Do you find Smith Machines useful for anything?

silverharp · 06-04-2022 01:20PM #1

Not a machine I had used much in the past, but a while back I had tried to introduce good mornings and lunges with either KBs or Barbells but didnt stick with them so thought I'd give them a go with the Smith machine and seems to be an improvement, I can see myself sticking with them this time. Another one is the hip thrust-er, my gym has the machine for it and its grand at lower weights but found it less comfortable to use at higher weights so might give the Smith machine a try for that too.

Black Sheep · 07-04-2022 03:43PM

Smith machines allow you to perform movements with a greater degree of stability and bracing. If you want to isolate a body part and really target it, either to specifically bring on a weak point, or for hypertrophy, that's useful.

The classic example is the seated smith machine press. A far better choice as a shoulder movement than something like a standing barbell shoulder press, if hypertrophy is a goal. Zydrunas Savickas also made some people's heads explode because he said it was his favourite strength-building shoulder press variation.

The increased stability is probably why you're finding the lunges a lot easier (Although you don't really specify what your problem was before). I see a lot of people doing lunge variations, or more advanced variations like bulgarian split squats, and they're wobbling all over the place and limited to using very light weights because of difficulty performing the movement. For general strength and hypertrophy goals probably most people are better off holding onto an upright or bench to increase their stability and allow themselves to load the movement and actually nail the execution for a meaningful set.

I wouldn't necessarily use the smith machine for lunge variations personally, because I think the degree of stabilisation is possibly too high, I do want some stabilisers having to work when I'm doing a single leg movement and am thinking of knee health prehab. Or for hip bridges or hip thrusts either, but that's a personal preference, I've never needed to use more than just a bench and a pad for the bar.

Training this way is kind of the opposite of the balance on the bosu ball bullshit that has hung around for the last twenty years and seems mostly on the way out. We've come full circle, people are back to seeing the value of higher stability, braced use of machines and similar.

silverharp · 07-04-2022 06:23PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118894589#Comment_118894589

with the lunges, not sure just a slight discomfort doing them but probably some flexibility or "brain permission" thing I didnt break through, when I did the lunge in the Smith machine what kind of hurt was my toes bending back on the back leg, but thats cool and should go away once I do them for a bit. I attempted to do try some pistol squat regressions but that wasnt happening so I can see a sphere of things improve if I give a focus to unilateral leg exercises.

The OHP might be an interesting one to try as it looks like a good way to keep the back out of it. would it have an advantage over the seated overhead press machine?

fatbhoy · 07-04-2022 06:31PM

They're great for calf-raises. Nothing beats them, in my opinion.

Black Sheep · 08-04-2022 08:24AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118895239#Comment_118895239

In principle, yes, the reasons a seated press in a smith machine could be a good idea also applies to any kind of seated press machine. Both take your back out of the equation, giving higher stability, allow you to focus on the shoulders. However, some of it depends on the details of the machine and your body dimensions, some of them will be a better fit than others.

silverharp · 15-04-2022 11:11AM

the Smith machine seated OHP works well and obviously takes all the back stuff out. Will treat it as additional vol when I can fit it in.

timmyntc · 15-04-2022 11:19AM

Smith machine is great if you want someone murdered and for it to look like an accident

Seriously though the amount of injuries brought on by smith machines is insane. Since its on rail people assume you can just load it up super heavy and its perfectly safe, unlike normal BB exercises you cant tilt the bar and dump weights if you get in trouble.

Yes smiths have safety catches but it happens where they simply dont catch or the bar doesnt rotate enough to catch them and people end up pinned or worse..

Black Sheep · 15-04-2022 01:42PM

Yes, there's a lot of room for something to go wrong, with benching alone in particular.

No one should be depending on using the hooks which rack/rerack the smith bar to save themselves from a failed lift, there's absolutely a chance of messing that up, there should be a secondary safety pin / catcher arm set up and in place.

Cill94 · 15-04-2022 03:38PM

Hack squats, various volume work on presses, rows etc. Meadows had some tips on it I think.

Almost always see it being used by people whose time would be bette spent elsewhere though.

Captain_Crash · 15-04-2022 06:08PM

I use it for drag curls, thats about it for me really!

Mellor · 16-04-2022 04:12AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118930254#Comment_118930254

The risk when benching can be removed by using safeties. Hooks aren’t safeties.

But should prob never go near 1RM or failure.

silverharp · 16-04-2022 08:57AM

there was a lady killed by one in the last year, Mexico or South America that was caught on film. she was doing a box squat using a bench with stupid high weights so effectively turned the machine into a guillotine because the bench was infront of her I think so she had nowhere to go. In fairness though that was gross negligence by her or whoever set it up for her.

Black Sheep · 16-04-2022 11:38AM

I recall that video but I think the #1 killer remains dropped bench presses. Grim.

timmyntc · 19-04-2022 09:30AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118934471#Comment_118934471

Any heavy lift with no safeties is asking for trouble I agree, problem is that people assume smith is fine because the bar naturally rotates into position so if you let go itll just stop. It doesnt.

Some smith machines have no places to attach safeties either, you'd have to get external/freestanding ones.

The smith machine box-squat-guillotine is a horrible one alright, seen a few videos of that happening, thankfully not all of them ended in tragedy

Black Sheep · 19-04-2022 10:03AM

I've actually never seen a smith machine in a gym in Dublin that didn't have adjustable stops or some other form of safety catches that can be set to limit the travel of the bar.

If someone tells me there's one in their gym I would believe them, but definitely worth flagging to management if so, they're a liability!

There's been a series of fines and payouts associated with smith machines and their manufacturers, the big one was a payout of 19 million in the U.S in 2001 where someone was made a quadriplegic on a smith that didn't have adjustable stops. That wasn't the last one, but they're become less frequent.

Cybex actually paid a fine in 2021, which related to them knowing there was a fault with the bar and rods in their smith machine, that could cause it to fail, and they stalled on doing a recall.

silverharp · 19-04-2022 10:18AM

I was seeing if I could use the Smith machine for hip thrusts but it looks lie the bar settles too high and using a normal bench, there is a higher bench with the foot extension but didnt try it.

Do you find Smith Machines useful for anything?

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