Gym Collision: Free Weights Vs. Cars
If you want to get stronger, some kind of weight training is best. So when you go to the gym, should you start loading the cymbals onto the barbell, or should you just walk over to the first easy-to-use machine you notice? Let’s compare both approaches.
Applicants
Most well-equipped gyms will have a huge selection of both free weights and machines. Today we’ll skip treadmills and other cardiovascular equipment (even the underrated rowing machine ) and cover the following categories of equipment:
- Free weights include dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells, and anything else that you can lift and hold. They force your body to work against gravity to lift an object. For some exercises, you may need a bench to sit or lie on, or other equipment, such as a squat cage , to handle the weight comfortably and safely.
- Cars include whatever you sit on or sit on when you pull or push a lever within a certain range of motion. For example,a leg extensionmachine orachest pressmachine . You usually hold onto the handles that use the pulleys to lift weights from the stack; you insert a pin into the stack to choose which weight you will be working with.
Cable machines have the characteristics of both, so we will leave them aside from this revelation. To use the rope trainer, you pull on the handle attached to the cord, the rope, which in turn lifts weights from the stack. So this is a kind of car, but it doesn’t provide a specific range of motion. This means that rope training has a lot in common with free weights.
Free weights work more muscles at a time, which is both a plus and a minus
The best thing about free weights is that they work out a lot of tiny muscles that you are almost unaware of. Take the squat , for example , which works the quadriceps, the muscles in the front of the thigh. If you were using a leg extension machine instead, you could work the same muscle. But when you squat with a barbell or a pair of dumbbells, you are using more than just your quads. Your inner and outer thigh muscles need to be engaged to keep your legs in place. The buttocks, hamstrings, and core help maintain stability during movement. And depending on how you hold the weight, you can also use your hands.
This means you can get almost the same workout out of multiple sets of squats as you would go from machine to machine in half an hour. Large movements such as squats, deadlifts, chin-ups, and overhead presses are considered “functional” because they are directly related to everyday movements. For example, if you are good at deadlifts , you will be great at moving the couch.
However, the specificity of cars is not always a bad thing. Let’s say you want to work out your quads, but you’ve already done a set of squats, and those stabilizing thighs and core are already fatigued. You can sit on a leg extension or leg machine and work your quads alone. Bodybuilders sometimes use machines at the end of a workout in the gym to train specific muscles.
Likewise, when I was doing physiotherapy after knee surgery, I needed to strengthen a certain part of my left quadriceps. Functional exercise was part of my program, but the physicist told me that patients progress the fastest when they can use the leg extension machine. It’s really good for targeting specific muscles.
Another reason machines are great for injuries is because you can rest the sore body parts. When I was pregnant, I reached a point where I couldn’t do squats or deadlifts without back pain. But I could still do the exercises on some leg machines. I couldn’t pull up anymore because my abs were useless, but the arm machines weren’t a problem.
Machines are easier to learn
Before you jump out and grab the nearest barbell, remember that you need to be able to work with these things! Getting in good shape is important to prevent injury . If you try to lift too much weight and don’t know how to keep your back straight, you can injure your back. You really need a coach or an experienced partner to help you learn how to do the exercises correctly. (You can also get by with a mirror and spend a lot of time studying YouTube videos, but a flesh and blood trainer is much better.)
So if you’re at the gym once, for example doing a class or running on a treadmill, you cannot just go to the gym and start doing the perfect squats. But you can walk over to the machine, read the instructions on the side of the machine, and safely perform your desired number of reps. Even if you have trouble requesting a tour from the gym staff (they will usually be happy to help you), it only takes you a few minutes to learn enough to safely complete your full body workout. Machines are designed in such a way that it is difficult to do the exercise incorrectly.
This means that you automatically use “good shape” instead of working on it. Getting in good shape helps you get the right benefits from the exercise you do . If you are doing a dumbbell exercise, bend too far to one side or the other and you may not really be working out the muscles you wanted. In other words, machines make it harder to deceive.
Gym comfort depends on your daily routine (and your gym)
In some gyms, the free weight section is always filled with sport rats and weightlifting veterans, which can intimidate a beginner. In other cases, all the action takes place in cars, and the angle with dumbbells and barbells feels like a ghost town. If you have the flexibility to choose which hardware to use, you double your options.
For example, if the machines are busy, it’s easy to grab a pair of dumbbells instead. Even if the specific pair you want is used, you can choose a set of 15 sets instead of 20, for example, and just do a few more reps. So in such cases it is more convenient to use free weights.
But there are times when the burden brings great pain. If I want to do an incline bench press , I will need to put up a bench that can tilt down (there is only one in my gym) and then make sure I have a bar and plates to use with it. Several benches have the same equipment, so this is not always obvious. And then, to do the exercise safely, I really need an observer: either my training partner or, if I’m alone, a friendly stranger .
That’s a lot for one exercise. But my gym also has an incline press machine that I can hop up on and do basically the same exercise in a matter of seconds. If I’m going to spend a significant portion of my time on a particular free-weight exercise, I’ll happily take the time to tune it. But it doesn’t make sense to do this with every exercise in a busy gym.
Verdict: Both are useful, but free weights will give you more fitness enjoyment.
Each of the free weights and machines has their own uses, but we’re going to herald this as a narrow win for dumbbells. With free weights, you can work more muscles in less time than with machines. Your results will also apply better to real-world situations than if you had ever done machine exercises alone. And you can get a full body workout using just a few dumbbells, making them ideal for a home gym.
But cars definitely have their place. They are great if you are trying to isolate certain muscles or repairing injury. And if you haven’t yet learned how to use free weights – or if you want to try heavy weights and are unsure of your shape – machines give you a relatively safe way to work the same muscles.
I also like machines if I’m having an “easy” day at the gym or if I’m having trouble getting the wits to do a really hard exercise. I can only do a few pull-ups a day and they take a lot of my strength. But I can do a ton of deadlifts – an easier exercise that uses many of the same muscles. I would never pretend they are the same exercise, but allowing myself to do the “lighter” version on some days makes my routine more enjoyable. In the end, it makes compliance easier. In the end, the best workout is the one you actually do .