smith machine squats vs free weight squats

[Cromespyder]

ive never done smith squats, what are the advantages/disadvantaes? im thinking about switchig things up today and doing squats on the smith. thanks

[QuakerOats]

very uncomfortable, never understood why anyone would squat on the smith.

[boonstack]

very uncomfortable, never understood why anyone would squat on the smith.

i alternate both, the only 'advantage' to 'free squats' would be for you to better balance your own body and get a "feel" for it.

If you squat 500 free, or 500 in smith machine - the end result will be the same, only you dont have to worry about a spotter rubbing his dick on your ass when he spots you.

[boonstack]

Not a big fan. The body should be free to move in its natural planes when you squat. Restricting range of motion, however slight, can lead to muscular imbalances. That leads to joint injuries. And that means rehab, and lots of it.

If you're ill-suited to squat (i.e. long legs, short torso, long arms), then try lunging instead. You can stay upright in the torso more easily, still get a lot of weight, and you get the benefit of unilateral stimulus.

No absolutes in this world. A few smith squats won't put you in traction. My only question is, why would you even bother? What's the benefit?

dude, what is the fucking difference? You have a big ass rack supporting the weights and acts as a "spotter". The movement of the actual exercise is the same "down, up, down, up" rack. I dont get whats complicated? Machines just allow for better isolation of target muscle and added safety.The fixed bar also allows you to shift more focus to your hamstrings and glutes as you move your feet farther out in front of you--something you can't do for the free-weight squat.

[Cromespyder]

i alternate both, the only 'advantage' to 'free squats' would be for you to better balance your own body and get a "feel" for it.

If you squat 500 free, or 500 in smith machine - the end result will be the same, only you dont have to worry about a spotter rubbing his dick on your ass when he spots you.

ive never used a spotter on squats and i go pretty heavy, 315-365 for reps(well not right now, i just started training again), i dont see the point in a spotter for squats. . .

[Cromespyder]

Not a big fan. The body should be free to move in its natural planes when you squat. Restricting range of motion, however slight, can lead to muscular imbalances. That leads to joint injuries. And that means rehab, and lots of it.

If you're ill-suited to squat (i.e. long legs, short torso, long arms), then try lunging instead. You can stay upright in the torso more easily, still get a lot of weight, and you get the benefit of unilateral stimulus.

No absolutes in this world. A few smith squats won't put you in traction. My only question is, why would you even bother? What's the benefit?

i just figued maybe smith machine would give me better balance allowing me to focus on quads better.like i sai, just to sqitch things up. i will just stick with regular squats i guess, they've always worked fine for me.

[Tombo]

very uncomfortable, never understood why anyone would squat on the smith.

cmon you don't have a gym membership dave so why quote one of your freinds on this?

[dan18]

ive never done smith squats, what are the advantages/disadvantaes? im thinking about switchig things up today and doing squats on the smith. thanks

If you've  trained for more than 5 years or you have a decent build you wouldnt even have to ask this stupid question..

a]  post whore

b] stupid fuck

c] bluto            

[mass 04]

Even squatting one plate a side on the Smith destroys my knees. I do front squats in them occasionally but never back squats.

[Sherief Shalaby]

Even squatting one plate a side on the Smith destroys my knees. I do front squats in them occasionally but never back squats.

While doing squat on the Smith Machine you must place your feet in front of you and not under you.. This is very important to avoid a knee injury or pain.. Like this you also reduce the pressure on your lower back.. It's really a great exercise and works well with me..

[Cromespyder]

If you've  trained for more than 5 years or you have a decent build you wouldnt even have to ask this stupid question..

a]  post whore

b] stupid fuck

c] bluto            

fuck yourself, fag. i know this is a newbie sounding question. . .my old gym where i trained for 4 years straight didnt have a smith machine so i never used one. my new gym has one so i was thinking of trying it out.

hope this helps.

[Overload]

Not a big fan. The body should be free to move in its natural planes when you squat. Restricting range of motion, however slight, can lead to muscular imbalances. That leads to joint injuries. And that means rehab, and lots of it.

If you're ill-suited to squat (i.e. long legs, short torso, long arms), then try lunging instead. You can stay upright in the torso more easily, still get a lot of weight, and you get the benefit of unilateral stimulus.

No absolutes in this world. A few smith squats won't put you in traction. My only question is, why would you even bother? What's the benefit?

Another good post!

There is only one benefit, using more weight for the ego.

That is it.

[RZA]

Another good post!

There is only one benefit, using more weight for the ego.

That is it.

Actually, squatting on a msith doesn't mean you're gonna add more weight. My gym has no squat rack and I have to use the Smith. I hate it. I'm extra careful when I use it. I always warm up trying to find a reasonably good position. Whenever I train at other gyms, I use the squat rack and I actually use more weight.

[Grape Ape]

While doing squat on the Smith Machine you must place your feet in front of you and not under you.. This is very important to avoid a knee injury or pain.. Like this you also reduce the pressure on your lower back.. It's really a great exercise and works well with me..

