Should I Use Free Weights (Barbells And Dumbbells) or Machines To Build Muscle?

Which type of exercises should I use to build the most muscle?

We have all heard and learned about the 'Big 4 Lifts': squat, bench press, deadlift & overhead press. Are they really the kings of all exercises?

Yes and no.

Heavy compound lifts in general cause the most muscle growth. But what causes muscle growth in the first place?

Enough stress (1) and mechanical tension (2) on a muscle, bringing it from a lengthened-stretch (3) to a shortened-squeeze (4) position and vise versa

Let's take the squat as an example. The stress and mechanical tension comes from the amount of weight we use plus the movement. We place a large load on the quadricep and are stretching it out and back in (squatting down and up), forcing little tears in the muscle which we then repair by enough rest and proper nutrition.

But those heavy compound exercises are not the only exercises that qualify to cause muscle growth. 

If we take a hack squat machine in the same example, the hack squat qualifies for a muscle building exercise as well. The only difference between a hack squat and a barbell squat is that we travel in an pre-existing path (the rails), we can re-rack safely when we are stuck and we have the pad in our back to protect our (lower) back.

In this case, the hack squat may even be preferable to a regular squat.

It is true that not all machines are created equal. There are plenty of machines that do not qualify as great 'muscle builders' if we look at the definition and 4 qualifiers above. But there are plenty of machines which do.

Great examples are:

- Hack Squat

- Hammer Strength Incline Chest Press

- Machine Preacher Curl

- Pullover Machine

- Seated Leg Curl

A great workout all depends on how you like to train. Big 4 or no big 4, the choice is all yours!