Mark Bell (@MarkSmellyBell) is the founder of Super Training Gym in Sacramento, which is often referred to as "the strongest gym in the West." Prior to opening his own gym, he spent time studying training under the legendary Louie Simmons at Westside Barbell. Mark is no stranger to the iron at all. His best "geared lifts" in competition include a 1,025 lb. squat (465 kg), an 832 lb. bench press (77 kg), a 738 lb. deadlift (335 kg). Mark is also the inventor of the patented Slingshot, a device used to assist a lifter in maintaining proper bench press form while also allowing him or her to use more weight or perform more reps. Mark now has an entire line of products and has been spectacularly successful. In this episode, we cover a lot, including: Mark's most important lessons for building strength. How to avoid injury and breakdown. Lesser-known training techniques that nearly everyone overlooks. How Mark became a millionaire by offering his gym memberships for free. And much, much more. We recorded this interview while touring his facility in Sacramento, looking at some crazy equipment that you can see by visiting tim.blog/supertraining. Please enjoy! Show notes and links for this episode can be found at www.fourhourworkweek.com/podcast. This podcast is brought to you by 99Designs, the world's largest marketplace of graphic designers. I have used them for years to create some amazing designs. When your business needs a logo, website design, business card, or anything you can imagine, check out 99Designs. I used them to rapid prototype the cover for The Tao of Seneca, and I've also had them help with display advertising and illustrations. If you want a more personalized approach, I recommend their 1-on-1 service. You get original designs from designers around the world. The best part? You provide your feedback, and then you end up with a product that you're happy with or your money back. Click this link and get a free $99 upgrade. Give it a test run... This episode is also brought to you by LegalZoom. I've used this service for many of my businesses, as have quite a few of the icons on this podcast -- such as Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg of WordPress fame. LegalZoom is a reliable resource that more than a million people have already trusted for everything from setting up wills, proper trademark searches, forming LLCs, setting up non-profits, or finding simple cease-and-desist letter templates. LegalZoom is not a law firm, but it does have a network of independent attorneys available in most states who can give you advice on the best way to get started, provide contract reviews, and otherwise help you run your business with complete transparency and up-front pricing. Check out LegalZoom.com and enter promo code TIM at checkout today to save 15% and see how the fine folks there can make life easier for you and your business.***If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. I also love reading the reviews!For show notes and past guests, please visit tim.blog/podcast.Sign up for Tim’s email newsletter (“5-Bullet Friday”) at tim.blog/friday.For transcripts of episodes, go to tim.blog/transcripts.Interested in sponsoring the podcast? Visit tim.blog/sponsor and fill out the form.Discover Tim’s books: tim.blog/books.Follow Tim:Twitter: twitter.com/tferriss Instagram: instagram.com/timferrissFacebook: facebook.com/timferriss YouTube: youtube.com/timferrissPast guests on The Tim Ferriss Show include Jerry Seinfeld, Hugh Jackman, Dr. Jane Goodall, LeBron James, Kevin Hart, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jamie Foxx, Matthew McConaughey, Esther Perel, Elizabeth Gilbert, Terry Crews, Sia, Yuval Noah Harari, Malcolm Gladwell, Madeleine Albright, Cheryl Strayed, Jim Collins, Mary Karr, Maria Popova, Sam Harris, Michael Phelps, Bob Iger, Edward Norton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Neil Strauss, Ken Burns, Maria Sharapova, Marc Andreessen, Neil Gaiman, Neil de Grasse Tyson, Jocko Willink, Daniel Ek, Kelly Slater, Dr. Peter Attia, Seth Godin, Howard Marks, Dr. Brené Brown, Eric Schmidt, Michael Lewis, Joe Gebbia, Michael Pollan, Dr. Jordan Peterson, Vince Vaughn, Brian Koppelman, Ramit Sethi, Dax Shepard, Tony Robbins, Jim Dethmer, Dan Harris, Ray Dalio, Naval Ravikant, Vitalik Buterin, Elizabeth Lesser, Amanda Palmer, Katie Haun, Sir Richard Branson, Chuck Palahniuk, Arianna Huffington, Reid Hoffman, Bill Burr, Whitney Cummings, Rick Rubin, Dr. Vivek Murthy, Darren Aronofsky, and many more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Tim Ferris promotes his email newsletter, Five Bullet Friday, which he sends out every Friday with five bullet points of the coolest things he's found that week.
Mark Bell, founder of Super Training Gym, shares his lessons for building strength, avoiding injury, and overlooked training techniques. He also tells the story of how he became a millionaire by offering his gym memberships for free.
A man shares how the invention of the Slingshot provided the financial means to make his gym free and how that change in perspective led to an ownership mentality. A friend questioned his decision to make the gym free.
Chris Bell, a filmmaker and bodybuilder, shares insights on his experience training with legendary gym owner, Joe Gold, and discusses his two documentaries, Bigger, Stronger, Faster and Prescription Thugs, which explore issues in the world of performance-enhancing drugs and addiction.
The key to gaining strength is to get stronger by handling more weights and trying to figure out different ways and angles to lift. Time management of lifts is crucial, especially when handling heavy weights, so finding experts in weight loss and strength building is important to achieving fitness goals.
The best way to improve your triathlon performance is to do functional exercises that strengthen the body for the specific activity. Choose a few exercises that target the areas you want to improve and focus on getting stronger in those areas.
The slingshot and elastic bands can both help you handle more weight and improve your strength training, with the added benefit of accommodating weaker areas of your body. However, deficit pulls may sometimes reduce the weight you are able to lift.
Learn techniques like zeroing out weight and doing pause work to improve your bench press and prevent injury.
The speaker discusses unique warm-up techniques for workouts, including using bands and rowing with a barbell, emphasizing the importance of warming up before performing any intense physical activity.
Competitive powerlifters have a strong commitment to gaining size, nutrition, sleep, and even performance enhancing drugs. The average person may not understand the level of dedication required to be a competitive powerlifter with goals of lifting heavy weights.
A story of a wrestling promo where a guy is calling out someone who tells people not to worry about their central nervous system and uses it as an excuse to not train.
With the rise of the internet and YouTube, drug tested lifters and drug-free natural bodybuilders have become increasingly popular with followings in the hundreds or thousands.
The speaker considered doing a wrestling prom with his brother, but decided against it because his brother is a widely respected powerlifter.
A passionate and experienced lifter trains with the speaker at Super Training and discusses how he built up enough strength to only require one main set.
An interviewer talks about a recent interview with a blunt martial artist and his harsh responses during the conversation.
The Graston Technique is a manual therapy that involves using instruments to massage and manipulate soft tissue. It can help people with chronic pain, but it also carries a risk of injury if not performed correctly.
In this podcast episode, a retired pro-snowboarder discusses the importance of having good role models, the dangers of pushing yourself too hard, and the true meaning of success.
Eddie Hall believes in having fun while training but not at the expense of his performance. He shares his thoughts on the importance of balancing the two and reminisces about the time he bought a pair of socks for $2.
The X-Wife and Triad are two unique weightlifting tools discussed in this episode, with the Triad offering three different grips on each thick bar, and the X-Wife targeting specific muscle groups with its innovative design.
Tim shares a story about his friend, a little Italian guy who was fiery, excited, and jacked, and talks about his favorite quote of all time. Links to resources can be found in the show notes.
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