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The Ultimate Smith Machine Workout Guide

Push past plateaus, generate power and train safely — with a machine! Here’s why the Smith machine may be your new best friend in the gym.

Drag Curl

TARGET: Both long and short biceps heads with emphasis on the long head (peak)

START: Stand erect inside a Smith machine holding the bar in front of your upper thighs, with your chest up, shoulders back and eyes focused forward.

ACTION: Pull your elbows back as you curl the bar toward your upper abs/lower chest. As the name suggests, actually drag the bar up your torso as high as possible, keeping your elbows behind you — not by your sides as during standard curls. Slowly return the bar along the same path.

POWER POINTER: During the standard curl, there’s a natural arc to the motion, which hits both the biceps and even the front delts to a certain degree. The Smith drag curl eliminates that arc completely because the bar is locked in the vertical plane, as well as any deltoid involvement from the equation. The elbows travel backward as the bar drags its way straight up the body. Because of that, it won’t travel any higher than your upper abs at the top of the move.