One of the best workouts for strengthening and adding muscle to your lower body is the squat. Along with presses and deadlifts, they makeup one of the three primary compound motions and may be useful outside of the gym in daily life. Barbell squats and Smith machine squats are two of the greatest squat types for developing leg muscle, which will be discussed in this article.

Involves Muscles

A complex exercise, the squat engages almost all of the muscles in the body in some capacity and may be performed with a large load (as in a barbell back squat). The quadriceps and glutes, as well as the hamstrings to a lesser extent, are the primary muscles employed in the squat. The squat is the best exercise for adding muscular growth to these three muscle groups since it may be loaded safely.

The quadriceps and glutes are utilized eccentrically, extending while contracting, when the hip and knee joints bend while lowering the weight to the bottom of the squat. To go back to the starting position, a strong hip and knee extension is needed, making this activity excellent for building both muscle and athletic ability.

Bench Squat

More than only the capacity to change weight is necessary for all free-weight exercises. To guarantee that the weight is handled safely, stabilizing muscles must exert significant control.

You must activate your core and stabilizing muscles when doing the barbell squat, maintain the weight over your center of mass, and use effective core bracing methods. This indicates that more muscle fibers are used than on the Smith machine, where less assistance from neighboring muscles is required.

Squats Using A Machine

Because of its fixed bar route, the Smith machine uses fewer minor stabilizing muscles during complex lifts. Because it requires less effort to maintain proper technique, it is the perfect exercise for when you are tired or disabled.

The ability to position your foot stance farther forward to engage more glutes and hamstrings and lessen the lift’s quad-dominant nature is another benefit of the Smith machine squat.

Additionally, you may re-rack the weight at any time throughout the movement to avoid becoming caught below it or having to give up if it is too heavy. Because of this, it offers a somewhat safer alternative for those who have balance issues while doing barbell squats.

How Should I Perform a Squat Variation?

Our recommendation is to incorporate both versions in your training, particularly if making progress is your main objective since they both offer unique advantages and difficulties. These squat variants are very much their autonomous lifts with their special application to training, much like the traditional deadlift and the Romanian deadlift.

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Bench Squat

The barbell squat uses a lot of muscle fibers since it requires a lot of stability to be done properly. This variant is perhaps the best choice if you are training for athletic performance because of the higher level of muscle activation.

Squat Using A Machine

Smith machine squats demand less neuromuscular control and less assistance from smaller muscles. Because weariness is less of a problem at this point in your workout, it becomes a safer alternative.

Both workouts are excellent for strengthening your lower body muscles, core stability, and balance while focusing on certain muscle groups (in this case, glutes, quads, and hamstrings).