The Smith Machine Squat Guide

When we talk about the Smith machine squat, we’re referring to a back squat (with a few key adjustments we’ll get into below) performed on a machine that keeps the bar moving on a fixed vertical path.

While the Smith machine gets some flack — lots of flack — FINE, people either love it or hate it — it’s a worthwhile piece of equipment for adding safety and stability to your squat sessions. 

"The added stability of the Smith Machine allows you to focus on depth, tempo, and proper mechanics without needing a spotter or worrying about balance and racking the bar," says Jonathan Flicker, NASM-CPT, CES, and owner of FLICKER STRONG.

Plus, Smith machine back squats place greater emphasis on the quads compared to their free-weight counterpart, making them a great add-on for leg day.

How To Squat on Smith Machine with Proper Form

No spotter? No problem. Here's how to set up and tackle Smith machine squats with perfect form, even when you're flying solo during your session.

Safety first: If the Smith machine has adjustable stoppers, set them just below your lowest range of motion. This will catch the bar if you fall or can't complete a rep.

• Adjust the bar so it's positioned a little bit lower than shoulder height. 
• Step under the bar and let it rest across your traps. Place you hands on the bar, just outside your shoulders.
• Step away from the bar and set your feet about shoulder-width apart, toes pointing slightly out. 
• Brace your core and twist the bar to unlock it from the safety stop.
• Lower into your squat, keeping a neutral spine, proud chest, and knees tracking in line with your toes.
• Once your thighs are paralell to the floor, drive through your heels and squeeze your glutes as you return to standing, keeping your feet firmly planted.

Smith Machine Squat Common Mistakes

When learning a new move, here are some common technique and set up mistakes to look out for. The Smith machine lets you squat without a spotter — you can always rerack the weight if you can't finish a rep — but that also means you won't have a gym buddy keeping tabs on your form. Try filming yourself from different angles to check for correct form, keeping an eye on the following common mistakes.

Too Tall Bar Height: When setting up, remember that when it comes time to unrack the weight, you'll have to twist and lift the bar up slightly. If the bar is set too high to begin with, you'll be forced to go up on your tippy toes to free the bar — never a stable way to start a squat. To avoid this, set the bar so it's a few inches below your shoulders.

Trying To Do a Barbell Back Squat: A Smith machine squat is not a barbell back squat. The barbell back squat keeps the weight centered on your body, while the Smith machine squat places the weight slightly behind you, forcing your body to work more out in front. Be sure to take a step away from the bar before you start your reps on the Smith machine to find the right angle.

Rounded Back: A neutral spine is the name of the game. "You'll want to avoid classic squatting mistakes such as rounding the lower back," says Flicker. To keep your spine neutral, engage your core throughout your reps, lift a weight that's within your means (no ego, amigo), and don't sink too low at the bottom if it pulls you out of position.

Wrong Footwear: Cusioned running shoes are great for running — not squatting. The extra padding makes you unstable. Opt for a shoe with a flat sole (or even barefoot if you're in your own home gym or your commercial gym allows it) for the most stability and support.

Smith Machine Squat Exercises & Variations

If the Smith machine squat isn't for you — whether it feels uncomfortable or you feel like your form isn't correct due to the fixed vertical path — substitute it out for one of these alternative lower-body Smith machine exercises.

Smith Machine Hack Squat

The Smith machine hack squat takes the quad emphasis of a regular Smith machine squat and cranks it up even more. By setting your feet further out in front and leaning back into the bar's fixed path, you minimize hip and glute involvement and keep the quads fired up from start to finish.

How To Rep: 

• Set the bar a little lower than shoulder height.
• Place your hands outside of shoulder-width on the bar, then step under.
• With your back leaning against the bar,scoot your feet out even further away so that when you lower it looks like you're sitting in a chair. 
• Keep your torso moving straight down, allowing your knees to bend at about 90 degrees.
• Then press through your heels, big toe, and pinky toe, as you drive back up to standing.

Smith Machine Front Squat

Taking your front squat onto the Smith machine can help you learn the movement pattern, focus on quad isolation, and is a safer option when training without a spotter. 

How To Rep: 

• Set the bar between chest and shoulder height.
• With your hands about shoulder-width apart on the bar, step under so that the bar rests infront of you and across the meaty part of the front of your shoulders (not your collarbones).
• Keep your elbows lifted and chest tall to create a shelf for the bar.
• Unrack the weight then set your feet about shoulder-width apart with toes slightly turned out.
• Brace your core and keep your torso upright as you lower down, keeping your knees tracking in line with your toes.
• Once your thighs become parallel with the floor, drive through your feet to come back to standing.

Grip Tip: If you lack the flexibility in your wrists to set your arms in this position on the bar, you can try the following options. Instead of wrapping your entire hand around the bar, try the fingertip front rack grip where you use 2 or 3 fingers around the bar and your other fingers hang free. Or, a cross grip position where you lift your elbows so they're parallel to the floor and cross your arms in front.

Smith Machine Split Squat

To shift the focus from your quads to your glutes, give the Smith machine split squat a go. What's more, this is a unilateral movement, allowing you to identify muscle imbalances from one side to the next and put in the work to fix them. While doing a heavy free-weight split squat can often feel perilous — with every ounce of your being fighting to keep from toppling over in this unstable stance — working with a Smith machine helps limit that instability so you can focus on moving the weight.

