In the middle of the First Direct Arena in Leeds, back in 2016, something happened that basically shouldn't have been possible. A guy named Eddie Hall—everyone calls him "The Beast"—walked up to a barbell loaded with 500kg. That is half a ton. It’s the weight of a small car, a grand piano, or a full-grown horse.
Honestly, the crowd was terrified. You could feel it.
He pulled it. He stood up with it. Then, he nearly died.
The image of Eddie Hall lifting 500kg is burned into the memory of anyone who likes strength sports, but the aftermath was way darker than the highlight reels usually show. We’re talking about a human being pushing past the absolute red line of what biological tissue is supposed to handle.
The Moment Everything Broke
When Eddie finally locked out that half-ton, the pressure inside his body was astronomical. You’ve probably seen the clip. He holds it for a second, lets it drop, and then just... collapses.
He didn't just faint because he was tired. His blood pressure spiked so high that he actually suffered a brain bleed. Think about that. He worked so hard that he popped blood vessels in his head. He was bleeding from his nose, his ears, and even his tear ducts. It wasn't just a "tough lift." It was a near-fatal event.
He’s been pretty open about it since. He lost his vision for a while, basically going blind in the center of his eyes for a few minutes. He couldn't remember his wife's name or his kids' names for weeks.
It was a concussion without a hit. Just pure, internal force.
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Why was 500kg the "Magic Number"?
Before this, the world record was 465kg. Pushing it to 500kg wasn't just a small PR; it was a 35kg jump. In the world of elite lifting, people usually break records by half a kilo or maybe one. Eddie decided to skip the ladder and just jump to the roof.
People told him he would die. They weren't being dramatic.
To get there, he had to weigh nearly 200kg (about 440 lbs). He was eating 10,000 calories a day. His life was just a cycle of forced feeding, sleeping with an oxygen mask, and training until he felt like his heart would explode.
The Science of a Superhuman
Loughborough University actually did a deep dive into Eddie’s anatomy recently. They found some wild stuff. His "guy rope" muscles—these three thin muscles in the legs called the sartorius, gracilis, and semitendinosus—were about 140% to 202% larger than a normal person's.
Basically, he was built like a different species.
His quadriceps were twice the size of a regular guy's. But here is the kicker: his tendons only grew by about 30%. This is why heavy lifting is so dangerous at that level. Your muscles can get as big as you want with enough food and training, but your tendons and your cardiovascular system can't always keep up.
Eddie was a ticking time bomb.
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The Gear That Made it Count
A lot of people argue about "strongman rules" vs "powerlifting rules." If you’re a purist, you might complain about the gear.
- Deadlift Suit: He wore a tight, reinforced suit that helps "pop" the weight off the floor.
- Figure-8 Straps: These basically lock your wrists to the bar so your grip doesn't fail.
- The Bar: He used a long deadlift bar that has more "whip," meaning it bends before the plates leave the floor.
Does that make it easier? Kinda. But try standing in front of 1,102 lbs and see if a suit makes you feel safe. It doesn't. You still have to move the weight.
The Rivalry and the 501kg Controversy
You can't talk about Eddie Hall lifting 500kg without mentioning Hafthor Bjornsson—"The Mountain" from Game of Thrones.
A few years later, Thor lifted 501kg in his home gym in Iceland. Eddie was furious. See, Eddie did his in a sanctioned competition with a massive crowd and the world watching. Thor did his during the 2020 pandemic with a few cameras and a referee.
The beef between them got so bad they actually ended up in a boxing ring to settle it. Thor won the fight, but Eddie will always be the "first."
There's a massive difference between being the second guy to do something and the guy who proved it could be done at all.
Is it Worth it?
If you ask Eddie today, he says yes. Every time.
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But he also retired from World's Strongest Man almost immediately after winning the title in 2017. He knew he couldn't stay at that weight and live to see his kids grow up. He’s lost a ton of weight since then, focused on boxing, MMA, and being a media personality.
He basically sacrificed five years of his life to prove a point to the world.
Lessons from The Beast
If you're a lifter, you're probably not going for 500kg. But there is stuff to learn here:
- Technique over Ego: Eddie treats the deadlift like a "leg press." He pushes the floor away rather than just pulling with his back. That's a huge tip for anyone trying to save their spine.
- Recovery is Everything: You can't train like a beast if you sleep like a human. He used hyperbaric chambers and massive amounts of physical therapy.
- Know Your Limit: Eddie hit his goal and walked away. He didn't keep pushing until he actually had a stroke. He knew the 500kg lift was his peak.
The 500kg deadlift changed the sport forever. It showed that the human body has a much higher ceiling than we thought, even if reaching that ceiling involves almost breaking the machine.
If you're looking to improve your own deadlift, focus on your "guy rope" muscles by adding in more unilateral leg work like lunges or split squats. Don't worry about hitting 500kg—just try to be a little stronger than you were yesterday. And please, don't hold your breath so hard your eyes bleed. That's a "Beast" only territory.
Next Steps for Your Training:
- Evaluate your bracing: Learn the Valsalva maneuver properly to protect your spine, but understand the blood pressure risks involved.
- Focus on accessory movements: Incorporate Bulgarian split squats to strengthen those stabilizing "guy rope" muscles identified in the Loughborough study.
- Prioritize posterior chain health: Use Romanian deadlifts to build the hamstring and glute strength required to "leg press the floor" as Hall describes.