The Smith Machine, Good or Bad?

[Papi93]

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I always hated the fixed path that the Smith Machine makes you travel in. I power rack is a much better option. The metal poles can be place to spot you if can't complete your necessary reps. The trouble is, a lot of gyms don't have them.

[sputnik]

Same here Papi, but yeah it poses a problem for those in gyms without a power rack.

[Panzerfaust]

I get a good leg workout with the Smith, but then again i have no interest in being a bodybuilder or having huge "wheels".

[BlueAndromeda73]

I like the smith machine for behind the head shoulder press but thats about it, other then that I like the balance and such, makes me more comfortable lifting

[Papi93]

I get a good leg workout with the Smith, but then again i have no interest in being a bodybuilder or having huge "wheels".

Do they have a power rack in your gym?

[chest6]

Not a fan of the smith machine myself. The only thing I use it for is behind the back shrugs.

[D7M]

I use it sparingly...only when everything else if filled up

[Papi93]

I use it sparingly...only when everything else if filled up

There are times when the power rack is being used and I am tempted but I just come back to the power rack later.

[WHOADY4SHOADY]

Believe it or not, in my opinion the smith machines are dangerous. They put your body, especially your lowerback in compromising positions. IMHO.

[T3/T4 GSR]

I bench on it when I have no spotter. I have a bad shoulder that can randomly totally give out even on fairly light weight. So I don't like being under weight without someone behind me.

[stee]

I bench on it when I have no spotter. I have a bad shoulder that can randomly totally give out even on fairly light weight. So I don't like being under weight without someone behind me.

I tore my rotatorcuffs in my right shoulder while pressing 120kg.
the thing that got me was i was comfortable benching 150kg on a normal bench with a spotter, the reason i was using the smith that day was because my training partner was sick so i decided to play it safe, wrong move in my eyes.
i dont use the smith press for benching anymore, just shrugs nothing else, anything else has to be freeweights especially if its high weight low rep.

[jsimon]

I hate the smith machine for this reason. The saftey hooks can never be placed in the right spot that I need them. Example: Incline BP- For the hooks to support me they are ethier to low or to high. I can never place them in the right spot where they would actually help if I needed it to take the weight.

[Kärnfysikern]

The only 2 exercises I ever do(and that just seldomly) in the smith is incline bench and reverse grip bench

[MAXIMA5]

Smith machine - my best lifting partner.

Shoulder Press
Narrow base squats
Static lifts (bench, close grip, military)

[SuperChicken1]

I used to use it a lot before I joined a gym with a lot of HammerStrength equipment. Now I just use it for Sholder Press, close grip Bench,... I think that is it.

SC1

[Streaker]

I have never been a big fan of Smith Machines.

[MAXIMA5]

I have never been a big fan of Smith Machines.

I never had one in college, so I was unfamiliar with them until years later when i started lifting solo at a local gym. It's hard to make gains without a spotter, and the Smith Machine solved this problem for me.

[chinups]

I never use the smith machine. If I do its for shoulders and just to mix it up. I agree with the post and read that site alot. Awesome articles

[LawMan018]

I use the smith machine for squats only. I don't have a workout partner so it helps a lot. Also, like the power rack for example, when I try to do a squat with no help, it seems as if my waist rotates a little bit making one leg take more weight than another. I thought it was because one was bigger then another, but when I tied with Smith, I got a much better, equal pump in both legs, and no rotation... Ionno why... It just works for me...

[godkilla]

nothing wrong with using the smith machine to change it up abit. i like doing front squats and behind the back shrugs on the smith.

[Rictor33]

Behind the neck shoulder press and behind the back shrugs (very effective, always found my traps get taller when I do behind the back shrugs)

[crash187ct]

always liked the smith machine for shrugs...

[Rejuvenated1]

I injured my shoulder once. I used the gym's on-site physio therapist to help it heal faster. He advised me not to use the smith for bench press because it forced the shoulder into positions where it could be easily injured. He suggested staying with free weights.