How To Rep:

• Set the bar a hair below shoulder height.
• With a slightly wider than shoulder width grip, step under the bar and rest it on your upper back.
• Unrack the weight and step one leg forward and the opposite leg back. 
• Bend both knees — the back knee will lower down towards the floor while you keep most of your weight on the front leg.
• Once both knees are at a 90 degree angle, drive through your front foot to come back to standing.

Tip: When you maintain a more upright posture in this exercise, you'll feel this in your quads, but a subtle lean forward will have your booty tapping in to tackle the work.

Smith Machine Sumo Squat

The sumo squat targets your adductors (inner thighs), quads, glutes, and hamstrings, with the wide stance also recruiting your calves for stabilization. Compared to a traditional back squat, the sumo squat on a Smith machine keeps your torso in a more upright position, which can reduce strain on your lower back.

How To Rep: 

• Set the bar at chest height, and step under so that the bar rests across your traps with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width.
• Set your stance with feet wider than shoulder-width and toes pointing out at a 45 degree angle.
• Brace your core and straighten your legs to unrack the weight. 
• Maintaining a neutral spine and proud chest, lower down by bending your knees — making sure your knees are tracking in line with your toes.
• Once your thighs are parallel to the floor, drive through your feet to come back to standing.

Smith Machine Sissy Squat

Quad isolation is what it's all about with Sissy Squats, and taking advantage of the Smith machine's fixed bar can be an easy substitute for a Sissy Squat Bench. The stabilized bar provides balance so you can lean back further into the movement, keeping constant tension on your quads.

How To Rep:

• Set the bar at a height that hits your upper calf, just behind the kneecap. If your Smith machine doesn't lower far enough, stand on weight plates to fine-tune the setup.
  
• With light pressure against the bar, bend your knees while keeping an upright posture.
• Lower down as far as you can without leaning your torso forward.
• Drive through your heels to return to standing, keeping a slight bend in your knees at the top to maintain tension on your quads.

Tip: When learning this move, place your hand on the Smith machine to help keep you steady and stable.

Smith Machine vs Squat Rack: Muscles Worked & Benefits

We’re not here to pit the Smith machine against the squat rack, but it’s worth noting how each affects muscle activation during squats. Both the Smith machine squat and a standard barbell back squat target the same muscles — quadriceps, glutes, adductors, erector spinae, and core — but they work them to varying degrees.

Because your core has to work harder to maintain an upright posture during a free-weight squat, you’ll get greater overall stabilizer activation. However, due to the foot placement typically used during the Smith machine squat, studies have found greater quadriceps activation with the Smith machine compared to a standard barbell back squat (Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research).

A separate study comparing the 1-rep max (1RM) back squats on free weights vs the Smith machine found women achieved higher 1RMs on the Smith machine (PubMed) . However, the participants’ fitness levels weren’t detailed, so it’s possible women in the study were less experienced with barbell squats and felt more comfortable attempting a 1RM on the Smith machine. (Isn’t it fun coming up with theories?! Maybe I missed my calling as a scientist.)

Typically, lifters can handle more weight on the Smith machine than with free weights — likely due to the added stability, reduced demand on stabilizer muscles, and the overall feeling of safety (PubMed). "It’s a fantastic way for beginners to explore squatting with heavier loads and an ideal solution for those who may have avoided traditional squats due to injury or other physical limitations," adds Flicker.

Plus, you won't need to navigate how to safely fail a heavy squat since you can always rerack the weight when you're unable to complete a rep. At the end of the day, there’s room for both a Smith machine and a squat rack in your home gym — maybe not literally, but figuratively — whether you want to push a dialed-in 1RM with extra stability or recruit more muscles with a traditional free-weight lift.

Takeaway

The Smith machine squat isn't a replacement for a barbell squat, but it's a solid leg day move to add to your workout — especially if you're training solo, want extra stability, or are chasing hypertrophy. It's also a great option for beginners learning movement patterns or those working through rehab or prehab work.

Next time the Smith machine is open — or if you're lucky enough to have one in your home gym attached to your PR-4000 or PR-5000 rack (check out our Ares 2.0 Builder to see how the Smith machine attachment works with different setups) — consider adding Smith machine squats to your leg day routine. They'll help you safely push closer to failure, build confidence in your lift, and add some serious volume to your quad training.

Remember to start low and work your way up, and if the fixed bar path on the Smith machine makes you form feel funky, don't force it.

FAQs

Are Smith machine squats easier than free-weight back squats?

Yes and no. Since the Smith machine keeps the bar fixed to a track, you won't have to work as hard to maintain your balance. However, you'll still be moving whatever amount of weight you choose — often people are able to lift heavier loads with the Smith machine — so your legs may not agree that one is easier than the other.

Are Smith machine squats effective?

Similar to other exercises, effectiveness depends on how often you're tackling lifts and whether or not you're working with progressive overload. By incorporating Smith machine squats between 2 and 3 times a week, and upping the weight when you're ready for more, you can see gains in strength and muscle size.

Is a Smith machine squat safer than using free-weights?

This topic is widely discussed, but generally, Smith machines provide you with the ability to train safely since you can rerack the weight when you need the assist, set stoppers to support you when you can't complete your reps, and the fixed track supports beginners when learning movements. However, due to the fixed bar path, your body may not be able to move in a way that's natural or comfortable. As such, if you feel discomfort when performing squats on a Smith machine, don't force it.

Rosie Borchert is NASM-CPT, former Nike Volleyball coach, and fitness writer whose work has appeared on BarBend and Tonal. If anyone would like to hire her to play beach volleyball, snowboard, binge watch TV, or go climbing, please get in touch.

This article was reviewed by Ashley Boyer, ACE-CPT, for accuracy.