Legs · Smith Machine
Smith Machine Squat
How to do the smith machine squat, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Smith Machine
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Squat
- Mechanic
- Compound
See it in motion
How to do it
Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart. Push your hips back and bend your knees to lower until your thighs are at least parallel to the ground, keeping your chest up. Drive through your heels to return to standing.
- 1Position yourself under the bar and squat down, keeping your feet placed to feel your quads and glutes doing the work
- 2Maintain an upright torso and keep your knees tracking over your toes
- 3Push through your heels to stand, feeling even pressure across your feet
Common mistakes
- Don't let the bar force you into an unnatural path, adjust your feet so the movement feels natural
- Avoid letting your knees cave inward or your heels rise
- Don't bounce out of the bottom or let your back round
Muscles worked
The smith machine squat mainly works the quads and glutes, with the hamstrings, lower back, and calves assisting.
- QuadsPrimary
- GlutesPrimary
- HamstringsSupport
- Lower BackSupport
- CalvesSupport
- Upper AbsMinor
Kovo programs the smith machine squat for you and tracks it every session.
The AI builds your whole program, drops the right lifts into each workout, and adjusts your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More quads exercises
- How to do the barbell squat
- How to do the split squat
- How to do the step-up
- How to do the lunge
- How to do the squat
- How to do the bulgarian split squat
Last reviewed April 2026.