[MuscleScience]

Smith machines suck

[angelripper]

Its A Boat Ancor

[reppedout1]

i like it for incline press i can focus more on moving the weight and getting that squeeze better than i can doing it otherwise

[vermin]

I guess maybe I am just old, but I find I now have almost no lifting injuries after switching to the Smith machine as my primary technique. I will say that this is with a particular brand, and at other facilities with other brands I have not liked them at all. I do bench, incline bench, bent over rows, military press, squats, decline bench, behind the neck press, and close grip triceps press on the Smith. Funny thing is, I do not care for it for shrugs at all - I use the power rack for those. Between the Smith and the dumbbells I hardly ever touch a free bar anymore.

[davieric]

I was just about to say that, i find that using the smith helps me to focus more on the muscle i'm working out. i rotate every other week with squats on the smith then power rack. i find that the smith tends to eliminate the stabilizers and focuses on the legs. whereas w/ the power rack it tends to hit the lower back more.

[parrishupr]

Just piling on here:

I don't like using the Smith because I feel that it inhibits natural movement. When I've talked to guys in my gym face to face about why they used it, they had many of the reasons already posted above. Ultimately, I think it can make for a nice complementary exercise, but stay away from using it as an anchor for any muscle group.

[mullcap]

i was lifting at a sick gym in newark hammerstrength everything only thing i regret is i seldomly lifted in my 4 years in college. now i move back home to a basically crap gym but got nothing to do but workout again and now without a shouldpress rack i gotta use the crappy smith. never know how good you got it till you join a crap gym.


what would everyone say the smith bar weighs cuz it def aint 45lbs.

[ebjack]

it's definantly counterweighted...and it should say on the machine unless it's been rubbed off....most are 7 to 10 lbs I believe

[veteran_47]

I use the smith machine for squats only. I don't have a workout partner so it helps a lot. Also, like the power rack for example, when I try to do a squat with no help, it seems as if my waist rotates a little bit making one leg take more weight than another. I thought it was because one was bigger then another, but when I tied with Smith, I got a much better, equal pump in both legs, and no rotation... Ionno why... It just works for me...

I use it quite frequently. I just started using it for squats and I think its great, for my situation. it take s alot of the lower back issues I've had in the past out of squating, plus my right knee has a damged meniscus, so it seems to aleviate some of the discomfort. I always lift alone, so it comes in handy going heavy. my gym has 4 of them.

[Spartan_N_Training]

At my gym they have this machine that has a bar suspended from two cables. There is a rod running along top of the bar that is able to sense your fingertips. With your fingers on it, it will move freely, like a regular bench press but as soon as you need some help you keep your hands on but pull your fingers away, and voila! It locks and you can breathe a sigh of relief that you are alive.

[operationgetbig]

i hate smith machines. i screwed up my wrist a while back on one doing incline bench on a smith machine. theyre nice if u have no spot and cant get that last rep up but you have to deal with unhooking it which can be awkward on your wrists, especially if youre going kinda heavy

[Mike Dura]

Good and bad. It ***ends on how you look at it. With my knee issues it's good. Regular squats hurt my knees. I miss the days when I'd do endless squatting and partials in the power rack. Now it's hacks (not all the way down), leg presses and smiths. Some pros don't squat at all and they swear by leg presses.

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I always hated the fixed path that the Smith Machine makes you travel in. I power rack is a much better option. The metal poles can be place to spot you if can't complete your necessary reps. The trouble is, a lot of gyms don't have them.

[musclemd]

At my gym they have this machine that has a bar suspended from two cables. There is a rod running along top of the bar that is able to sense your fingertips. With your fingers on it, it will move freely, like a regular bench press but as soon as you need some help you keep your hands on but pull your fingers away, and voila! It locks and you can breathe a sigh of relief that you are alive.

That sound like the "Free Spotter" Nice device!

[Ajc330]

smith machine sucks i'm sorry you are confined to one path therefore making it an unnatural motion to most individuals

[Johny-too-small]

I get a good leg workout with the Smith, but then again i have no interest in being a bodybuilder or having huge "wheels".

I hate the smith machine, but then again I am trying to be a bodybuilder.

[skank]

I hate that ****ing contraption!

[Geezy]

I use it here and there, I dont mind it as it is something I use to change up things every now and then.