Michael Jackson is known as a talented singer, dancer, actor… In 1988, the king of pop surprised the world with his gravity-defying dance in the music video Smooth Criminal .

In one scene, Jackson and several of his dancers lean forward 45 degrees, backs straight, feet flat on the floor, holding the pose until they return to an upright position with ease.

Michael Jackson and his 45-degree tilt dance that defies gravity. Photo: Internet.

Not only in that music video, even on stage, Michael Jackson could perform this dance skillfully, making the audience below amazed. Many people exclaimed: “It’s unbelievable, normal people cannot lean forward 45 degrees from the ground, because the Earth’s gravity will make them face down on the floor immediately.”

Neurosurgeon Dr Nishant Yagnick, a senior neuroscientist at the Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, India, insists it is actually impossible: “He must have done something to do this. You can bend forward a maximum of 25 or 30 degrees before you fall.”

Another Jackson fan, Dr. Manjul Tripathi, said, “I tried to do it and I fell down.”

The 45-degree bend of a normal person compared to Michael Jackson’s miraculous bend. Photo: Internet.

Doctors have explained that when the human body bends forward with a straight back, the pectoralis major muscles that run parallel to our vertebrae “act like cables,” supporting the body as the center of gravity shifts. But when the center of gravity shifts to the ankles, those erector spinae muscles are not the primary support. Instead, the pressure is placed on the calves and Achilles tendons, which are not really built for that role.

“This allows a very limited degree of forward bending from the ankle joints, while maintaining an upright posture – unless you’re Michael Jackson,” the doctors asserted during the study.

Most trained dancers with strong core strength will achieve a maximum of 25 or 30 degrees of forward bend while performing this move. Even with his unique physique, Michael Jackson couldn’t do it without help. So he and his team invented a special shoe that would keep him from falling to the floor while leaning.

The world has unveiled Michael Jackson’s dance and discovered that the shoes were one of the key points. Photo: Internet

Patented on October 26, 1993, the shoe features a specially designed heel slot that can be removed with a hook (like a nail) projecting through the stage surface by simply sliding the wearer’s foot forward.

However, experts assert that even with such shoes, normal people would find it difficult to lean at a 45-degree angle. Dr. Yagnick asserted: “Normal people, even with shoes, probably can’t do that. It takes a lot of practice to develop muscles, abdominal muscles… to have the strength to do like Michael Jackson.”

Many viewers watched Jackson and his dancers perform spectacular choreography on videos and in concerts. To them, the dances looked like “magic.” “When Michael Jackson released the video and then blew up on stages all over the world, people didn’t know he had these ‘magic’ shoes,” Yagnick said, laughing.

In fact, they found that Michael Jackson balanced almost entirely on his heels. Scientists have shown that the success of the “Smooth Criminal” side-step was largely due to Michael Jackson’s ability to control his muscles and spine. The soles of his shoes are important, but they are mainly a fulcrum!