Once the plate-police, reaction channels, and Reddit skeptics ran the slow-mo, matched the bar-bend math, and watched Kim’s 24-minute receipt vlog, the conversation flipped from “fraud” to four new, very lively questions:
New Focus
Typical Questions Former Skeptics Are Asking
Resulting Mind-set
1. Biomechanics & Physiology
“How did his tendons get that strong without ballooning in size?” … “What’s the exact elastic modulus of a human erector at 6.6 × BW?”
They’ve turned into DIY sports-science nerds, running Hooke’s-Law spreadsheets and sharing IMTP research PDFs instead of calling CGI.
2. Safety vs. Reward
“Is mid-thigh really safer than a floor pull?” … “What’s the long-term disc load at that pin height?”
Debate shifted from authenticity to orthopedics; physios and coaches spar over shear data, but both sides now accept the weight is legitimate.
3. Future Milestones
“When does he crack 500 kg?” … “Will he show up at Static Monsters or WPO to lock it in?”
Skeptics are now spectators, setting Google alerts for “Eric Kim 500 kg” and begging for a sanctioned meet.
4. Program Adoption & Natty Math
“Should I copy his micro-load pin cycle?” … “Is he still natty if power comes mostly from tendon density?”
They’ve gone from debunking to reverse-engineering the program—plugging his +1.25 kg weekly jumps into their own spreadsheets and arguing PEDs vs. connective-tissue adaptation.
What the new conversation sounds like
Reddit, r/weightroom: “Physics checks out—so the real experiment is whether connective-tissue hypertrophy can keep scaling. Anyone up for a 12-week pin-pull block?”
YouTube reaction 2.0: Channels that once ran “FAKE PLATES EXPOSED” now upload “HOW HIS 44 mm BAR DEFLECTION SAVED HIS SPINE”, complete with F-d vs. k graphs pulled from engineering textbooks.
Coach Discords: “If he’s really beltless & fasted, CNS drive must be off the charts—let’s trial fasted singles at 110 % RM and monitor HRV.”
Big-Picture Shift
From skepticism to case study – Kim has become a living lab sample for tendon science and leverage hacking.
From fraud-hunt to forecasting – Threads once dedicated to spotting fake bumpers now run betting pools on which plate combo will take him to 500 kg.
From cancel threats to copy-paste – The loudest doubters are literally pasting his spreadsheet template into their own Google Sheets.
Bottom line: the people who spent weeks yelling “FAKE!” now treat Eric Kim like a human white paper—dissecting biomechanics, predicting record dates, and cloning his micro-loading playbook.
Suspicion has morphed into fascination, and that curiosity loop is exactly what keeps his name boiling at the top of every strength feed.
Move the force a little closer to your hips and the numbers look like sorcery.
1 │ QUICK MATH ON HIS LATEST PULL (498 kg / 1 098 lb)
Variable
Value
Note
Force (weight)
498 kg × 9.81 m s⁻² ≈ 4 885 N
Pure gravity load on the bar
Estimated hip moment arm (mid-thigh start)
≈ 0.30 m
Bar almost hugs the quads
Hip torque
4 885 N × 0.30 m ≈ 1 .47 kN·m
That’s the rotational demand Kim’s glutes & erectors absorb
Put the bar on the floor (≈ 0.55 m moment arm) and the same 498 kg would require > 2.7 kN·m—nearly double the hip-joint torque.
Lesson: leverage, not witchcraft, is the real super-power.
2 │ WHY HIS “TORQUE HACK” LOOKS IMPOSSIBLE BUT IS
SAFER
THAN IT SEEMS
Mid-Thigh Rack-Pull (Kim)
Floor Deadlift (traditional)
Shorter moment arm → torque ↓ 35-50 %
Longest moment arm at liftoff
Bar already moving vertically—no horizontal drift
Bar must clear shins → more shear
Load sits on safety pins; if it won’t budge, he lets go
Miss at shin height can fold you forward
Result: he can train supramaximal tension (CNS stimulus, tendon remodeling) without the spinal roulette that a floor pull of equal mass would impose.
3 │ “BUT THE BAR STILL BOWS LIKE A LONG-BOW—WHERE’S THAT TORQUE GOING?”
Bar whip = stored elastic energy in the 28 mm, 190 k psi shaft.
The steel flexes ≈ 40-45 mm under 498 kg—exactly what Hooke’s-Law tables predict.
That slight rebound helps him finish the lockout, but only if his torso stays locked; any slack and the torque smashes into soft tissue instead of the pins.
4 │ HOW TO
FEEL
KIM-GRADE TORQUE WITHOUT SELF-DESTRUCTING
Set pins one notch above kneecap – shrinks moment arm, keeps hips behind bar.
Micro-load – add 1.25 kg plates weekly; connective tissue adapts, not revolts.
Single reps only – treat every pull like a physics experiment, not cardio.
Barefoot or flat shoes – zero heel = bar hugs shins, moment arm stays minimal.
Film & review – bar path must stay vertical; any forward drift = instant unload.
5 │ WHY “TORQUE TALK” FEEDS THE LEGEND
Viewers see a medium-T-shirt frame levitating a half-ton bar and scream “CGI!”
Engineers drop bar-bend overlays, prove the physics, and flip from skeptics to evangelists.
Every new kilo nudges torque a hair higher, resets the debate, and restarts the viral flywheel.
TL;DR
Eric Kim doesn’t dodge torque—he repositions it.
By pinning the bar at mid-thigh he slashes the lever arm, lets his CNS dump maximum force into a shorter rotation, and captures the moment on six-second “FLASHBANG” clips that hypnotise the feed.
Master the lever → own the torque → watch gravity file a complaint. 🏋️♂️⚡