If you’ve been into a commercial gym during peak time, you’ll be well aware of the crowds in the weights room. Even during off-peak times, you can be waiting quite a while for a particular piece of equipment. I personally remember waiting up to half an hour for the squat rack because I really wanted to perform some sets of squats!
Apart from being frustrating having to wait for a piece of exercise equipment for an extensive period of time, it can also impede your workout effectiveness by lowering your heart rate and extending your workout time.
So when you have a training programme to follow (professionally written or otherwise), yet are stuck in a situation where you cannot complete the exercises – what do you do? In most situations, it’s usually best to substitute the exercise for a similar motion.
By performing a similar exercise to the one that has been prescribed in your training programme, you will be working similar muscle groups. Of course, there may be subtle differences between the movements, however you are still going to obtain a similar benefit from the resistance training programme.
Let’s run through some examples. Barbell squats are on the training programme yet there is a queue for this apparatus and you do not wish to wait. My first port of call would be smith squats. It is a very similar motion and will thus recruit similar muscle groups (primarily overloading the quadriceps and gluteals). The drawback of the smith machine means that less core control and balance is required (as the machine assists with this). So if your a primary target of your training is to work on your core control, you may wish to opt for another leg alternative such as dumbbell squats or lunges.
Another popular example could be the bench press. This is a very popular weights exercise which is commonly in use during peak times. It is not safe to be lifting very heavy weights without a bench press rack available, so using a barbell on a flat bench is out of the question in this situation. Unless you have available a squat rack that can be utilised as a bench press rack by setting it up with a flat bench, you’re probably best to go with a smith machine or a flat dumbbell chest press. The smith again requires less stability, while the dumbbells will require more stability and provide a slightly different motion to the standard barbell chest press.
Now for a back example – the common lat pulldown. If you are not lifting particularly heavy weights, you may be able to substitute this for a standing cable lat pulldown, using the cable crossover machine. However this would obviously not be viable with heavier weights, as you need to keep your body grounded. An alternative could be a wide grip pullup, which does follow a similar motion to the lat pulldown.
Ultimately, if you’re a patient person, or just enjoy the ambiance of a gym, then by all means wait for a machine. However be aware that an extended exercise training session’s duration will detract from the level of intensity, which will thereby detract from your results. Being flexible with your training when necessary is a great asset, which will not only enhance your results, but also keep your training interesting!
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