Multi-millionaire fitness entrepreneur Mark Bell discusses what led to Sling Shot and reveals his philosophies around success.
Certain principles are universal laws for success. Jon Anderson and Nick Best had a chance to sit with Mark Bell, the man behind some of the fitness’s biggest brands. On this Legends Of Iron episode, they uncovered how he’s been successful in business—all thanks to his passion for lifting from an early age! Tune in now if you want invaluable insights into what it takes to make your dreams come true.
Creation of Sling Shot
Mark Bell is transforming the fitness industry with innovative training concepts and products. The Legends Of Iron podcast began with Bell talking about his journey to producing Sling Shot—a compressive band offering assistance while bench pressing or similar movements.
He said his business journey began when he was just 12 years old, developing a passion for lifting weights which would continue to grow into adulthood, providing him with an arsenal of knowledge on proper technique. Unfortunately, his enthusiasm led to several injuries along the way. Still, Mark created Sling Shot from one chest injury (torn pec).
What’s more incredible? He now has celebrity clients like NFL star Odell Beckham Jr. and Hollywood action star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson using some of his most popular equipment, including Sling Shot and Hip Circle!
Bell stated:
“When I made the Sling Shot…I ran inside this local commercial gym to try the Sling Shot on for the first time and try it out and give it a go. And I did 135, and obviously, that was really easy and felt flawless. And then I tried two plates and did a couple of reps with it, and I was like holy shit this is exactly what has been in my brain for the last several years, and I was just covered head to toe in goosebumps because I realized that I created something awesome.
And from there, it was a matter of like, well, it doesn’t matter how good your product is. What matters is the ability to, like, get that thing out there and to show people, so I started spreading it out there to people, and I’m like, you know, I think a lot of lifters will understand this will get it, especially because so many lifters are into wrist wraps and knee sleeves.”
Bell added:
“And even further than just a knee sleeve or wrist wrap, they’re into like a particular wrist wrap. They’re like, I need that wrist wrap, especially getting a strong man. I mean that restaurant, that particular movement. That one’s gonna benefit me the most, so I knew that lifters would understand it. But I also wanted to bring it to at least because I don’t think that bench press is that safe of an exercise.”
Mark Bell achieved great success with his Sling Shot invention, which allows lifters to perform an optimal range of motion and provide assistance even in the most challenging positions—like when your arm is pinned back behind the midline of your body on bench press. But as you go and push the barbell up, you’re in a more favorable position, and the Sling Shot does less and less for you.
After Sling Shot became a massive success for Mark Bell, he launched Gangsta Wraps for wrist support and elbow sleeves and knee sleeves for elbow and knee support, respectively. And he admits that the knee sleeves were a struggle for him to make compared to his other lifting assist products. But eventually, he figured it out, and they became a major success.
Philosophies for Success
Next, Jon Anderson asked Mark Bell to open up about his philosophies on what it takes to be the best version of yourself and reach success.
Bell said:
“Consistency is always, you know, king. And if there’s anything remarkable that anyone ever does, you can almost always point to consistency being there in the background.”
Bell noted, for example, that the minimum amount of lifting years you need under your belt for people to take you seriously is 10 years. And Mark Bell says that if you’re having difficulty with consistency, you’re likely not that interested in what you’re doing. Anderson chimed in and said once you enjoy what you’re doing, you’re not working anymore.
Next, Bell said to start incorporating disciplines that are so easy to do. For example, drinking more water and eating more protein is easy and yield many benefits, so there’s no reason not to do them.
Bell also asserted:
“Fuck trying to win the day and fuck trying to win every day. That takes a lot of energy. That takes a lot of courage. Just don’t lose. Just don’t fucking lose. Have more good days than bad.”
He said there are seven days in the week for a reason, and it’s an odd number in the hopes of having at least four good days.
Bell then said that interpretation is a more challenging thing to do but essential. For example, when something terrible happens, you can reinterpret it as something good or learn something from it. Bell said that sometimes you need to think things through in life instead of reacting purely off emotion.
As the podcast started getting close to ending, Jon Anderson asked Mark Bell what advice he would give to someone who’s lost through life obligations and choices and doesn’t know where to start to find their interest. Bell acknowledged that it could be difficult to find your interest because of your upbringing. However, Bell noted understanding your role, what you are, and what you can do helps exponentially.
Wrap Up
In his final questions for the podcast, Jon Anderson got Mark Bell to reflect on how he could use modern-day wisdom and insight as advice to a younger version of himself (using a Back to the Future Delorean analogy). The response was inspiring—while we may not be Albert Einsteins or Jeff Bezos in terms of brainpower, there’s no reason our capacity can’t still lead us toward great things—since we all have a similar brain makeup. As for his legacy when it’s all over? Bell said we’ll have to wait and see what people think once that time comes around.
Tune into the latest episode of Legends Of Iron and get inspired! Join guest Mark Bell, a multi-millionaire entrepreneur who shares his story about rising to success with Sling Shot. He’ll reveal how he got where he is today—so don’t miss out on this motivation-packed conversation and check back every other Thursday at the Generation Iron Fitness Network for new episode releases!
