Dave Tate's Table Talk23 Sep 2025

#370 Why a World's Strongest Man Competitor Quit to Make Movies | Josh Thigpen

We welcome Josh Thigpen to this episode of Dave Tate's Table Talk Podcast!

Josh Thigpen is a professional strongman from Houston, Texas, whose incredible 20-year career has taken him to over 60 contests in 30 countries. A four-time World's Strongest Man competitor, Josh has earned 12 international podium finishes, held multiple world records, and achieved the legendary feat of holding the most weight ever by a human—600 pounds in each hand. At his peak, standing 6'5" and weighing 320 pounds, Josh was a dominant force in the sport. Today, he maintains a powerful 275-pound frame while continuing to inspire athletes worldwide.

Beyond the competition platform, Josh has made a major impact as an author, penning 13 bestselling eBooks that have become essential resources for strength athletes. His works include The Cube Method for Strongman, The Grip Guide, Training Camp, The Complete Guide to Strongman, and Adventures of a Pro Strongman. These guides blend his deep competitive experience with practical, no-nonsense training strategies, making them a staple for anyone serious about strongman or strength training.

Since transitioning from full-time competition, Josh has shifted his creative energy to the film industry. He is the creator, writer, actor, director, and producer of the indie fantasy web series Sword of Alentius—a passion project that merges epic storytelling with his larger-than-life presence. In addition to his own productions, Josh is acting in other film projects, further showcasing his versatility and creative drive.

https://www.instagram.com/josh_thigpen/

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS

Get 10% OFF Your Next Marek Health Labs (CODE: TABLETALK): https://marekhealth.com/

Get a free 8-count Sample Pack of LMNT's most popular drink mix flavors with any purchase: https://partners.drinklmnt.com/free-gift-with-purchase?utm_campaign=agwp&am…

Save Up to 20% at Sleepme (CODE: TABLE TALK): https://sleep.me/tabletalk

Get 10% OFF RP Hypertrophy App (CODE: TABLE TALK) :https://go.rpstrength.com/hypertrophy-app/

Get 10% OFF at elitefts (CODE: TABLE TALK): https://www.elitefts.com/

Get 10% OFF at Granite Nutrition (CODE TABLETALK): https://granitenutrition.com/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=Dave_Tate

Support Massenomics! https://www.massenomics.com/

MASS Research Review - Use the discount code ELITEFTS20 to save 20% on your next monthly, yearly, or lifetime MASS Research Review membership plan. The discount lasts FOREVER! https://massresearchreview.com/

SUPPORT THE SHOW

All profits from elitefts Limited Edition Apparel, Table Talk Coffee, and Team elitefts Workouts, Programs, and Training eBooks support Dave Tate's Table Talk Podcast.

elitefts Shop: https://www.elitefts.com/

elitefts IG: https://www.instagram.com/elitefts/

elitefts Limited Edition Apparel: https://www.elitefts.com/shop/apparel/limited-edition.html

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(300)

#438 Why Powerlifters Die Young (Fix Your Work Capacity) | Jason Brown

The myth that aerobic conditioning steals your strength is the exact reason most experienced lifters hit an early plateau and stay chronically beat up. From running high-volume CrossFit boxes to compl...

24 Aug 2h

#437 I Ignored My Surgeon's Rehab Protocol | Josh Hendrickson

Standard medical advice after a catastrophic muscle tear will turn a high-performance lifter into a spectator if you blindly follow it. Four months after snapping his bicep off the bone on an axle cle...

17 Aug 1h 59min

#436 Why You Should Never Bodybuild | Ben Mayfield-Smith

Most lifters suffer through brutal competition preps not because they lack discipline, but because they are using a physical outcome to mask a broken identity. After a career-ending rugby injury shatt...

13 Aug 2h 12min

#435 Why 90% of Hardcore Gym Owners Fail | Chandler Parsons

Choosing between athlete, coach, and gym owner is the only way to avoid burning out—you can only pick two. After 20 years under the barbell and totaling 2,044 raw, Chandler Parsons realized that chasi...

10 Aug 2h 42min

#434 Why Most Lifters Over 30 Are Destined To Break| Mark Valenti

Stop chasing cheap metrics in your youth only to end up a broken, thirty-five-year-old former athlete who doesn't even know how to properly brace. When high school geometry teachers double as strength...

3 Aug 2h 8min

#433 Stop Buying Biohacks Until You Fix Your Training | Anthony Castore

An 185-pound frame earned in the trenches taught Anthony Castore that no protocol can out-discipline a broken foundation. From a 117-pound teenager asking too many questions to a Fellow at the Seeds S...

30 Jul 2h 19min

#432 Your Heavy Squat Is Actually Fake Strength | Brian Bott

If you train high school athletes like Division I pros, you are destroying their potential. For 13 years at Wisconsin, Brian Bott built NFL offensive linemen and Rose Bowl champions using old-school g...

27 Jul 2h 18min

#431 To Fix Your Body, You Have to Destroy Your Identity | Ben Pollack

To survive the brutal reality of elite-level strength, you might have to destroy the very person you spent a lifetime building. Ben Pollack earned a PhD in physical culture history while systematicall...

20 Jul 2h 29min