The Smith machine is a piece of gymnasium equipment featuring a barbell that is secured within steel rails, which limits the bar’s movement to a single plane. Unlike its vertical counterpart, the angled Smith machine utilizes a track that is slightly slanted, deliberately preventing the barbell from traveling a straight up-and-down path. This subtle difference is engineered to better align the movement with the body’s natural biomechanics during large, multi-joint exercises. The angle, which typically falls between five and ten degrees, exists because the body’s joints move in arcs, not in straight vertical lines.
Understanding the Bar Path
The primary reason for the angled track lies in replicating the movement pattern of free-weight compound lifts. When performing a squat or a bench press with a loose barbell, the weight does not travel in a perfectly vertical line. Instead, the bar follows a slightly backward or forward arc to maintain balance over the body’s center of mass. This angled bar path is what the machine aims to fix and stabilize, providing external support that reduces the need for the user’s smaller stabilizing muscles. The fixed, slightly diagonal trajectory is designed to lessen the shear forces that a purely vertical path might place on joints like the knees or shoulders.
Facing Away: Squats and Overhead Presses
To perform exercises that require the bar to move slightly backward as you ascend, stand with your back to the machine, facing away from the support structure. This orientation aligns the bar path so that it moves “up and back” relative to your body during the lifting phase. For back squats, this direction is optimal because it allows you to maintain the weight directly over your mid-foot, the most stable position. It also encourages a hip-dominant squat pattern by allowing the hips to travel slightly backward, which can help reduce anterior shear stress on the knee joint.
The same principle applies to standing overhead presses, where the machine’s angle allows the bar to travel slightly backward as you press it upward. This backward trajectory is essential for clearing the face and head, allowing the bar to finish directly over the shoulder joint in the lockout position. By facing away, you ensure the bar’s fixed path naturally accommodates this requirement, maintaining correct shoulder alignment. This orientation also provides a stable base for lower-body movements like lunges and calf raises.
Facing Towards: Chest and Shoulder Presses
For pressing movements performed while lying on a bench, such as the bench press or incline press, face towards the machine, with your head closest to the angled support structure. In this position, the bar will travel “up and forward” away from your body as you press it. This path mimics the natural arc of a free-weight bench press, where the bar starts over the mid-chest and finishes over the shoulders.
Aligning the movement this way helps maintain proper elbow and shoulder tuck throughout the lift, preventing the elbows from flaring out excessively, which can place undue strain on the shoulder joint. The angled track guides the bar into a position that minimizes rotational demand on the shoulder capsule. When performing seated shoulder presses, the bar moves slightly forward on the ascent, allowing it to track safely in front of the head and face.
Safe Setup and Foot Placement
Regardless of the direction you face, the first step in using the angled Smith machine safely is to set the adjustable safety stops at the appropriate height. These stops should be positioned just below the lowest point of your intended range of motion, ensuring the bar cannot pin you if you fail a lift. Before adding significant weight, practice the movement with an unloaded bar to confirm the path feels natural and comfortable.
Foot placement is a variable that needs fine-tuning based on the angle and the exercise. For squats, stepping your feet slightly forward—typically three to six inches in front of the bar’s vertical line—will help optimize the weight distribution over your feet. This forward stance, combined with the machine’s angle, allows your torso to remain more upright. Always check that the bar’s locking mechanism is fully disengaged before starting your set and that the bar can be quickly re-racked with a simple twist of the wrists.