Squat Machine

[itwasntme]

So right now I run at the gym 3 days a week (Mon, Wed, Fri). I am looking to replace one day of running with squats, yes replace due to my schedule. There's a gym at my school, but the open hours blow hard and pretty much the only days I would be able to use it would be Tue and/or Thur which won't give me the 24 hours I'd like for muscle recovery between workouts. The gym I run at has something like this:



I've used these type of machines before to do squats at gyms in the past; my question is do these type of machines allow you to work every muscle that you would in a regular squat?

[Krijgsman]

No. They don't. It stabilizes the entire bar for you so you aren't stabilizing yourself through the movement. Plus, if forces a particular bar path.

While its probably better than doing no squats (assuming your are squatting with good form so you don't **** up your knees etc) it isn't the same as squatting with a free barbell.

[battlefields]

Smith Machine is its name.

As mentioned, it does not work your core stabilising muscles, which is kind of the reason for a squat.

Better than nothing, but definitely not the best.

[itwasntme]

****, I was afraid of that. Thanks guys.

[CoffeeFan]

Ditto to what others said. The main benefit to this machine is that it can act as a spotter. A squat cage is a better choice.

[itwasntme]

I don't remember if the rack at school has a cage or not. One of my friends is resting from a hernia, but when he gets better I can go to his gym, I know they have one.

I was thinking about, on my squat day, to start with a brisk 10-15 minute jog, lower half of Super Squats workout (1 set of 20 reps, add 5 lbs every time you lift), then a cooldown like the warmup.

Any critiques on this?

Edit: I'm trying to work a little extra stuff in there so I'm still burning a fair amount of calories. Should I stick to squats or maybe add some extra exercises? I'm not on anything or taking supplements, just eating food.

[battlefields]

I'm going to ask one of the most asked questions of this subforum:
What is your goal?

[CoffeeFan]

I don't remember if the rack at school has a cage or not. One of my friends is resting from a hernia, but when he gets better I can go to his gym, I know they have one.

I was thinking about, on my squat day, to start with a brisk 10-15 minute jog, lower half of Super Squats workout (1 set of 20 reps, add 5 lbs every time you lift), then a cooldown like the warmup.

Any critiques on this?

Edit: I'm trying to work a little extra stuff in there so I'm still burning a fair amount of calories. Should I stick to squats or maybe add some extra exercises? I'm not on anything or taking supplements, just eating food.

Depends what your overall goals and the rest of your routine is. Super Squats is a very hard workout (at least from my reading of the old school routine) and can quickly lead to over training if you are not giving your legs sufficient time to recover.

You warm up with a light 5-10 minute jog/cycle, a few sets of free squats then move on to the squat rack. For cool down, very light cardio for a few minutes then stretch and have a protein shake.

Again, I would need to know what your training goals are to see if this is really the best routine for you.

[itwasntme]

My goal isn't to get huge, I just want to do a decent amount of reps at decent weight. It's kinda hard to explain. I want to get stronger, not bigger; I want a strong core for when I start grappling/throwing again.

In the context of Super Squats as a whole-body workout, I was going to do a modified version (Bent over row, dumbbell press/bench press, shoulder press, squats); so it shouldn't be as taxing on my body as the full workout or alternate program. Though as I said, if there are any areas in the lower body the squats alone are missing or not hitting as hard as they could be hit, I would be open to add to the workout.

Edit: I was worried about overtraining my legs due to the running. Would it be as bad if I had to run the day before? eg Run Mon, Squats Tue, Run Fri

Edit2: When I start back MA training, I'll be at most training twice a week and will probably sub another running day, and the training days would be limited to Thu and/or Sun unless I hit striking on Friday, but that one is not a priority for me. These are both just hobbies for me.

Edit3: This is my after workout meal:



It has a good amount of carbs as well.

[erezb]

What is a super squat?
Also, i found that lunges are a great supplement for squats.
Try Randy Couture's grappler's circuit.