Of course you can and should use both free weights and machines looks like i spoiled the ending.
Is the smith machine bad.
But are smith machines all bad.
Before investing in even the best home smith machine it s crucial to learn whether the smith machine is actually good or bad.
This may sound like an extreme comment to make considering almost every gym and even some rehabilitation facilities now have them for their people to use.
The smith machine takes a squat which is an incredibly complex movement requiring the coordinated effort of your entire body in unison and essentially turns it into a leg extension.
So there are legitimate reasons for people to dislike smith machines and i think the above reasons are completely valid.
The smith machine was created by a man named rudy smith back in t.
Oddly enough it is still one of the most popular machines.
And the vertical movements provided by the smith machine is not natural.
Taking a free weight barbell and turning it into a crappy machine designed originally for uppe.
The smith machine has been one of the most criticized pieces of equipment in the gym for the past 7 or 8 decades.
The barbarian and megatec smith machines come with a built in half racks that allows you to switch from free weight bench press into 45 degree incline smith machine press or a decline chest press.
There are a lot of people who really enjoy using the smith machine and there are those who will not get near them.
The smith machine is a weight machine used for weight training it consists of a barbell that is fixed within steel rails allowing only vertical or near vertical movement.
Please let me elaborate before you stop reading.
How are smith machines bad for you.
The smith machine has been one of the biggest mistakes in strength training equipment in my opinion.
You will never go into a gym that does not have at least one smith machine.
A power rack is basically a smith machine without the safety rails.
It prevents the stabilizer muscles from doing any role as all the stability that s needed is already in place with restriction of bar movement.
If you were lucky enough to own barbarian smith cable rack or barbarian monster you can jump to cable crossover straight away and do some chest flys.
Some smith machines have the barbell counterbalanced the machine can be used for a wide variety of exercises though it is most commonly used to perform smith machine squats.
The rack or cage has safety bars that can be adjusted to catch the barbell if you lose control.