You've decided to start lifting weights! First of all, I'll welcome you to the dark side!
Now that you're ready to start lifting some weights, you may want to know, should you start with free weights or on the machines? Whether you're at the gym or looking for equipment for at home, is one better than the other?
What is the difference between free weights and machines? And does one really provide more benefits over the other? To help make this decision a little easier, I will give clarity on both in this article. I will give you all the details so you can make the best decision for yourself and I will also give my recommendations based on my experience not only for myself in my own fitness, but as a trainer and what I do with my clients.
First, let's go over the basics, what exactly is a free weight and what is a machine?
A free weight is classified as any workout equipment or weight that is not on a fixed track, machine, seat or cable. Examples of free weights include dumbbells, kettlebells, barbells, medicine balls, etc.
A free weight is classified as any workout equipment or weight that is not on a fixed track, machine, seat or cable. Examples of free weights include dumbbells, kettlebells, barbells, medicine balls, etc.
A machine is classified as a piece of workout equipment that is on a fixed track, has a set range of motion, pulleys, or fixed seats, etc. This can include leg press machine, leg extension machines, pull-up/dip machine, etc as well as a cable machine.
Generally, any gym you get a membership at will have both. Some gyms will have a lot of machines and not as many free weights, whereas some will have a good mix of free weights and machines for their members to choose from.
I will go over the advantages and disadvantages of both machines and free weights to help you better understand each of them and how they can work in your gym or at-home workouts.
Let's discuss free weights first.
Free Weights Advantages:
Free weights are generally on the less expensive side when it comes to purchasing for at-home use as well as they take up less space then a big workout machine. They are overall easily portable and can be stored away if needed which is a bonus if space is an issue.
There are also some big advantages of using free weights in your workouts.
When working out with free weights you are working and using more muscles at once. This is advantageous because by doing free weight exercises, you get more "bang for your buck" by using multiple muscles at once which helps with increasing stability. Think of something such as a standing shoulder press with dumbbells. Yes, the exercise is working your shoulder muscles, but also your whole arm is working to keep the weights stable and your core is also being recruited for stabilization of your whole body, as well as your leg muscles having to be engaged to keep your body still while completing the exercise. So by doing a simple movement, you are recruiting multiple muscles and those muscle fibres to do the exercise.
Because there are more muscles and muscle fibres used in an exercise with free weights, this can lead to greater growth of the muscles. This will not only help your muscle growth but with having better engagement and growth of the muscles, you burn more calories during your workouts.
Not only are free weights great for working on stabilization muscles, but they are also great for improving movement patterns and your range of motion. This is due to free weights not being on a fixed movement pattern so you have the ability to move more freely and increase your range of motion for certain exercises. This makes free weight exercises very functional and compatible with real-life activities and daily tasks such as carrying groceries, picking up heavy objects, yard work, etc.
Lastly, there is a lot of creativity that comes with free weights. A simple dumbbell can be used in so many different ways and for several different exercises. With one piece of equipment, you can do a full-body workout rather than just one piece of equipment working one muscle.
Free Weights Disadvantages:
Now for as many advantages free weights have, there are some things to consider before jumping into the weight room and tossing dumbbells and kettlebells around.
There is an increased risk of injury if the exercises are done improperly because free weights are not on a fixed movement plane or seat. Gym newbies can hurt themselves by lifting too heavy or doing an inappropriate exercise for their experience level.
That's not saying you shouldn't use free weights, they just require you to take time to learn how to use them properly and safely. If you are unsure of where to start, this is where a good coach or trainer can help you to ensure your form is correct and you are doing the exercise safely.
Next, I will discuss the machines.
Machine Advantages:
Machines are overall very easy to set up and use. Most have a diagram on them of what exercises are appropriate for that piece of equipment and a description of how to set it up for the exercises. This can be very helpful for beginners to be able to quickly learn how to set up and use the machine.
Many machines are already set up in a fixed position with a set range of motion, because of this, which makes them easy to use as well as lessens the risk of injury in comparison to free weights.
Exercise machines are usually set up for only one or two exercises or muscle groups, this makes them really good for isolation exercises where if you had a specific muscle group you wanted to strengthen, machines can isolate those muscles more. Machines became quite popular in the bodybuilding world because of the ability to isolate muscle groups to build and work on a weak area. For this reason, they can also be helpful for injuries if you need to work around an injury or strengthen muscles surrounding one, you can use machines to isolate those muscles.
Machine Disadvantages:
First, if you are purchasing a machine for at home, they can be quite expensive and take up a lot of space in comparison to free weights. One machine may not be set up to work all bodyparts equally and machines for purchase at home are generally geared towards mostly upper body exercises and not much for the lower body.
Although machines are great for isolating and working on specific areas and muscles, they do not provide the full compound movement and muscle recruitment that you get with free weights. As I've mentioned, they are usually on a fixed track or seat which means that you don't require as many muscle groups for the specific exercise which lacks the stability work that free weights give. If you're using a leg press or a machine chest press, for example, there is little to no core involvement because you are in a fixed position where your core is not needed for stabilization. Because there are fewer muscle groups working at once, machines don't burn as many calories as a free weight exercise does.
The fixed track and seats of machines can sometimes be an unnatural position for some people and provide a limited range of motion for an exercise. Because of this, it can be hard to improve your movement and increase your own range of motion if you are always working on a machine, which doesn't make them very functional for real-life activity.
Conclusion:
Both machines and free weights have their advantages and disadvantages. Overall, if you are looking for more functional training and better "bang for your buck" you are generally better off with practicing and using free weights for a large portion of your workouts. Yes it will mean putting in the work to understand proper form and maybe that will include getting a coach or trainer to help you, but in the long run, will be so worth it.
That being said, machines can be used in addition to free weights for certain exercises, and accessory work as well as adding in variety to your workouts. I would never suggest to throw machines out completely and never use them, but to use them in addition to free weight training.
If you are to get a set up for an at-home gym, generally free weights are less expensive and more versatile to hit all body parts with just a few dumbbells, kettlebells, etc. That being said, if you have ample space, you could get a machine along with some free weights to get the experience of both.
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