|
The Smith
Machine is a piece of equipment found
in most commerical gyms around the country
and, as a rule, it's pretty much ALWAYS
either misused, overused or misunderstood.
What
Is The Smith Machine?
If
you're not familiar with what
a Smith Machine is, that's easy...it's
the machine that has a bar that
moves up and down on a vertical
"track." The bar has
hooks on the end that allow you
to hook it onto the machine frame
to hold it up along with stoppers
that stop the movement of the
bar.
It's
basically an imitation of a power
rack only without the freedom
of movement of a barbell...and
therein lies the majority of the
problems with the Smith Machine.
More on the later...first, though...
|
 |
What Exercises Is the Smith Machine
GOOD For?
This
is the million-dollar question. The
Smith Machine actually IS good for a
few exercises. It's not a total waste
of space :)
It's
a little known fact that the Smith Machine
was originally designed for PARTIAL
training...very short range of motion
training done at specific points along
the path of an exercise (for example,
the top lockout of a barbell bench press).
And
for partial training, it can actually
be quite useful. The original idea was
to improve the stability of extremely
heavy weight when doing partial range
of motion training to make it safer.
That way, you could focus on just moving
that relatively heavier, supramaximal
weight, which is what partial training
is most useful for.
I've
used the Smith Machine for lockout partial
training (and some bottom range training)
in the past and found it to be just
fine (I still prefer free weight, though).
The linear and completely vertical path
of the bar doesn't interfere with an
exercise when it's done for very SHORT
range of motion movements and the stabilizing
factor really can be useful when dealing
with very heavy weight.
I've
also found it to be useful for doing
standing calf raises. That exercise
is basically a directly vertical upwards
push from the calves and you'll actually
benefit from the linear stabilization
of the bar with this exercise in the
Smith Machine. If you don't have a calf
raise machine (or don't have a good
calf raise machine) in your gym, try
the Smith machine with a calf block
and the bar across your back like a
squat. It actually works really well.
What Exercises Is the Smith Machine
BAD For?
Everything
else.
Yeah,
it's just that simple.
Pretty
much everything else should NOT be done
on the Smith Machine (other than exercises
that use just the bar of the Smith Machine
as apparatus where the bar never moves,
like a chin-up, for example).
It's
a piece of equipment I would forbid
you from getting for your home gym (man,
I love that word "forbid"
- sounds like a wicked step-mother word)
due to the injury potential it has.
Because
when you use it for FULL range movements,
THAT is when the trouble starts.
Your
body is not built to move in a linear
fashion. When you stick yourself onto
a machine that FORCES you into a linear
movement pattern, it's like a car trying
to drive a perfectly straight line down
a curving road....you might be able
to go aways without hitting anything
but when the straight path ends, you're
going to start grinding up against the
guard rail.
And
that's what happens with the JOINTS
of your body when you try and jam them
into a linear movement pattern...it's
going to grind your joints like a car
on a guardrail.
Partial
training is like a drag-strip...straight
and all about power. Full-range training
involves curves.
The
best example of this is the squat. One
of the best ways to wreck your knees
is to do deep Smith Machine squats,
especially if you set your feet a little
forward to take emphasis off the glutes.
When
you squat down to the bottom and start
pushing back up, this puts tremendous
shearing force through your knee joints.
The knee is simply not meant to take
that kind of force...you may not get
an injury right away but repeated use
of this exercise will grind down the
connective tissue of the joint, just
like a car trying to go straight on
a curvy road.
Conclusion:
If
you're currently using the Smith Machine
for anything other than short, partial-range
training, calf raises or as an apparatus,
quit it. Your joints will thank you
for it.
If
you're considering buying a Smith Machine
for your home gym, don't. Again, your
joints will thank you for it. The few
exercises you CAN do with it aren't
worth the space it's going to take up.
Get a real power rack instead.
Learn
how to squat with free weight...it's
one of the basic movement patterns of
your body and you'll get FAR more benefits
from it by getting out the Smith Machine
and using a barbell or dumbells.
And
if you think I'm just hating on the
Smith Machine...I'm not. It's just an
inanimate object...it's not personal
:).
What
I want to be sure of is that you're
not using the Smith Machine, thinking
it's beneficial and hurting yourself
by doing do. That's just how I roll.
|
