Are Free Weights More Potent Than Machines For Muscle Gains?

Feb 24
13:42

2009

Francesco Castano

Francesco Castano

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A popular muscle building belief is that free weights are more effective for muscle gain compared with machines. But in reality, for many bodybuilders, the opposite if often true.

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A seeming agreement exists among bodybuilding aficionados regarding the superiority of free weights compared with machines for muscle gain,Are Free Weights More Potent Than Machines For Muscle Gains? Articles to the level where machines have been stereotyped by dedicated bodybuilders as virtually worthless for those seeking maximum muscle gain. In addition, many of those same bodybuilders believe that gyms outfitted with machines are doing so in order to cater to the lazy who seek sleek bodybuilding workout equipment, and who fear grueling, intense, muscle blasting workout sessions. This idea has been repeated so frequently and by such a wide variety of bodybuilders that there must be validity to such a claim; or, could this actually prove to be another of the many muscle building misconceptions?

In reality, free weights are clearly not inferior to machines when used properly, as they allow a muscle complete range of motion, and require a level of balance that is not inherent in machine equivalent exercises, therefore free weights will improve the possibility for muscle gain, but to what degree? By adopting ideas from the mainstream bodybuilding community, the advantage free weights offer is so significant that a bodybuilder would need to be considered ignorant to use machines regardless of the circumstances, yet, the muscle building edge free weights provide is actually far less than most believe. In fact, assuming a bodybuilder is using the same weight training techniques with free weights and machines, his muscle gains will prove to be virtually identical, to the point where even a talented bodybuilding personal trainer will never uncover the disparity in muscle gains between the two methods. Yet, because the free weight potency misconception has been repeated so often, by numerous bodybuilders, the idea is propagated as fact, no different than a wide range of bodybuilding concepts that are, in fact, myth disguised as fact.

Not only are machines a potent alternative for those wishing to achieve substantial muscle gain, but machines may in all likelihood prove to be superior in total muscle gain due to a lower risk of injury, and a primary reason why bodybuilders are not able to achieve their bodybuilding genetic limits is due to joint and muscle injuries that interferes with consistency, leading to frustrating surprise layoffs, which destroys momentum, and soon causes many to quit the muscle building process completely. Weight training workout consistency ranks as one of the most vital techniques in building maximum muscle mass, and free weights offer enhanced risk of injury and joint discomfort that will be reduced by focusing on machines as a substitution for common free weight muscle building exercises.

In fact, after years of free weight bench pressing, I started to experience a prolonged period of discomfort, to the point where I was no longer able to perform flat bench press with free weights, so I decided to experiment with the alternative. After purchasing my first Smith Machine, I started to integrate the bench press into my weight training workout, and the discomfort I experienced with free weights on a regular basis suddenly disappeared, and I have since been able to successfully use the Smith Machine for impressive results without the painful weight training side effects. My bodybuilding results did not suffer due to switching from free weights to the Smith Machine, but I was amazingly able to continuously perform one of the most potent upper body bodybuilding workout exercises without any further shoulder pain, and this, alone, is reason enough to consider machines as a desirable and very effective alternative to free weights.

I feel that many of the bodybuilders who reject the notion of machines for muscle building are perpetuating a "traditional vs. modern" crusade, where they feel free weights symbolize classic bodybuilding, while machines stand for the anthesis of all that muscle building has historically entailed, defining the new era bodybuilder who is unwilling to exert maximum muscle gain effort, but rather is only interested in fluff. This idea is not unusual in other industries, such as automobile enthusiasts feeling that any individual preferring modern clutchless transmissions is somehow less worthy of owning a sports automobile, when in fact this is a personal preference, one that allows the driver of a clutchless car to potentially perform far better in other aspects of navigating the vehicle. Free weights are the bodybuilder's clutch, so to speak, and for many, are frowned upon for superficial reasons.

So, if you enter a gym and find yourself surrounded by a wide range of machines, assuming you are using a potent bodybuilding diet and weight training workout plan, you can achieve the same muscle gains as those who consistently rely on free weights, but with less injuries to interfere with your bodybuilding progress.