Written by Patrick Dale, PT, ex-Marine

If there is one training machine that’s guaranteed to cause an argument, it’s the Smith machine. Almost every gym has at least one, so they’re very popular. But, according to many people, they’re also ineffective, dangerous, or, worst of all, not functional!

The truth is that the Smith machine is just one of the many tools you can use to build the body of your dreams. It’s neither inherently good nor automatically bad. It has its uses and can be more or less effective than freeweights depending on your training goal.

For example, if you are a powerlifter training for your next meet, bench pressing on a Smith machine won’t help much. After all, you’ll be doing the barbell freeweight bench press in competition.

However, if you’re a bodybuilder trying to stimulate and exhaust as many pec fibers as possible, benching on the Smith machine offers several obvious advantages.

Like barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells, and every other type of training equipment, Smith machines are just tools. They aren’t good or bad – they just are! Love ‘em or hate ‘em, the Smith machine is here to stay, and in this article, we’re going to reveal the most effective leg exercises you can do with this gym staple.

The Smith Machine was invented in the 1950s by golden-era fitness guru Jack LaLanne. His original design was then developed by engineer Paul Martin for gym owner Rudy Smith, which is where the Smith machine gets its name.

A Smith machine is basically a barbell on rails. Rotating the bar engages locking hooks so you can safely spot yourself. Most Smith machines also have adjustable safety stoppers to prevent the bar from descending below a predetermined height, which is handy when squatting and bench pressing.

Smith machines also allow you to train hard and heavy on your own. Because the weight is guided, you’re free to focus on your workout, with no need to waste energy on balancing the bar. Plus, if you train to failure and cannot complete your final rep, you simply flip your wrists, lock the bar in place, and escape unscathed.

Depending on the model, the bar may be counterbalanced, so it weighs less than a standard Olympic barbell. This can be useful when doing unilateral (single-limb) exercises, and beginners often appreciate this, too.

The Smith machine is a very versatile tool that you can use to train almost any muscle group. However, some exercises are more popular than others, and the Smith machine squat and bench press are bodybuilding staples.

You can use a Smith machine to train pretty much any muscle you want, but they’re especially good for leg training. With no fear of getting crushed under a heavy bar and no balance issues, you can push your legs to their limit.

Here are 12 of the best Smith machine leg exercises.

Target muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings.

The squat is the king of exercises, but it can also be dangerous. Getting stuck at the bottom of a squat with a heavy barbell on your back is no laughing matter. Some people also find the movement awkward and hard to master. Smith machine squats are much more forgiving and easier to learn and master.

Target muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings.

Hack squats are a popular exercise. The position of your feet and the angle of your torso means that hack squats are more quads-centric than regular squats. However, you will need a hack squat machine to do this exercise.

No hack squat? No problem! You can replicate this exercise using your trusty Smith machine.

Target muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings.

Split squats allow you to emphasize one leg at a time. This can be useful for fixing left-to-right strength and size imbalances. However, doing split squats in a Smith machine means that balancing is easy, so you can focus more on the muscles you want to develop and less on controlling the weight.

Target muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings.

Lunges are one of the best lower body exercises you can do. With lunges, you work one leg at a time, which is a convenient way to spot left-to-right strength imbalances. There are many different lunges to choose from, including forward, lateral, and walking.

Smith machine reverse lunges are an excellent exercise. Like all lunges, they work your quads, but this variation is especially challenging for your glutes and hamstrings. It’s also very knee-friendly.

Target muscles: Glutes, hamstrings, lower back.

Good mornings are so-called because, when you do them, it looks a little like you are bowing to greet someone. Cutesy names aside, this exercise is actually pretty brutal, especially when you do it with a barbell. Smith machine good mornings are safer and more comfortable than regular good mornings and potentially more effective, too.

Target muscles: Glutes, hamstrings, lower back.

While there is no denying the effectiveness of the good morning exercise, it can be hard on your lower back. Resting the bar on your shoulders means there is a long lever, and you may feel it more in your lumbar spine than your glutes and hammies. Smith machine Romanian deadlifts are more lower back-friendly, and you’ll probably feel it more in your muscles and less in your spine.

Target muscles: Glutes, hamstrings, lower back.

Most Smith machine exercises are compound, meaning they involve several joints and muscles working together. Smith machine donkey kicks are more of an isolation exercise, mainly targeting your glutes. The hamstrings are also involved, but you should feel this exercise mostly in your butt.

Target muscles: Glutes, hamstrings, lower back.

The barbell hip thrust is one of the best ways to isolate your glutes. This popular exercise is usually done with a freeweight barbell but actually works even better with a Smith machine. Use this exercise to build rock-hard, superhero glutes while being kind to your lower back.

Target muscles: Glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, lower back.

While it may seem blasphemous to do deadlifts with anything other than a freeweight barbell, some people prefer to use a Smith machine. Smith machine deadlifts are a little more lower back-friendly than conventional deadlifts, and you’ll probably feel them more in your glutes and hamstrings, too.

