Should You Use Machines?

As I may have highlighted in earlier posts, the gym is a place where many different philosophies on bodybuilding, fitness, and nutrition (as well as ways to approach them) mix. One person may swear by some way of lifting / eating as the only means to get a certain body type, while someone else could say that doing the complete opposite is optimal. It truly is a melting pot of muscle-building and physique-sculpting theory.

One such concept that appears to divide some gym-goers is whether or not to incorporate machines into a workout, and to what degree. Some people will forever swear by free-weights and raw lifting of weight, while others believe that using machines are necessary to hit different angles and stimulate optimal muscle growth.

 

 

Source: Flickr.com / Brisbane City Council. No Changes made.

Personally, I have absolutely no problem incorporating machines into my workout. While I'm a huge fan of using dumbbells and free weights when I can, I'm also a huge fan of many different machines in the gym.

For one thing, a lot of machines are highly specialized to target specific parts of your muscle and muscle groups. They accomplish this by making you position your body in a way that highly isolates different parts of your target muscle. This is a very important concept if you're bodybuilding, since isolating and stimulating very specific parts of your muscle groups is a key objective for optimal growth.

Machines can also offer a level of safety that using free-weights may not. For someone just starting out in the bodybuilding game, whose form and understanding of body movement, safety, and control is not yet fully developed, using machines that offer ways of adjustment and built-in safeguards may be a better option. Certain exercises may also have a greater odds of facilitating injury when done with free-weights as opposed to the same exercise and range of motion being done on a machine. Furthermore, machines can serve as a means to lift heavier amounts of weight without having to worry about taking the necessary precautions to prevent injury that would have to be accounted for with free-weights.

Source: Flickr.com / CherryPoint / No Changes Made

 But there are also things you need to look for and keep in mind when using weightlifting machines. While some machines offer fantastic stimulation for muscle growth, others can, for lack of a better phrase, be a complete waste of time.

Here are some questions you need to ask yourself when trying to find out if the machine you're using is worth it:

"Will this machine give me an optimal line of drive during my exercise repetitions?"

"Will this machine offer me an optimal full range of motion during my exercise repetitions?"

"Does this machine fully stimulate and pump my target muscle(s) at the end range of motion?"

"Does this machine fully stretch my target musle(s) at the negative end range of motion?"

"Will there be minimal to no recruitment of my non-target muscles when using this machine?"

Source: Flickr.com / alantankenghoe / No Changes Made

If the answer to most or all of these questions is yes, you're probably using a pretty good machine. Some of my favorite machines include the fly machine (pec deck), cables, triceps pushdown apparatus, certain plate loaded chest exercise machines, and (recently) the dip machine. Said machines are very good for optimal stimulation of many different muscle groups with proper form.

If the machine you are using requires more effort than is needed, and subsequently results in poor range of motion and pump / stimulation of your target muscle, it's not worth it. If there is not enough stress or tension put on your target muscle it's also not worth it. Also, and perhaps most importantly, if the machine you are using causes you to feel unwanted pain or makes you feel like you could potentially injure yourself, do not use that machine.

During my workouts, I like to incoporate a lot of free-weight exercises when I can. But machines have always had a place in all of my workouts, on every day I choose to workout. Machines can be a fantastic ally for pushing maxes and growing bigger when done right, and offer a level of safety and understanding of movements for those just starting out in the bodybuilding game. See if incorporating machines into your workout works for you or brings you any success, and don't worry about those who swear by and try to get you to use free-weights exclusively.

-Jtrain

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