Who is ErikTheElectric?
ErikTheElectric is an American influencer and a competitive eater who is active on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and other social media. His real name is Erik Lamkin, and he was born on 1st September 1993 in San Marcos, California. He is known for posting videos of food challenges on his social media.
Early life of ErikTheElectric
Erik grew up alongside his parents and two sisters in California. He grew up as a happy kid who liked to play outside but also occasionally enjoyed treats and sweets. As a chubby kid, Erik was used to the occasional mean comments from his friends, but he didn't make a big deal out of it. After successfully moving on to high school, Erik began hearing suggestions from his doctor and his family that he should lose some weight. At the time, Erik weighed around 160 lbs and was called obese by his doctor. To fight this issue and to get healthy again, Erik decided to start visiting the gym more often.
Weight loss of ErikTheElectric
At first, Erik only profited from his workouts. He educated himself and decided to combine weight training with a little bit of cardio to achieve his goals. Erik's progress began quite slowly, which was the ideal possibility as it didn't put too much pressure on his body. But while it was healthy progress, Erik wasn't happy with it. He wanted to see bigger changes in the same amount of time, which left him with an easy solution: he needed to work out more. Once he began training more, Erik's body began losing fat way more quicker. But instead of enjoying his progress, Erik wanted to keep going and lose more weight. He got stuck in a loop.
ErikTheElectric – Gynecomastia
Besides overtraining himself, Erik suffered from a condition called Gynecomastia at the same time. The condition is caused by a hormonal imbalance in one's body, causing the enlargement of breast tissue. It can cause one or both breasts to grow, which usually causes the patient anxiety and psychological distress. In Erik's case, the condition got really bad, at least for his psychical health. Since he wasn't promised surgery right away, Erik thought that if he began training even more and lost more weight, it would resolve itself. Not only was it not true, but the thought made Erik even more self-conscious.
Fitness journey of ErikTheElectric
Once he lost a lot of weight, Erik noticed a change in behaviour towards him from his classmates and friends. Since teenagers are all about looks, once Erik lost weight, he instantly became more popular. Being among the popular kids, Erik joined a band and made a lot of new friends during that time. It all looked good until Erik got prescribed Concerta medication by his doctor. Since it was an ADHD medication, it caused Erik to lose interest in things and especially, it caused him to lose his appetite. While it might seem dangerous, Erik actually enjoyed the side effects. He could finally focus on working out without worrying about food.
At the time, Erik usually ate just two small meals a day, which wasn't enough nutrition at all. Since he wanted to gain some muscle, Erik discovered a website called bodybuilding.com, which offered nutritional charts on every possible food item. So, while others profited from the website, Erik only fell a little more towards his eating disorder. He began obsessing over nutrition numbers, counting every possible calorie and trying to lower his calorie intake even more. After a while, Erik discovered intermittent fasting, which only made it easier to not eat at all.
ErikTheElectric and Anorexia
Because he regularly visited his doctor, Erik was soon approached by him and advised to gain weight instead. In a matter of one year, Erik went from one edge of the spectrum to the other. Since Erik didn't see the problem, his doctor suggested a plan where his food intake was controlled by his parents. As innocent as it might sound, this method made Erik a child again who didn't have a say in his own food intake. Even though it was really hard for him, Erik eventually understood where his parents were coming from and began trying himself. He slowly began eating more, focusing on gaining muscles as he wanted to look strong.
ErikTheElectric – Relapse
Because he didn't get rid of the damaging mindset just yet, Erik got back to his ways around food. This time it started innocent, as he just became really passionate about the gym and weight training. After some time, Erik had only a small percentage of fat left in his body, most of it stored in his breasts due to his condition. He was still really self-conscious about it and looked forward to his surgery. After the surgery, Erik's mindset seemed to only get worse because he lost even more weight and got back to overtraining.
Education of ErikTheElectric
Just as he graduated from high school, Erik got into one of the worst stages of his life. To prove that he was capable of living on his own, he agreed to go to the UCSD (Eating Disorders Center for Treatment and Research on spring break. In the facility, Erik was always watched, he was force-fed every meal, and overall, he felt like he was in prison. Unfortunately, he made it and went to Cal State San Marcos, where he studied Business Administration. Once he moved in and began living on his own, Erik relapsed again, trying to hide his illness. After one semester, Erik had to be transferred to Rosewood Eating Disorder Treatment Center, where he stayed for three months. Once he came back, he changed his major to Communication because it felt more like him.
