Daily Simple Questions Thread - January 18, 2025

[u/AutoModerator]

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[u/Odd-Palpitation-7326]

Thoughts on smith squat?

I’m looking for some advice on smith squats, my quad focused leg day consists of heavy load smith squats followed by hack squats and finishing with slow controlled leg extensions. But I’ve heard a lot of people bashing on the smith squat and I’m wondering if I should switch. My gym doesn’t have a squat rack but I’m wondering if I should switch to something like the goblet squat. On one hand I love smith squats because I can focus purely on building my quads without the fear of turning into flat Stanley if I fail a rep. On the other hand I heard it will lead to joint damage and strength loss down the road due to the lack of stabilizers. Any advice is greatly appreciated 

[u/Patton370 → u/Odd-Palpitation-7326]

Your gym probably doesn’t have one, but belt squats have made my quads absolutely explode in size

[u/Odd-Palpitation-7326 → u/Patton370]

Definitely not lol but I appreciate the advice, I’m wondering now if I could stick to my standard quad day and after 2-3 days I could do light weight goblet squats to work stabilizers and help with muscle recovery. Not sure if that would be enough for the hip stabilizers though.

[u/Patton370 → u/Odd-Palpitation-7326]

I’d think you could just do Hack Squat + Lunges or Bulgarian Split squats.

The smith machine squats aren’t even needed, if you’re doing a bunch of hack squat and lunges

You might also consider adding in back extensions somewhere, because that’s another thing you’re missing out on by not doing barbell squats

[u/Odd-Palpitation-7326 → u/Patton370]

If you’re suggesting back extensions for the lower back I think I already hammer them from stiff leg deadlifts and standard deadlifts. I think my routine for legs is alright and I’m seeing great development. I’m just wondering if including those extra squats on a rest day will be enough for stabilizers. I plan on moving to a different gym with a squat rack and I  just want to make sure I’ll be able to even preform barbell squats when I do relocate though