When and How To Use Exercise Machines Instead of Free Weights
Are all Exercise Machines totally useless? Not quite!
What a pretty ... Exercise Machine! 
Hey there!
I don’t know about you, but I thought it’s that time again for a post on training!
Coffee and bananas are great, but lifting weights is just too much fun to leave out for long.
Y’all heard that free weighs are superior to machines, and it’s true … usually.
Especially for training athletes, barbells and dumbbells are applied perhaps 7 out of 10 times.
However, there are exceptions to that rule.
We got some really effective benches/machines, and in certain situations weights machines are extremely useful as a temporary solution.
Though it’s true that we prefer to use free weights over machines as a general rule, there are exceptions for sure:
Benches like the Leg Curl (seated, lying and standing), the Reverse Hyper Machine invented by Loui Simmons and the Glute-Ham Raise Bench for example are extra effective in building that super-important posterior chain.
And in a rehab situation weights machines truly come into their own:
Imagine the athlete has a broken wrist for example.
How to train the upper body?
Easy: Peck Deck for chest, reverse it for the upper back … done!
Or maybe use an adjustable cable pulley with a wrist-band attachment. Or a Nautilus Lat Machine. The possibilities are many.
Imagine this scenario:
Some 3-4 years back a player on the football team got tackled: one guy tripped him, another pushed him simultaneously and he then landed on yet ANOTHER player when he fell.
Result: the Clavicle was broken in 3 places.
His arm was in a sling and he said:
“Mark, the doc told me no training for 6-8 weeks! What should I do?
“Let’s step into my office” (the Gym), I replied, “and see what we can see, shall we?”
Some 5 grueling sets later his legs were smoked and the calves pumped into oblivion. How?
Leg-Press! … No Hands! 
A day later, he sent me an sms, I still have it in my phone:
“Hey Mark, is it normal that you can’t walk the next day?”
Here’s the Workout:
| Leg Press Workout | Sets | Reps | Tempo | TUT | Rest Interval |
| Thighs | 3 | 50-60 | 1010 | 120s. | 120 seconds |
| Leg Press Donkey Calf Raises | 2 | 50-60 | 1010 | 120s. | 120 seconds |
The Notation:
A: Leg Press, 3×50-60 Reps, Tempo 1010, TUT 120 seconds (Time Under Tension), Rest 120 seconds
B: Donkey Calf Raises (on Leg Press), 2×50-60 Reps, Tempo 1010, TUT 120 seconds (Time Under Tension), Rest 120 seconds.
Explanation:
You do 3 sets of 50-60 reps on the Leg Press, through a full range of motion (all the way down, all the way up), using a smooth 1010 tempo, meaning 1 second down and 1 second up, no bouncing, no pausing.
With correct tempo you should get exactly 60 reps in 120 seconds. Use about 50-60%1RM as a working weight. Then rest for exactly 2 minutes (1:1 Work/Rest-Ratio) before starting on the next set.
Follow up with the Calf Raises on the lower edge of the Leg Press’ Platform: 50-60 reps in 120 seconds, same difference as in the above Thigh-Work. You should go for the full range here too, making sure of a good stretch. Rest 2 minutes, repeat one more time: done!
Simple, painful, effective.
Why Lactic Acid Training is Great for the Rehabilitation Setting
So his lower body got a good workout, and the Hormonal Response to the High Lactic Acid Workout on that leg press machine helped him recover much faster, made the wound and bone heal quicker.
How? Because this type of training drives HGH levels through the roof. And HGH assists the regeneration of tissues, read: it speeds up the healing process.
That’s one reason I use this form of training in the Rehab Process. The other is simple: Hypertrophy.
High HGH will ensure you maintain and/or even grow muscle mass fast where needed.
In Summary: Free Weights? Normally yeah, most of the time.
But some exercise machines are just wicked effective, and in a injury situation many can be really useful too!
Mark
7 Comments
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Great post, Mark.
I agree about the exercise machines, some of them are just too good to skip even though I use free weights 90% of the time
Hey Kris, Thanks Dude!
Yeah some are awesome, and for special circumstances can be extra practical, like when you can’t use traditional weights.
Another example: say a sprained ankle? Leg-Curls, Leg Extensions, reverse hyper … nooooo prob!
Mark
Great article Mark.
I always recommend beginners start with machines for at least a couple of months. I really think it is important for the body to get used to carrying weight in a stable way.
I don’t have anything against using them if you are advanced or intermediate level in your training, in fact it is good to include them in your training to challenge yourself.
Sometimes I use machines for a whole week, then switch to free weights for a few weeks. It really depends on the mood.
-Sam
50 reps. You are evil lol!
Yavor,
you saw right through me dude!
Welcome to the pain … to hell and back again … welcome … to Olympic Performance Coaching! Mwuahahahahahahaaaaa ….
Mark
Great post.Thanks for sharing such a useful information with us.
More than welcome!
Mark