Target muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings.

Pistol squats are a popular bodyweight unilateral leg exercise, but boy, are they tough! Doing pistols requires strength, flexibility, and plenty of balance, which is why so few people can actually do them. Using a Smith machine makes pistols much more accessible as they remove the balance demand of this exercise.

Target muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings.

Sissy squats are an old-school bodybuilding leg exercise. They can be done with just body weight for resistance, but some people also like to do them with weights. Using a Smith machine is a great way to overload your muscles while making balance less of an ordeal. This leaves you free to hammer your quadriceps into submission. There is nothing sissy about sissy squats!

Target muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings.

The Smith machine vertical leg press is a very old-school exercise. It’s how golden-era bodybuilders did leg presses before the angled sled-type leg press was invented. Despite being pretty old-fashioned, Smith machine leg presses are still an effective exercise, but they must be performed carefully.

Here are THREE Smith machine-only leg workouts to try!

Do you have a question about Smith machine leg exercises? No worries because we’ve got the answers!

Some people believe that Smith machine leg exercises are more dangerous than their freeweight counterparts. This is not necessarily the case. In fact, in many instances, Smith machine leg exercises are safer because there is less danger of getting pinned under a heavy bar, and you’re less likely to lose your balance or lose control of the weight.

Smith machine exercises DO involve repeating the same movement over and over, which could conceivably lead to overuse injuries. Still, this criticism can also be leveled at every other resistance machine exercise. Avoid this problem by slightly altering your stance from set to set, and not using the Smith machine for all your leg workouts.

So, simply put, Smith machine exercises are probably no more dangerous and are in some ways safer than most freeweight leg exercises.

Olympic weightlifting bars weigh a standard 20kg or 45 pounds. This makes it easy to work out how much weight you are lifting, even if you are training in a new gym. Unfortunately, there is no such standardized weight for Smith machine bars, and they can weigh from as little as 15 pounds to over 50. Also, some machines have counterweights and angled guide rods, both of which affect the weight of the bar.

Because of this, it’s impossible to say how much the Smith machine bar at your gym weighs. However, there are several ways you can determine this information for yourself.

Read more about this topic in our in-depth article.

While using a Smith machine for squats or bench presses WOULD be cheating in an official powerlifting meet, it can’t really be called cheating in any other situation. It’s not like you are trying to set a world record or compare your performance to someone squatting or benching with a barbell.

After all, cheating implies that rules have been broken, but what are the rules for Smith machine squats or bench presses? There are none! The only way to cheat with a Smith machine is to use fake weights.

These calls of cheating are unwarranted unless the lifter in question is suggesting their lift is better than a legitimate barbell lift. Barbell and Smith machine lifts are two very different things – apples and oranges – and cannot really be compared.

There are some excellent muscle-building Smith machine leg exercises that bodybuilders rely on to build their massive quads, glutes, and hamstrings. For safety, many bodybuilders actually prefer Smith machine squats, lunges, split squats, good mornings, etc., over their freeweight equivalents.

A smith machine allows you to train to failure in relative safety and leaves you free to focus on your mind-muscle connection as the weights balance themselves.

Bodybuilders have been using the Smith machine for over half a century, which strongly suggests it’s an effective way to build muscle.

With very few exceptions, athletes don’t just move forward and back or up and down. Rather, they have to move in several directions at once, often while contending with the actions of their opponents. Because of this, most Smith machine exercises will be of limited use when training for sports.

Most athletes will get better results by training with freeweights and other unguided forms of resistance.

Barbell back squats might be the crowned king of exercises, but that doesn’t mean they’re the only or even the best way to build an impressive set of wheels. Smith machine leg exercises can be every bit as effective and, for hypertrophy training, offer several advantages over barbells and dumbbells.

For starters, Smith machine leg exercises make it much easier to focus all your attention on the muscles you’re training. Balance is also a non-issue, and you can train to failure in relative safety. Plus, there are lots of different exercises to choose from, so your workouts need never be boring.

Are Smith machine exercises as functional as their freeweight counterparts? Probably not. But unless you are an athlete, functionality isn’t really much of a concern.

Like dumbbells, kettlebells, and resistance bands, Smith machines are merely tools we can utilize to build muscle and get stronger. So, use the Smith machine or don’t – it’s up to you!

Patrick Dale is an ex-British Royal Marine, gym owner, and fitness qualifications tutor and assessor. In addition, Patrick is a freelance writer who has authored three fitness and exercise books, dozens of e-books, thousands of articles, and several fitness videos. He’s not just an armchair fitness expert; Patrick practices what he preaches! He has competed at a high level in numerous sports, including rugby, triathlon, rock climbing, trampolining, powerlifting, and, most recently, stand up paddleboarding. When not lecturing, training, researching, or writing, Patrick is busy enjoying the sunny climate of Cyprus, where he has lived for the last 20-years.

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