Smith Machine Squat
A back-racked squat on a Smith machine, where the guided bar path removes most of the stabilizing work.
How to do it
- Set the Smith bar just below shoulder height with the safety stops above knee level.
- Step under the bar so it rests at the base of your traps and grip the bar evenly.
- Place your feet slightly ahead of the bar at about shoulder width.
- Rotate your wrists to unrack the bar and brace your trunk.
- Push your hips back and bend your knees together until your thighs reach parallel.
- Drive through the whole foot and extend your hips and knees to return to standing.
Key technique cue
Feet slightly ahead of the bar and trunk braced so the lower back stays flat.
Common mistakes
- ✕ Setting the bar low on the back, which fights the vertical rail and strains the shoulders.
- ✕ Placing the feet directly under the bar, which forces the knees forward and the torso down.
- ✕ Letting the knees track inside the second toe as you drive out of the bottom.
- ✕ Leaning on the fixed bar path and losing trunk bracing, which rounds the lower back.
Benefits
- ✓ Loads a squat pattern heavily with a much lower balance requirement.
- ✓ Lets a lifter train to failure safely using the rotating safety catches.
- ✓ Gives a clear, teachable squat pattern for beginners and machine-only programs.
Progression: from easier to harder
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Step 1 -
Step 2 You are here - Smith Machine Squat
- Belt Squat
- Pause Squat
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Step 3 -
Step 4
About the exercise
The Smith machine squat runs the bar on a fixed vertical rail, so the lifter can concentrate on the descent and drive rather than on balancing a loaded bar. The bar sits at the base of the traps, the feet are set slightly ahead of it, and the hips and knees bend together until the thighs reach parallel. Quadriceps take the primary load with glutes, hamstrings, trunk, and calves supporting. A low bar position does not work well here because the rail is vertical while a low bar squat needs the bar to travel back over the midfoot.
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