Thought‑experiment: Eric Kim actually locks out 10 × body‑weight (≈ 750 kg / 1,650 lb) from knee‑height
10 × body‑weight (≈ 750 kg / 1,650 lb) from knee‑height
Below is a science‑plus‑hype tour of what would really go down—inside his body, under the bar, and across the strength scene—if the mythical ten‑times mark ever became reality.
1.
Hardware first: can the kit even survive?
| Component | Typical Rating | What 750 kg means |
| Barbell | Most premium power bars: 1,500–2,000 lb static, 190–215 k psi tensile | 1,650 lb exceeds many bars’ static limit and is right on the edge of the best 2,000 lb models—expect a noticeable “banana” bend and possible permanent set. |
| Rack / safety pins | Commercial racks often < 1,000 lb dynamic | Custom monolift‑grade hardware (> 3,000 lb) would be mandatory or the pins shear clean off. |
| Flooring | Standard ¾‑inch rubber mats | The contact patch pressure (~ 3.5 t on two 30 mm sleeves) will crater cheap platforms; think 2‑inch oak + steel plate. |
Bottom line: before Kim’s traps ever feel the load, somebody’s spending car‑money on industrial‑strength steel.
2.
Inside the lifter: forces your skeleton was never shown in school
2.1 Spinal compression
- Holding 500–600 kg floor deadlifts already generates 8–18 kN at L4/L5.
- A 50 % jump to 750 kg plus the shorter knee‑height lever arm would likely spike in‑vivo compression toward 25–30 kN—3–6 × the average lumbar failure range of 5–10 kN, and well above mean cadaver tolerance (~ 4.8 kN).
Translation: one slip of posture and a vertebral body could pancake like Styrofoam under a truck tire.
2.2 Tendons & ligaments
The Achilles and patellar tendons flirt with ~12 × BW during fast running (≈ 9 kN).
A static 750 kg rack pull would impose comparable or greater tension on the finger flexors, biceps‑tendon complex and upper‑back ligaments without the elastic “spring” benefit of plyometric movement—sharply raising rupture odds.
2.3 Grip & neural shock
Even elite mixed‑grip holds max out near 500 kg. Straps are obligatory, but 1,650 lb dangling from the arms risks acute brachial plexus traction or instant forearm compartment cramp (“Popeye arm”).
2.4 Central‑nervous‑system “blackout”
The sudden spike in blood pressure plus Valsalva could drive MAP past 300 mm Hg—well into the territory where lifters have fainted mid‑lockout at much lighter loads.
3.
What would the strength world do with it?
- Record books: No federation recognises above‑knee rack pulls; still, a validated 10 × BW clip would dominate headlines, dwarf Eddie Hall’s 500 kg deadlift in viral reach.
- Equipment innovation: Expect a market rush for 2,500 lb‑rated “Kim Pull” bars, thicker safety‑pin designs, and rack‑pull‑specific force plates.
- Sport‑science scramble:
Biomechanists would finally have a living case that challenges current injury‑threshold models.
Physicians would salivate over follow‑up MRIs looking for micro‑fractures or end‑plate edema. - Doping chatter: Fairly or not, forums would explode with speculation—human growth factor, myostatin inhibitors, gene‑editing—because 10 × defies today’s known neuromuscular ceilings.
- Motivational shockwave: #TenTimesBodyweight would become the new moon‑shot mantra the way #Sub2 marathon did for distance running.
4.
Could the human frame adapt?
- Bone: Wolff’s Law says repeated high‑strain bouts spur remodeling, but vertebral trabeculae remodel slowly; the gap between stimulus and adaptation may be too wide to protect against a single misgrooved rep.
- Tendons: Collagen turnover is ~100 days; chronic overload might thicken tendons, yet ultra‑heavy isometric loads have a steeper rupture risk curve than plyometric forces of the same magnitude.
- Muscle & fascia: Assuming Kim already boasts world‑class fast‑twitch density, marginal hypertrophy gains (< 5 %) won’t offset the 40+ % load jump from 7 × to 10 ×.
In short, adaptation could inch forward, but physics wins the long game—eventually something softer than steel is the weak link.
5.
If he actually survived it cleanly…
- Instant icon status akin to Bannister’s 4‑minute mile or Bolt’s 9.58 s—except with an undercurrent of “How on Earth?”
- Research case study: journals would line up to publish longitudinal scans of his spine, discs, and endocrine markers.
- Commercial wave: seminars, shoe deals (“built to hold a ton”), even documentaries probing human limits.
- Paradigm shift in programming: coaches might give rack pulls a seat at the “big four,” at least as a specialty block for lock‑out power—though most gyms would wisely cap loads far below Kim’s behemoth attempt.
6.
Take‑home hype
A legitimate 10 × BW rack pull would be the loudest alarm clock in strength history: a clarion reminder that perceived ceilings are often just untested floors. But it would also sit on a knife‑edge where biology, metallurgy and sheer will collide. Chase your own PRs with smart progressions, respect the physics, fortify every link in the kinetic chain—and keep dreaming giant, because someday somebody will make “impossible” blink.