This is How You Use Machines at the Gym.

As a certified Personal Trainer, I frequently see people struggling to figure out how to use machines at the gym or simply using them wrong.

And that’s a shame.

Because the machines at the gym are a fantastic means of weight training.

They put you into the right position so your form is good, and they can help you to lift heavily safely.

But figuring out how to use them isn’t always easy.

Heck, when I started my fitness journey at 57, I got stuck in the hack squat because I couldn’t figure out how to get out of it! Not a pretty sight, believe me.

So I wanted to provide you with a little insight into just how to use the machines at the gym.

How to Use the Machines at the Gym

Use Your Feet

Regardless of which machine you are using, there is one adjustment you want to think about and that is making sure that your feet can reach the floor.

Make sure that you can not only reach the floor with your feet but that you can use your feet to get a purchase or push into—the ground.

So often I’ll see people at machines like the pec deck sitting with the seat on the highest setting, their feet dangling in the air.

You don’t want to do this.

Why?

Because all good lifting starts at your feet.

You need to press (“drive”) your feet into the ground to create pressure and stability throughout your body.

So the first thing to do is to make sure that your feet reach the ground and that you can push through your feet.

Choose a Weight That is Challenging but Not Impossible for You to Lift

Setting the weight on any particular machine will depend on your goals and training experience.

However, make sure that whatever weight you choose it is heavy for you. 

Note that “for you” part. Not what is heavy for somebody else — for you. Sometimes that’s a lot, sometimes it’s not.

What you don’t want is for the weight to be so light that after 20 repetitions, you feel like you could keep going. If that’s the case, it’s not heavy enough.

Again, you see this a lot at the gym. People just flinging their arms or legs around on the machines because the weight is too light.

The weight should be light enough that you can do the move with proper form, but heavy enough so that before you get to your last rep you’re wondering whether you’ll make it or not.

Finding this balance isn’t easy. Especially if you are new to lifting and you are on your own.

Having the support of an experienced personal trainer can be of enormous benefit. 

Know the Muscle You are Training.

Finally, to use any machine at the gym correctly, you need to know the muscle you are targeting. And you need to be able to feel that muscle every time you move the weight.

So often you see people on machines at the gym who are doing a move without any idea of what muscle they are trying to train.

The lat pulldown machine is a good example of this.

Aside from the absolutely ridiculous, old school and outdated move of pulling the lat bar to the back of your head (what are you trying to train? Hitting yourself in the head?) people often lean too far back and pull the bar to their chest.

But the lat pulldown is not a chest move.

It’s a back move.

So you need to be able to understand and feel your latissimus dorsi working when doing the lat pulldown.

If you don’t feel it in your back and lats, then you are doing something wrong (possibly pulling with your arms too much).

You need to have a mind muscle connection and you need to have proper form to make any progress in the gym.

If you have neither, you are wasting your time and are more likely to get injured than you are to make any progress.

When you understand what muscle you are training, the proper way to use the machine in the gym will make more sense. If you are on a leg extension machine, for example, and you know you are training your quadriceps, if you don’t feel anything in your “quads,” that tells you something. Either you are not using the machine correctly, or you don’t have enough weight on it, or you are not focusing on your quads.

Understanding the muscle you are working helps to make your workouts more effective.

And don’t fool yourself.

Effective workouts—and only effective workouts— are what will change your body and get you closer to your fitness goals.

Need More Help Understanding How to Use the Machines in the Gym?

Being in the gym and trying to figure out the machines and design your own workout can be scary and overwhelming. But you don’t have to go it alone. At Strength & Balance for Seniors, I help other women over 50 transform their lives and bodies one rep at a time. I work with clients one-on-one and provide the individualized attention you need to reach your fitness, health, and longevity goals. Connect with me here or on my Facebook page, Strength & Balance for Seniors.