for those that train chest on a smith machine...

[Overload]

Sounds like where my incline is set up. Any higher and I feel it more in the shoulders than anything else.

i use a very low incline for incline DB press...

the more incline, the more shoulders...

25 degree angle is about right...

[Jr. Yates]

i use a very low incline for incline DB press...

the more incline, the more shoulders...

25 degree angle is about right...

I've always thought this too but i've always used a 45.

[Lugar]

so whats the consensus on the smith?  Is it good to use on a deload week?  My delt has been giving me major problems, sio in an effort to take the stress off, I'm thinking about hitting the smith tonight,,,,thoughts?  Is a press a press for chest mass?

[pumpster]

so whats the consensus on the smith?  Is it good to use on a deload week?  My delt has been giving me major problems, sio in an effort to take the stress off, I'm thinking about hitting the smith tonight,,,,thoughts?  Is a press a press for chest mass?

U have to determine for yourself whether it's more effective on the muscle and/or less harsh on the joints.

[darksol]

You should try doing bench with dumbells.  As when you go back to bench you will be able to do alot more.  Plus its much better for your shoulders.

[Cold]

Your chest strength on the smith and on the bench are the same. It's not like your chest takes one look at the free-weight bench and decides it looks scary and wimps out. They dont appear the same if you judge by poundage on the plates, but all things added up, force is force they are the same. Just that on the bench, you have to deal with balancing the weight as well as pushing it up. Bottom line is: as long as you use a heavy enough weight to struggle, that's all that matters. As for muscle building effectiveness, both are effective. Smith allows you to push the maximum weight you can push without worrying about injury, while the bench will help you build the neighboring muscles more effectively. Use both to get maximum benefits.

[Lugar]

i agree....use em for delt press too as my shoulder has been killing me....then I go lighter on my next series of dbell press...

[Lugar]

chest today - trying to use the smith for chest (flat) and see if I can go heavier...then followed by 3-4 sets lighter incoline dbells (focus on range of motion and technique)  Still build mass correct?

[heretostay13]

Usually I only use Smith Machine work when I can't get a decent spot (which can be more common than usual while working out at a college's fitness center). I actually have more difficulty with the Smith Machine than free weight when working with incline presses. I usually take the cables off the bar though, taking away the counterweight that occurs in the movement. This actually makes the bar/bar apparatus heavier in the process. This or the fact of a new stimulus may cause my difficulty in transitioning from one to the other. In either cause both provide great benefits. Nothing like being able to work chest without worrying about stabilizing.

[Lugar]

so you are "for" it...

[heretostay13]

Either/or. I honestly prefer barbell, but if I have to work on a smith machine it's no big deal to me (in terms of incline work that is).

[lil_red]

Could the difference be that the smith machine your using has a zero weight bar. I know the one at my gym does, so when you switch to barbell with the same amount of plates it's 45lbs heavier! I perfer BB for flat and db for incline.