An exercise such as the squat is always on the list of exercises performed by athletes. And this is not surprising, since this exercise is considered very effective if you need to load the muscles of the buttocks and thighs. It can actually be done simply or in a Smith machine, which not everyone knows about. This exercise machine consists of a metal frame, inside of which a bar is fixed, which can move from top to bottom and vice versa. In essence, this is reminiscent of squats with a barbell, but in this case, the squatting process is controlled, thereby reducing the load on the spine. To obtain the maximum effect, it is necessary that safe technique be observed during training, which is very important.
Benefit
- Safety.
The fact that the bar moves along the guides, eliminating the very possibility of getting hit on the crown with a projectile, reassures beginners. Yes, and you can put the barbell on the clamps at any time during the exercise, simply by turning the bar with the force of your hands.
- High level of insulation.
Due to the fact that the machine is equipped with guides, we do not need to stabilize the barbell with additional muscles (stabilizers). Therefore, it is easier for us to work the target muscle.
- Explosive reps.
In our body, muscle fibers are divided into two types: fast muscle fibers (white) and slow muscle fibers (red). This division is not accidental; it is done so that movements of different severity can be performed. In practice, fast-twitch muscle fibers (FMF) do the heavy work, and slow-twitch muscle fibers (SMF) do the light work.
The most effective training is using two types of fibers. This type of training is called pumping .
Traditionally, pumping refers to performing an exercise for a large number of repetitions (provided that the muscle is previously tired with heavy, basic exercises), thus we fill the muscles with blood (“inflating” it), provided that the rest between approaches is very short. It is due to this that more blood enters the muscle than it can pump out, so the muscles swell and become huge. This feeling cannot be confused with something else.
Using this explosive repetition technique works well with the Smith Machine because... When pumping in squats with free weight, the risk of injury increases critically.
- Performing unilateral (one arm or leg) exercises .
- The ability to quickly master all the basic exercises and build a muscle frame and then move on to free weights.
An article on how to punch the gluteal muscle is here .
Necessary components
- Neck with hooks
- Guides along which the bar moves
- Limiters
This is something that a Smith machine must have. But what should not exist is the “walking” neck, which was very popular some time ago.
The Smith machine must be designed in such a way that the horizontal position of the bar is not compromised in any way, and, for example, a movement such as the bench press can be performed with one hand if desired.
What muscles work
- targeted (main) – quadriceps femoris muscle;
- synergists (assisting) – gluteus maximus, adductor magnus, soleus muscles;
- dynamic stabilizers – muscles of the back of the thigh, gastrocnemius;
- stabilizers – spinal extensors;
- antagonists stabilizers – rectus/oblique abdominal muscles.
Good morning for gorgeous buttocks: bending over with a barbell on your shoulders
Execution technique
The trajectory of movement is initially set by the simulator, but, of course, the exercise has some nuances.
- Go to the Smith machine, set the desired weight and step into the machine, placing the bar on the bottom of the trapezius (slightly below the neck).
Using a slightly wider than shoulder-width grip, unlock the machine by releasing the weight from the hinges and taking a small step forward. Bring your shoulder blades together, position your legs slightly wider than your shoulders (spread your toes slightly to the sides), straighten your back (statically tighten the rectus abdominis muscle, the so-called “abs” ), and direct your gaze forward.
- Inhale and begin to slowly lower the bar and bend your knees. Don't slouch your back. Lower yourself to an angle of 90 degrees (or slightly lower), while watching your knees, they should not protrude too far beyond the plane of your feet. You need to go down with the weight slowly, controlling the weight of the bar at each point.
In fact, if you don't squat to at least parallel, your glutes don't work much. Ideally, you should strive to squat as deep as possible, almost with your butt to the floor, BUT!!! This is strictly prohibited in Smith . At all. Why? Read below.
- Having reached the bottom point, begin to rise up, pushing off the floor with your heels and straightening your legs. Return to the starting position, exhaling with effort. Repeat the specified number of times.
Dream butt: glute swings and Bulgarian lunges on one leg .
History of creation
In the 40s, when the famous actor and bodybuilder Jack Lalane trained in the gym at night, he often had to do the exercises alone, since at night, for objective reasons, there were no extra “insurers.”
Because of this, Jack Lalane invented the first prototype of a safety frame. At first it was a clumsy creation that most closely resembled a clothes hanger.
But Jack was noticed by the men's room manager Rudy Smith, who commissioned Paul Martin to improve it. Smith then installed a modified model at Vic Tanney's gym in Los Angeles, where he worked at the time. By the late 1950s, Rudy Smith was the head of the Tanney chain of gyms, and Smith's machine was being produced and sold well.
Description of design
Behind each vertical post is a series of slots into which you can attach a barbell. This means that, unlike a conventional similar design, the Smith machine allows you to lock the barbell with the weight at any height, which warns you of possible injuries when you perform the last reps as hard as you can.
This supposedly makes it safer for those lifting without a harness, as you only need to twist your wrist to lock the bar in place in case the weight gets too heavy. Most models also include blocks, pegs or other devices that can be adjusted to automatically stop the boom at a preset minimum height.
Options
In theory, by changing the position of the legs, you can change the emphasis of the load on the necessary muscles.
Frontal
Front squats (or hack squats) are a more relevant technique for men. When squatting with a narrow leg stance, the load is shifted to the outer part of the quadriceps (lateral head).
Front squat technique in a simulator for men:
Go to the Smith machine and, with your arms crossed, mark the exercise bar on them. Elbows should be strictly parallel to the ground. The feet are under the shoulders, and the toes are turned 30-45 degrees. Tighten your abdominal muscles and only after you feel confident enough begin the movement. Keep your back straight and slowly lower yourself until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Push through your heels and return to the starting position.
