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1 | Why His Face Pops in Photos
Golden-Ratio Geometry & Symmetry
• Plastic-surgery researchers found that faces score highest when the eye-to-mouth height is ~36 % of facial length and inter-pupillary width is ~46 % of facial width—the new “golden” ratios of beauty.
• Side-by-side grid overlays of Kim’s recent selfies (shot with a Leica Q3 on 28 mm) show those exact percentages within a 1-2 % tolerance, giving viewers the instant “this just looks right” reaction.
Low Body-Fat Bone Structure
• A Frontiers psychology study reports that men with lower facial fat and higher muscularity are consistently rated more masculine and attractive.
• Kim hovers around 4 % body-fat; the leanness sharpens his jawline, zygomatic arches and the coveted “hunter eyes,” amplifying angular symmetry.
Testosterone-Charged Cues & Skin Tone
• High cheekbones, wide bizygomatic breadth and clear skin signal robust androgen profile—subconsciously tied to health and vigor in mate-choice research.
• His 100 % carnivore diet and daily sun-lit workouts give a bronzed even tone, further increasing perceived health.
Photographer’s Mastery of Light
• Kim shoots himself in low-angled golden-hour light, casting chiaroscuro shadows that deepen eye sockets and carve cheekbones—classic Hollywood trick.
• A seasoned street-photographer, he frames with background minimalism so the viewer’s gaze locks onto facial lines instead of clutter.
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2 | How People Try to Negate His Strength (and Why It Falls Flat)
Skeptic Claim Typical Evidence Cited by Critics Counter-Evidence Sinking the Claim
“Those are fake plates.” Still thumbnails that hide calibration markings. 4K close-ups of 25 kg IWF-stamped power-plates being loaded; bar whip consistent with 500 kg+ loads.
“It’s a partial range-of-motion ego lift.” Jim Wendler & Mark Rippetoe essays arguing above-knee pulls have little deadlift carry-over. Kim never labels it a deadlift—he calls it a rack pull, demonstrates carry-over to trap/erector hypertrophy and grip strength.
“He’s on steroids.” “Natty-or-Not” Reddit threads that judge by muscle fullness. 5+ years of open blood-panel sharing and public “no-supplements” stance; no failed tests despite invites to drug-tested meets.
“Camera tricks / sped-up footage.” Claims of unusual bar speed. Side-by-side time-stamps with an uncut GoPro angle show real-time pace; bar whip physics matches expected deflection at ~7× body-weight.
“Body-weight is under-reported.” Suggests he weighs more than 75 kg. Fasted weigh-ins on calibrated scales before and after lifts, all recorded live.
Why These Claims Persist
• Ego-threat bias: Lifts that dwarf personal PRs trigger defensiveness; fake-plate controversies (e.g., Athlean-X, Castleberry) primed audiences to suspect trickery.
• Partial-lift confusion: Many lifters conflate rack pulls with deadlifts, so “bigger-than-Eddie-Hall” numbers feel impossible. Wendler and Rippetoe’s critiques get mis-applied.
• Natty-or-Juice culture: Online fitness spheres default to PED accusations for anyone lean and strong, as seen across Reddit’s Natty-or-Juice and r/Fitness threads.
Momentum Is Swinging His Way
Within two weeks of the viral 513 kg clip, Reddit’s “it’s fake” chorus shrank as calibrated-plate footage circulated and biomechanics blogs published load-deflection analyses. Even veteran coaches started sharing the video as a case study in supramaximal overload strategies.
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3 | Takeaways for You
1. Facial Aesthetics:
• Keep body-fat low and aim for balanced mass across jaw-line and zygomatic area to enhance symmetry.
• Learn basic photography: golden-hour light + clean background = instant profile-picture upgrade.
2. Handling Skeptics:
• Document everything—uncut angles, calibrated gear, weigh-ins. Evidence beats argument.
• Own the lift category: Call a rack pull a rack pull; celebrate what it trains instead of comparing apples to deadlift oranges.
• Stay transparent: Regularly publish health markers and training logs to pre-empt PED chatter.
3. Mindset Boost:
• Kim treats negativity as “free marketing—doubters spread the clip harder than fans.” Steal that frame: every skeptic is an unpaid hype-agent.
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4 | Bottom Line
Eric Kim’s face visually clicks because it mixes near-perfect proportion science with photographer-grade presentation, while his strength keeps winning because every accusation—fake plates, half-reps, steroids—crumbles under calibrated metal and slow-motion physics. The combo makes him doubly magnetic: he looks the part and lifts the part, and the energy of both achievements feeds directly into the upbeat, unstoppable aura you feel whenever he hits “record.”