{"id":122930,"date":"2025-10-15T05:10:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T05:10:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/122930\/"},"modified":"2025-10-15T05:10:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T05:10:10","slug":"machines-build-just-as-much-muscle-as-free-weights-new-study-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/122930\/","title":{"rendered":"Machines Build Just as Much Muscle as Free Weights, New Study Finds"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"2\" class=\"css-m281hg emevuu60\">The debate around <a href=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/building-muscle\/a61864941\/workout-using-machines-effective\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/building-muscle\/a61864941\/workout-using-machines-effective\/\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"machines vs free weights\" data-node-id=\"2.1\" class=\"body-link css-1d8p8n5 emevuu60\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">machines vs free weights<\/a> has been raging for a long time, with functional training fans firmly in the free weights camp, and bodybuilders often swearing by machines. Now, a new study confirms that whether you have access to the full gym setup or not, you can still <a href=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/building-muscle\/train-smarter\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/building-muscle\/train-smarter\/\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"gain muscle\" data-node-id=\"2.3\" class=\"body-link css-1d8p8n5 emevuu60\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">gain muscle<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The Study<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"6\" class=\"css-m281hg emevuu60\">A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S1360859225003742\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S1360859225003742\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"study\" data-node-id=\"6.1\" class=\"body-link css-1d8p8n5 emevuu60\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">study<\/a>, published in the Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, compared muscle hypertrophy response between resistance training performed with free weights vs machines. The researchers were interested in the effects of either method on muscle growth.<\/p>\n<p>The Methods<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"9\" class=\"css-m281hg emevuu60\">The study included:<\/p>\n<p>What to read next<\/p>\n<ul data-node-id=\"13\" class=\"css-kw9lqy emevuu60\">\n<li data-node-id=\"13.0\">8 untrained participants.<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"13.1\">The participants trained each of their legs with free weights or machines.<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"13.2\">The training included exercises targeting the knee extensor muscles \u2013 for free weights that was the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/fitness\/a735439\/dumbbell-lunge\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/fitness\/a735439\/dumbbell-lunge\/\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"lunge\" data-node-id=\"13.2.1\" class=\"body-link css-1d8p8n5 emevuu60\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">lunge<\/a>, for machines that was the incline leg press.<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"13.3\">They trained 3 days a week for 9 weeks.  <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"15\" class=\"css-m281hg emevuu60\">Muscle <a href=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/building-muscle\/a37009576\/hypertrophy\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/building-muscle\/a37009576\/hypertrophy\/\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"hypertrophy\" data-node-id=\"15.1\" class=\"body-link css-1d8p8n5 emevuu60\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">hypertrophy<\/a> was determined before and after the intervention through ultrasound. Researchers measured muscle thickness in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/building-muscle\/a38421209\/quad-exercises\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/uk\/building-muscle\/a38421209\/quad-exercises\/\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"quad muscles\" data-node-id=\"15.3\" class=\"body-link css-1d8p8n5 emevuu60\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">quad muscles<\/a>, the rectus femoris (RF) and vastus lateralis (VL) at two points along each muscle:<\/p>\n<ul data-node-id=\"16\" class=\"css-kw9lqy emevuu60\">\n<li data-node-id=\"16.0\">At 50% (the midpoint of the thigh, halfway between the hip and knee)<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"16.1\">At 70% (the lower region, closer to the knee)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The Results<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"19\" class=\"css-m281hg emevuu60\">Both exercises significantly increased muscle size at all measured points:<\/p>\n<ul data-node-id=\"20\" class=\"css-kw9lqy emevuu60\">\n<li data-node-id=\"20.0\">RF50%: +10.7% (free weight), +8.9% (machine)<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"20.1\">RF70%: +24.8% (free weight), +27.3% (machine)<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"20.2\">VL50%: +13.3% (free weight), +12.1% (machine)<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"20.3\">VL70%: +12.7% (free weight), +15.7% (machine)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"22\" class=\"body-tip css-4k4hef emevuu60\"><strong data-node-id=\"22.0\">There were no significant differences in muscle growth between free weights and machines at any site.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"24\" class=\"css-m281hg emevuu60\">The researchers concluded that free weights and machines were comparably effective at causing muscle hypertrophy in previously untrained participants.<\/p>\n<p><img draggable=\"true\" alt=\"athletic guy keeping dumbbells on his shoulders looking serious at camera.\" title=\"makeshift gym in a courtyard with athletes\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2121\" height=\"1414\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" style=\"color:transparent;width:100%;height:auto;\"   src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/dumbbell-carry-6854335b69ada.jpg\" class=\"css-0 e1g79fud0\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Aurora Gonzalez Carrascosa\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>What Does This Mean for Us?<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"28\" class=\"css-m281hg emevuu60\">Whether you choose free weights or machines, you&#8217;ll still make good gains. Another <a href=\"https:\/\/bmcsportsscimedrehabil.biomedcentral.com\/articles\/10.1186\/s13102-023-00713-4?\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/bmcsportsscimedrehabil.biomedcentral.com\/articles\/10.1186\/s13102-023-00713-4?\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"recent meta-analysis\" data-node-id=\"28.1\" class=\"body-link css-1d8p8n5 emevuu60\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">recent meta-analysis<\/a> of 13 studies found no significant difference in muscle hypertrophy between free weight and machine-based training, confirming that both are equally effective for building muscle.<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"30\" class=\"css-m281hg emevuu60\">Despite the study&#8217;s small sample size, we can safely assume that either methods of kit selection will lead to muscle gain \u2013 especially helpful for anyone without access to a large amount of equipment. <\/p>\n<p>Related Stories<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The debate around machines vs free weights has been raging for a long time, with functional training fans&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":122931,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[278],"tags":[341,74883,343,18,525,135,19,17,342,74882],"class_list":{"0":"post-122930","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-content-type-news","9":"tag-contentid-9f8a596f-3fa0-47c1-980a-7cfd60d0fe67","10":"tag-displaytype-standard-article","11":"tag-eire","12":"tag-fitness","13":"tag-health","14":"tag-ie","15":"tag-ireland","16":"tag-locale-gb","17":"tag-shorttitle-machines-build-as-much-muscle-as-free-weights"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122930","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122930"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122930\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122931"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122930"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122930"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122930"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}