Beginners Guide To Gym Equipment

The following guide was sent to chasefreedom.com

Starting an exercise program can be a daunting experience. A visit to your local gym can seem very intimidating. You look around and are dazed by the array of machines and exercise equipment. What is it? How dose all this stuff work? Even the vocabulary seems like a foreign language. In this article I am going to explain some of the most common pieces of exercise equipment and workout accessories that you will find in a gym.

Equipment
There are basically two types of equipment that you will find in the gym - free weights and machines.

Free Weights
Free weights are the most basic form of bodybuilding equipment. The reason they are called "free weights" is because there are no attached pulleys, cables, pins, or weight stacks. They consist of barbells, dumbbells, and weight plates.

Machines
Machines allow you to perform a wide variety of exercises. Some machines are designed to work individual muscles, while other machines consist of a multi-station that works the whole body. Most home gym machines are multi-station machines because they are much cheaper and take up less space then having different machines for each muscle group.

Machines have advantages and they have disadvantages. They are generally easier to use and safer then free weights. But free weights tend to stimulate more muscle because you have to use more stabilizer muscles in order to balance the free weights.

The best situation is to include both free weight and machine exercises in your workouts, this way you can get the best of both worlds.