ErikTheElectric defeating anorexia
Once he got admitted to the centre, Erik had his first crash with reality. He was in the hospital setting, so he saw many people in wheelchairs who couldn't even walk by themselves. Being there made him really scared but determined at the same time. Erik decided to get better for good, and he tried his best to fight those damaging thoughts. He was really uncomfortable, but because of that, he was even more determined to get better. Erik got deep into the program and patiently waited for the time to be released. This time, once he got out of the facility, Erik didn't just abandon his progress. He tried hard and, eventually, made it work.
ErikTheElectric and competitive eating
Starting with a full eating disorder and ending as a competitive eater. While it seems almost unbelievable, this was Erik's story. When he got better and more comfortable with eating, he got the urge to do something crazy. He went to Broken Yolk, which was a restaurant he knew from TV and ordered their challenge meal. The challenge was pretty easy: Erik had to eat a large amount of food in a short period of time. Even though he didn't have any training, Eric completed the challenge in a record time. While he expected his mind to beat him up for it, Erik found himself enjoying the attention and the process. He then tried some more challenges before realising that he had just found his future job.
ErikTheElectric – Lifestyle
While he eats for a living, Erik actually takes good care of his health and body. When he takes on a food challenge, he sometimes needs 24 full hours to recover from it. Even though his followers only watch him eat big amounts of junk food, Erik usually eats pretty healthily. Besides his YouTube videos and challenges, his daily menu normally consists of chicken with broccoli and other vegetables. Besides his eating habits, Erik stayed loyal to the gym, even though he had to change his relationship with it. Instead of training to lose much weight, Erik works out to maintain his weight and to keep a healthy amount of muscle.
ErikTheElectric on YouTube
Erik created his YouTube channel in 2013 because he wanted to make content for people. He used to have another channel when he was younger, but it didn't have success. Erik joined YouTube because he wanted to share his recovery story and film some of his food adventures. In the beginning, Erik didn't want to film the food challenges because he thought people wouldn't like them. Eventually, he found out that challenges to eating 10000 calories in a day were really popular on YouTube. Erik decided to try it and easily ate over 15000 calories. After that experience, he began challenging himself with larger and larger amounts of food while his follower numbers grew rapidly.
His most popular video is The 100.000 Calorie Challenge, with over 16 million views. At the end of each video, Erik always reminded his audience that what he does is just a strange ability and that they shouldn't try it at home, as they would probably get sick. Erik got so popular not just because of his food videos but for his honesty. He filmed a three-part series where he talked all about his eating disorder and how it affected him. He often shares his joy from exploring different food cultures and shows that he enjoys his life alongside his unusual career.
How much does ErikTheElectric earn? Net Worth
As of 2023, his net worth is estimated to be over 1,2 million US dollars. While many people have trouble believing him, Erik eats for a living. He is a professional competitive eater and gets paid for completing different food challenges. Besides that, he earns money from his big following on YouTube.
Interesting facts about ErikTheElectric
- As of 2023, he is 30 years old.
- His zodiac sign is Virgo.
- His height is 5'9" or 175 cm.
- He has two sisters.
- He grew up as a chubby kid until he was recommended to lose weight.
- He had a condition called Gynecomastia.
- During his life, he was treated for depression and ADHD with different medications.
- After losing weight, he became ill with anorexia.
- He relapsed many times before getting better from his eating disorder.
- He studied Business Administration and later Communication at Cal State San Marcos.
- He was admitted to UCSD (Eating Disorders Center for Treatment and Research but relapsed right after leaving.
- He spent 3 months at Rosewood Eating Disorder Treatment Center, where he dealt with anorexia.
- He is a professional competitive eater.
- He has over 2,24 million subscribers on YouTube, with an additional 1 million followers on Instagram.
- His most popular video is The 100.000 Calorie Challenge, with over 16 million views.
- As of 2023, his net worth is estimated to be over 1,2 million US dollars.
