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Machines vs free weights

dbrodrive1211

New member
I pretty much know the differences between the two but my question is,has anybody on here made pretty good size gains off of just machines and if so,do you have to take a different approach in your routine (sets,reps,frequency,etc) than you would if it were an all free weights routine??
 
Machines are a scam perpetrated by corporations that force commercial gyms to buy a different 2 thousand dollar machine for every individual muscle when all they really need is a 300 dollar texas power bar and some weights.

With that being said there are some pieces of "equipment" out there that make working certain muscle groups a certain way possible when it would otherwise be near impossible like the GHR and reverse hyper. As far as nautalis machines and similar versions go they will do little to nothing for development as they often put the body in unfamiliar and sometimes detrimental positions.

The body is a complete system and it should be used and trained accordingly.
 
Free weights bar none...the body is naturally moving and using all it's abilities this way.
 
You can add strength and mass to the body with machines no doubt, since any real resistance against a muscle will cause an adaptation if enough resistance is used.
The only thing that I think is a draw back is, most machines have you sit or lay and don't load the spine and or the core with good heavy weight. IMO you should do a good bit of work standing, but that is just me. But like the others, I am very free weight biased.
Some of the dictated pathways are restricting too, (especially if you are pushing heavy loads) and do not allow natural body joint movement.
 
PROness said:
Machines are a scam perpetrated by corporations that force commercial gyms to buy a different 2 thousand dollar machine for every individual muscle when all they really need is a 300 dollar texas power bar and some weights.

With that being said there are some pieces of "equipment" out there that make working certain muscle groups a certain way possible when it would otherwise be near impossible like the GHR and reverse hyper. As far as nautalis machines and similar versions go they will do little to nothing for development as they often put the body in unfamiliar and sometimes detrimental positions.

The body is a complete system and it should be used and trained accordingly.
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Free weights are better, no doubt. But some machines do have their place....some of the nautilus machines are pretty good, like the pullover machine., some of the others suck.
 
I use machines sometimes at the end of my workouts to provide some stability and "finish" a muscle group. This allows me to isolate a particular muscle group. There is probably a different answer for each person. A lot of psychology at work here.

About three weeks about I ended my dumbbell press sets and through I was grabbing 75 lb. dumbbells. Someone had put the 85 pound dumbbells in the wrong spot (don't give me a hard time about my weight lifted). I noticed they were "heavy" but thought I was just tired. I did a set of 8. AFTER the set I realized what had happened. I tried another set and guess what. I could not even get them up.

My point is that mental psychology plays an important role (at least for me) in the effectiveness of a particular free weight or machine exercise. A good mix works well for me.

Respectfully submitted.
 
pappybay said:
I use machines sometimes at the end of my workouts to provide some stability and "finish" a muscle group. This allows me to isolate a particular muscle group. There is probably a different answer for each person. A lot of psychology at work here.

About three weeks about I ended my dumbbell press sets and through I was grabbing 75 lb. dumbbells. Someone had put the 85 pound dumbbells in the wrong spot (don't give me a hard time about my weight lifted). I noticed they were "heavy" but thought I was just tired. I did a set of 8. AFTER the set I realized what had happened. I tried another set and guess what. I could not even get them up.

My point is that mental psychology plays an important role (at least for me) in the effectiveness of a particular free weight or machine exercise. A good mix works well for me.

Respectfully submitted.
Click to expand...

I agree....machines have their place, especially later in the work out.
 
Machines are also a good alternative to focus on lagging muscles.
 
If you count the hammer strength plate loaded setups as machines, then there isn't much you couldn't do with them.
 
Machines are great and serve their purpose. Its take stress off my lower back for rowing, pulldowns are easier on my forearms and knees feel better for squatting.


Im too young to be feeling so old
 
EasyEJL said:
If you count the hammer strength plate loaded setups as machines, then there isn't much you couldn't do with them.
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As an engineer I enjoy the hammer stength designs.

My splits are in full body rotations of barbell, dumbbell and machines. Each is effective in their own way. Some are great compound work, some recruit more secondary stabilizers and some are great for isolation and muscle specific targeting.

Personally when I want to work my pectoral (or muscle of choice) muscles I am not so much concerned with incorporating my core or any other ancillary muscle groups - hammer strength machines are perfect.
 
I switch between the two quite often but wouldn't use strictly machines forever. Both have their place though.
 
EasyEJL said:
If you count the hammer strength plate loaded setups as machines, then there isn't much you couldn't do with them.
Click to expand...

These are awesome machines. I got to use some when I was traveling (used another gym). Same concept as the ISO machines. Very nice.
 
Hammer and nautilus come from the same line....sort of.......hammer was developed by the son of the nautilus creator.

Hammer strenght rules!!!
 
I feel your pain. I feel way older than I am

hvactech said:
Machines are great and serve their purpose. Its take stress off my lower back for rowing, pulldowns are easier on my forearms and knees feel better for squatting.


Im too young to be feeling so old
Click to expand...
 
Dyl said:
I feel your pain. I feel way older than I am
Click to expand...
Try integrating some change of thinking.
The oldest people (ie: 80's 90's) who are still running around like kids, have a active kid type outlook, whether they are gardening or playing shuffle board.

It reminds me of the Stephen Wright line.
I remember when I turned 2. I had thought, in a year, my age had doubled....! If this keeps up, by the time I am 6, I'll be 90. Ha ha ha
 
PaulBlack said:
Try integrating some change of thinking.
The oldest people (ie: 80's 90's) who are still running around like kids, have a active kid type outlook, whether they are gardening or playing shuffle board.

It reminds me of the Stephen Wright line.
I remember when I turned 2. I had thought, in a year, my age had doubled....! If this keeps up, by the time I am 6, I'll be 90. Ha ha ha
Click to expand...

Kid type outlook: when im 80 i need to drink my juice and watch blue clues, poop my pants and then jog for 10 miles
 
Ha ha,
-So how did you sleep?
-I slept like a baby!
- Oh yeah!?
-Yeah, up every 2 hours crying and with a load in my pants...!
 
Thanks for the tip I will definitely use this.

QUOTE=PaulBlack;4084597]Try integrating some change of thinking.
The oldest people (ie: 80's 90's) who are still running around like kids, have a active kid type outlook, whether they are gardening or playing shuffle board.

It reminds me of the Stephen Wright line.
I remember when I turned 2. I had thought, in a year, my age had doubled....! If this keeps up, by the time I am 6, I'll be 90. Ha ha ha[/QUOTE]
 
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