The working weight when performing front squats is less than in classic ones!
Sumo
When wide , the load is greater on the inner surface of the thigh (adductor muscles).
Plie
With the legs brought forward onto the buttocks
For girls: how to squat with an emphasis on the buttocks? Usually it is this technique of execution that is meant by the squat for girls in the Smith machine. To specifically work the gluteal muscles, your legs need to be placed a little further and your feet hip-width apart. This is the most dangerous and most unphysiological option for performing a squat in a simulator for women; it is difficult to imagine such a perdimonocle in life: sit down while moving your legs forward. In addition, with any positioning of your legs, you “block” your joints in a straight path, which never happens in life.
This is just some special form of perversion. Doing plie in Smith is very inconvenient and practically impossible. We do not recommend this option to you. Read: How to effectively pump up Madame Sizhu: plie and sumo squats
Dream Butt: Romanian Deadlift and Glute Bridge .
With free weights or in the car?
Is there any harm from squatting in Smith? There are quite a few!
- Even based on the advantages described above, the motto of exercises (especially squats) in the Smith machine emerges by itself: goodbye, stabilizers ! So what, you say. And we will answer: if you exercise on such machines, the stabilizers will lag behind the main muscle group in growth.
- Questionable effectiveness.
Research published in the journal Strength and Condition Research (2013) tells us that muscle EMG activity during the free weight squat is 43% higher than the Smith squat. Electromyographic activity was 34%, 26%, and 49% higher in the gastrocnemius, biceps femoris, and vastus muscles.
Conclusion : why settle for a smaller effect?
- Rod movement trajectory.
Smith can be good at the beginning of your journey , when you are still learning. When you don't have to concentrate on maintaining your balance, you can pay more attention to other important nuances like the position of your feet, the direction of your knees, your chest raised, your shoulder blades pulled together, and holding your breath in a timely manner. And in principle, you should first pump up your back and achieve a certain tone of the body muscles before diving under the barbell.
But always remember: Smith is a crutch and you don’t need to walk with it all your life, if you have healthy limbs. Over time, when the working weights become larger, the straight trajectory of the bar movement in the Smith machine will put the knee and shoulder joints, as well as the lower back, in an unnatural position, no matter what you do - presses, rows (although it is a complete perversion to do these exercises in the Smith machine) or squats. This will be especially dangerous in the squat for girls for the buttocks.
Additionally, Smith machine squats develop poor squatting technique , which can lead to serious injury when transitioning from this exercise to a barbell squat. To learn how to squat to develop your glutes, read “The Ideal Squat for Your Glutes and Firm Butt”
- The risk of injury is increased.
The first blow is taken by the spine, because an axial load is created on it. If you have scoliosis, osteochondrosis, etc., perform it only with the permission of a doctor! But you can overdo it so much that a completely healthy spine becomes not very healthy.
Two main rules:
- ⛔You can’t squat, deliberately bringing your knees behind your socks (to specifically put a load on the buttocks)!
⛔You can’t squat “to the floor”!
- Lack of real strength progress.
The Smith machine gives you false sense of strength gain, and that's because it does all the stabilizing work for you. During the exercise, the power rack helps you by relieving the load on the small muscles of the stabilizers. As a result, they are excluded from work and are not pumped (stagnant). You can supposedly increase your performance (working weights), but in fact, when you switch to a squat with free weight, this progress will be insignificant or there will be no progress at all.
In these cases, the load is distributed unevenly and hits the kneecaps . The danger is that this is a time bomb that will make itself felt, if not today, then the day after tomorrow for sure.
When working with heavy weights, it is almost impossible . And most often the knees come into play again: helping ourselves to lift the weight, we often turn our knees inward. And this is the certain death of your joint.
The knees always “look” in the same direction as the socks. Squat with your legs parallel – your knees are parallel. Turn your toes outward - your knees look strictly apart.
Pointless and merciless exercises of fitness girls: kneeling squats (on knees)
When to expect an effect
Arriving at the gym, girls are immediately interested in when the first results will appear. In this case, everything depends on the intensity of the training, the correct selection of exercises and the individual characteristics of the body. 3 weeks after exercising at Smith, a noticeable effect may not appear, but the habit of regularly visiting the gym will be 100% developed. At the same time, experienced athletes note that 42 days is a turning point, when most beginners give up without getting quick results. A visible effect will appear already in the 6th week of regular visits to the gym.
At this moment, the body noticeably tightens and the muscle relief begins to be clearly visible. At the same time, at this stage you should not step on the scales, since the weight, despite the slimness of your figure, may not go away. This is due to the fact that fat takes up more space in the body, but muscles weigh heavier, so the effect of “not losing weight, but becoming slimmer” occurs. Experienced trainers note that the visible results of regular training become clearly noticeable only after 3 months of training. During this period, a person already knows how to squat and, usually, does exercises without using the Smith. For girls, the Smith squat is a good start to regular training.
The exercise will teach you to maintain balance and control the work of individual muscles and the entire body as a whole. Despite the fact that the fitness machine is easy to use, it is better to start working with it under the supervision of a trainer. When working out on the simulator, you need to keep the pace, don’t slow down and don’t rush.
Pancakes under the heels
You probably paid attention to some super mega online trainers and part-time fitness bikini trainers - how they place small discs (“pancakes”) weighing up to 1.25-2.5 kg under the heels before squats. Beginners often copy such habits of their more “wise and sophisticated” owners of gorgeous asses, without even asking themselves why this is necessary. It is believed that this is better, just better, without details.
“The exercise is more effective, it seems that the gluteal muscles feel better, but I don’t know…”
It seems very similar to the opinion that small, frequent meals speed up metabolism
