I am not trying to start any argument here, by all means, but using the Smith Machine limits your range of motion and will only make matters worse...
Raw bench pressing is far more superior to the Smith Machine...The ONLY way I would EVER use a Smith Machine is if I couldn't find a spotter...PERIOD...You use absolutely NO stabilizer muscles when using it...The Smith Machine is the DEATH of good form...If all you want to do isolate your chest, then fine, use the Smith Machine...When I went to a public gym, I saw a lot of guys using it...Of course, they were all smaller than me...They also had on under armor, SOOOOOOOOOOO...Yanno...
The Smith Machine puts stress on the muscles in my opinion...
The Smith Machine was designed to give gym-goers the beneficial workout of free-weights but provide the safety of a machine...Exercises that bear heavy loads, such as front/back squats, bench press and seated shoulder presses, often require the assistance of a spotter...Smith Machines allow the lifter the freedom and confidence to be your own spotter...Yeah, and...If a heavy loaded weight becomes unbearable, the user can simply rotate his wrists to settle the bar into the rest...Yeah, and...Kinda takes the Umph out of building muscles...Takes your determination and your natural ability away...Its the "pussy" way out of lifting, also, in my opinion...If you are going to lift, they by gawd...LIFT...
While there's no argument concerning a Smith Machine's safety benefit, I will argue that since the weight load is safely housed in the frame, the added recruitment of certain stability muscle fibers cannot come into play, therefore making the user "weaker." I will also say that the angled frame makes proper exercise form difficult and understates the importance of form...Because of its design, the Smith Machine disallows powerlifting staples such as the clean-and-jerk and snatch...And popular gym exercises like bicep curls and standing military presses...
Sorry if this "gets" to some of you guys, but I don't think the Smith Machine has ANY place in a REAL gym...Even as a "spotter" in which I would use it for if I couldn't find someone...
JMHO...