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Squats are integral to a fitness routine but they come with a set of challenges. They have hundreds of variations and can take a long time to perfect. They are a compound movement and one has to ensure the back is protected while the legs are strengthened. A little flaw in technique could reduce gains while going too heavy could cause an injury. With the knees, the back, and the core involved, along with glutes and hamstrings and quads, it makes sense to learn different types of squats. But this also means it is important to take whatever assistance one can get from equipment to make the squat as kind on your body as possible while being effective enough to get stronger. This is where machines come in. The Smith machine is the most commonly used squat equipment along with the leg press which doesn’t really feel like a squat but is from the same family of exercise. There have been significant development in the department of machine-assisted squats. I recently joined a gym with way more machines than what I’ve been used to and some of the equipment have made squatting safe and fun again. These may not be new, but their availability in gyms across India is becoming more common and there are big gains to be made in learning how to use them. The pendulum squat machine Designed by popular fitness equipment designer and former powerlifter Tyler Hobson, the pendulum machine mimics the squat in an arc pattern, rather than straight down and up like a basic squat. This puts the least amount of strain on the lower body and weights can be added either in front or behind on the racks. A fixed machine, the pendulum squat has a platform which is in an incline position, with a comfortable padding for the shoulders and neck which helps balance the weight. Hobson’s fundamentals are simple. He talks about how removing the need to balance weights ensures optimal muscle engagement when it comes to pushing the load: “Balancing a bar reduces the tension of the targeted musculature. Neurally, the brain is involved in maintaining the stability of the object, as well as, lifting it. This is rather a simple construct as every coach teaches their athletes that lifting heavy loads requires absolute focus. If your brain is trying to ‘multitask’ you will apply less force to the targeted muscles,” says a blog on Rogers Athletic, a company Hobson also designs equipment for. The blog post is aptly titled, Out Squatting the Squat. The below video will show what the machine looks like and how to use it, but it’s always a better idea to get a practical demo from the trainer on duty. The hack squat machine Slightly easier than the pendulum squat, which takes the body into an arcing shape, the hack squat takes the body in a strict 45-degree angle. It’s like doing squats while lying down at a very comfortable angle. “The pendulum squat is designed to minimize stress on the lower back, making it a great option for individuals with back issues or those who want to prevent discomfort or injury. On the other hand, the hack squat also prioritizes joint safety and stability, ensuring proper form and reducing the risk of improper technique or injury. This can be especially beneficial when lifting heavy weights,” says a blog post titled, Pendulum Squat Vs. Hack Squat: Determine What’s Right For You, on the website of the US-based equipment company Arsenal Strength. Being the easier machine of the two mentioned so far, this is the one beginners can easily try. The pendulum swing’s arc might be a bit surprising to those who don’t have the muscle memory to do a squat with perfect technique. The hack squat also targets more muscles and the best part about it are the variations you can try. By either pointing your toes slightly out, or by placing your feet higher (hamstrings and glute targeted) or lower (quadricep targeted) on the platform, you can keep trying different variations which could be difficult to mimic with a basic barbell squat due to the trunk lifting a lot of the dynamic load. The belted squat machine The most interesting of the lot, the belted squat machine might also be the least available of all squat machines. After visiting gyms across the country for almost 20 years now, I couldn’t figure it out when I first saw it. This has a platform as well with a couple of loops which are attached to the pulling apparatus into which the belt’s hook goes into. The belt is the same one which is used for weighted dips or pull-ups. The weight is pulled from below you rather than on top or on the sides. There is a safety latch to release the weights (like in leg press machines) which are racked in front. There is a handlebar to hold onto for support. The trusted fitness website barbend.com includes the exercise in some of the most underrated moves in the gym. "A really important benefit of the belt squat is that it allows an athlete to load the lower body without loading the spine or using the upper body, so it can be hugely useful for athletes with tricky backs and shoulders—even tight elbows can make the back squat problematic. Not so with the belt,” says a piece titled, Why the Belt Squat Could Be Your Secret to Strength Gains, on barbend.com.