Machine exercise

Smith Machine Split Squat form, muscles worked, and workout tracking

The Smith machine split squat is a static-lunge pattern performed with both feet on the floor and the bar moving on fixed rails, targeting the quadriceps and glutes of the front leg. Lifters use it as an entry point to guided single-leg training, since it removes both the balance demand of free weights and the elevation of the Bulgarian version, making it well suited to hypertrophy work and rehab-friendly loading.

Smith Machine Split Squat illustration

How to do Smith Machine Split Squat

  1. 1Set the bar at shoulder height, position it across your upper traps, and stagger your stance with one foot forward and one back, both flat on the floor.
  2. 2Adjust your front foot so your knee stays over your midfoot at the bottom of the movement, then unrack the bar.
  3. 3Inhale, brace your core, and lower straight down until your rear knee hovers just above the floor.
  4. 4Keep your hips square and your torso upright; do not let the front heel lift.
  5. 5Exhale as you press through the front foot to stand, finish the set, then switch legs.

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Track Smith Machine Split Squat in Plates

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