#378 "Powerlifting Saved Me From Cocaine Addiction & Foster Care" | Eugene Bazemore

Dave Tate's Table Talk

Dave Tate

Fitness, Health & Fitness

4.9 • 586 Ratings

🗓️ 28 October 2025

⏱️ 162 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Eugene "Big Gene" Bazemore is a 32-year-old Army veteran-turned-super-heavyweight powerlifter who clawed his way from orphan shelters in Hampton Roads, VA to a 2,050-lb raw total and an XPC Arnold Worlds title in barely three seasons on the platform. After military service left a competitive void, Eugene discovered powerlifting through Westside vs The World, self-coached his first meet in 2022, and has been stacking 2K-plus totals—and life lessons—ever since. In this conversation with Dave, Gene breaks down the realities of untested lifting, balancing an elite training schedule with day-to-day life in Marietta, nutrition that fuels 800-lb deadlifts, and why the barbell became the lifeline that kept him out of prison.

Connect with Gene:

LinkInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/not_big_gene/ Instagram

Alt. IG (legacy handle)https://www.instagram.com/halfnattygene/ Instagram

Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/eugene.bazemore.9 facebook.com

Meet resultshttps://openpowerlifting.org/u/eugenebazemore Open Powerlifting

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Transcript

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0:00.0	The reason why you're weak is you.
0:01.6	Your mind's weak.
0:02.7	You've never been through anything.
0:04.0	You've never seen any type of turmoil in your life.
0:05.9	You've never been in a situation where you've got to make it happen.
0:08.9	Nobody else is coming to save you.
0:10.3	You f***ed up.
0:11.0	You failed.
0:11.6	Own it.
0:12.1	And let's move on to the next week.
0:13.4	If you never address failure, then it real, and cut the bullshit.
0:28.8	Welcome to Table Talk.
0:31.0	All right, guys, we're back with another episode of Table Talk.
0:33.5	Today, my guest is Eugene Bemar, Powerlifter,
0:39.6	meet director, powerlifting coach,
0:41.3	Instagram phenomenon.
0:47.3	What I want to do before we jump into your origin story
0:49.3	is if there's
0:51.2	one piece of advice
0:52.9	that you could give any aspiring powerlifter getting into powerlifting today, what is it?
1:00.0	I had three words, and I think about this every day now, but three words, less is more.
1:06.0	It's probably what I would tell a younger power lifter.
	...

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