Chick disagrees:

All you guys are using the Smith machine wrong...your feet don't go out in front of you..they go back.

Take a regular stance like you would if you just stepped out from the rack...now take a half step BACKWARDS...this will put you in the proper alignment to squat...and no pressure on the knees.

Putting your feet way out in front will assuredly put bigtime stress on the knees and in particular, the patellas...

I think the smith is a horrible machine, and offers no advantages in normal circumstances.

[Sherief Shalaby]

Chick disagrees:

I think the smith is a horrible machine, and offers no advantages in normal circumstances.

Who is Chick??.. Anyway it works very well with me when I place my feet in front of me.. Sure this doesn't mean it should work with all ppl.. Each one should try everything then choose what works with him as a separate individual..

[dan18]

fuck yourself, fag. i know this is a newbie sounding question. . .my old gym where i trained for 4 years straight didnt have a smith machine so i never used one. my new gym has one so i was thinking of trying it out.

hope this helps.

wanna be tough guy meltdown you kids are to easy lay off the creatine its making you nuts..

[IrishMuscle84]

Smith squats=Perfect form.

[Cromespyder]

The smith gives you the impression that you have balance. It's a false sense of security. If you have poor balance, then train to improve your balance. Don't hide your weakness by doing smith squats. You're only compounding your problem, and it'll come back to haunt you big time when you least expect it.

Switching it up with a smith squat is fine. Understand what you want out of your training, what your goals are. If the smith helps you get to a goal faster, then do it. Most guys like to smith squat just to change things from the regular squat for a week or so every 8 to 10 weeks. I think that's fine.

The problem I see is that many guys rely on the smith squat because you can really load up the weight. Let's be honest -- a lot of us like the feel and sound of a lot of plates rattling in the gym. It's hard to contain the ego monster and it can get the best of us. If you have a tendency to let ego steer you in the gym (no shame in admitting that to yourself), then be smart -- use the smith in moderation. Get strong in the regular squat -- your hips, back, knees and pelvis will thank you when you hit 35.

thanks for the advice. i ended up doing just regular squats, i think i am built for squats although im 6ft tall,my balance is not off. squat is one of my best exercises, i used to do 315x20 reps every workout,and 365x12. i ccould go up to 405 but i dont like to go that heavy, i rather do higher reps than go that heavy. . .
but i decided recently to do hamstrings a day after doing quads, im just too wiped out to really work out hams as gard as i should after doing quads.

[Cromespyder]

wanna be tough guy meltdown you kids are to easy lay off the creatine its making you nuts..

how am i a wannabe tough guy, cause i tell your big foreheaded meatstick slobbing ass to fuck off? this is a serious thread and you come in here and insult me, fuck off cunt!

[ninja turtle]

Smith machine makes you use proper form. Squads should pe preformed in a straigth line so ive heard.

[reppin203]

Smith squats=Perfect form.

your small.

[thewickedtruth]

Actually, squatting on a msith doesn't mean you're gonna add more weight. My gym has no squat rack and I have to use the Smith. I hate it. I'm extra careful when I use it. I always warm up trying to find a reasonably good position. Whenever I train at other gyms, I use the squat rack and I actually use more weight.

poor excuse..you can get hurt just as easily with a smith machine and imho even MORE SO from just using the smith then not before.  It's always smart to learn how to dump a squat if necessary.. where free weights you can dump it and jump forward and let it roll off.. on a smith it pretty much smashes your ass into the floor.

Your body has a natural plane on which it follows..and a smith machine isn't on that plane.

[leonp1981]

I used the Smith machine when I first started training, but as soon as I swopped over to free squats, I saw major improvement in my legs.  I wouldn't go back to the Smith machine now.

[thewickedtruth]

I used the Smith machine when I first started training, but as soon as I swopped over to free squats, I saw major improvement in my legs.  I wouldn't go back to the Smith machine now.

then there's that as well..the benefits from using free weights even if the weight is lighter are significantly greater than that of a machine be it smith or not. More connective tissue and body effort in general is recruited putting it simply.. you work harder with less weight. I use myself as an example.. I was able to bench 405 on a smith no problem but when I switched to free weights to start competing because you don't bench on a smith in powerlifting.. my 405 bench was a joke.. just like this guy at the gym that i train at telling me he squats 500 and does it on a smith to parallel..i'd like to see him take that weight out on a squat rack.

[WhiteCastle]

I think Chick is right about the stance, but I think the problem with the smith is the compressing force you put on your spine.  You have to push against the bar, so unless you can align yourself perfectly, you are not going to be pushing 100% against the bar in the direction it is supposed to move, but in a slightly off position.  If your feet are far in front, you are guaranteed to be pushing against the bar horizontaly as well as vertically.  I did them with my feet in front of the bar for a few months and the stress on the knees was pretty bad.  Doing them the other way put too much stress on the spine.

I don't do smith or free squats at all anymore, except occasionally front squats.. Unless you have the right build for them, they are just an injury waiting to happen.