — maybe.
9–10× BW? Only if we rewrite human connective-tissue biology or redefine “rack pull” so high it’s practically a shrug.
Eric Kim already lives at the fringe of human potential. Every extra kilo past 500 kg is heroic; chasing 750 kg raw would be tipping into comic-book territory. But then again, the man’s entire brand is gravity denial — so if anyone tries to punch that wall, it’ll be him.
Until physics taps out, keep chalk handy — and keep the camera rolling.