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Exercise library / Smith Machine Good Morning

Smith Machine Good Morning

Suggestions, not prescriptions. Exercises here pass automated checks. They have not been clinically reviewed, and no exercise is right for everyone. Adjust to your comfort and ability.

A hip hinge with the Smith machine bar resting on the upper back, bending forward at the hips against a fixed bar path to load the hamstrings and the spinal erectors.

Main focus
Strength
Level
Starting
Equipment
Gym machines, A bench
Load
A guided machine path
Stability
Guided by a machine
Before you start
  • Warm up first with a minute or two of easy walking or marching in place, and cool down the same way after.
  • Wear flat, closed shoes with a good grip, or go barefoot on a non-slip floor if that feels steady to you.
  • Clear the floor around you. Keep a sturdy chair, counter or wall within reach for any move you do standing.
  • Build up slowly. Add repetitions or minutes over weeks, not days. If you take a break, work back up gradually.

Talk with a doctor or physical therapist before you start if you have not been active for some time, if you have a health condition or a worry about exercise, if you have fallen or fear falling, or if a clinician has told you to limit activity. This library is general information, not medical advice.

What you need

A gym machine, with a trained person to show you the set-up the first time.

How to do it

  1. Set the bar at upper-back height, step under it and settle it across your traps, then unrack it with your feet about hip-width apart.
  2. Soften your knees slightly and keep them there -- this is a hinge, not a squat.
  3. Push your hips straight back and let your torso tip forward, keeping your back flat and your head in line with your spine.
  4. Stop when you feel a strong stretch in your hamstrings, with your torso somewhere near parallel to the floor.
  5. Drive your hips forward to stand back up, squeezing the glutes at the top, and repeat for the desired reps.

How much

To start: 1 to 2 sets of 8 to 12 slow repetitions, resting 1 to 2 minutes between sets.

As it gets easier: 2 to 3 sets of 6 to 12 repetitions with good form, resting 1 to 3 minutes. Add load or repetitions gradually, no more than about once a week.

How it should feel: The muscles you are working should feel the effort. The last repetitions should be hard but controlled, never shaky or painful.

Make it easier

Use the other ways to do this movement below.

Make it harder

Use the other ways to do this movement below.

Tips

  • Use much less weight than you would for a squat. The bar is a long way from your hips at the bottom, and that lever, not the number on the bar, is what the exercise costs you.
  • Hips back, not chest down. If your torso drops without your hips travelling backwards you are bending your spine instead of hinging at the hip.
  • Let the range of motion end where your back would start to round. Depth on a good morning is set by your hamstrings, and the machine will happily take you past that point.

Safety

  • Warm up first, and keep your breathing steady. Breathe out on the effort and in as you ease off. Do not hold your breath.
  • Move with control. Do not lock your joints straight at the end of a movement.
  • Choose a version, load and number of repetitions you can finish with good form. The last few should feel hard but not shaky.
  • Adjust the seat, pads and range so the machine fits your body before you add weight.
More safety notes
  • Start with a light weight and learn the movement.
  • Use the full, controlled range that feels comfortable. Do not let the weight stack drop or bounce.
  • Keep your back long and neutral. Do not round your lower back under load.
  • Brace your abdominal muscles gently before you lift and keep the load close to your body.
  • Use a lighter load until your form is steady, and add weight slowly.

When to stop

  • Stop and rest if you feel dizzy or lightheaded, sick to your stomach, or unusually short of breath.
  • Stop if you feel sharp, sudden or joint pain. Muscles working hard is expected. Pain is a signal to stop.
  • Stop and sit down if you feel unsteady and cannot settle yourself right away.
  • Call your local emergency number for chest pain or pressure, fainting, or sudden weakness, numbness or trouble speaking.
  • After any of these, do not repeat the exercise until you have talked with a doctor or physical therapist.
  • A pad or handle does not fit and cannot be adjusted.
  • You cannot control the weight through the whole movement.
  • You feel pain in your lower back, or your back rounds and you cannot correct it.
  • You feel pain, tingling or numbness that spreads into a leg.

Other ways to do this movement

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Where this comes from

Steps and tips are from an open exercise dataset named below. Starting amounts, equipment and safety notes are Fitafter50's general guidance. Nothing here is clinically reviewed.

Steps and tips: Exercise data by RepDB (repdb.co). License: RepDB Free Tier License v1.0: personal or commercial use inside applications, visible attribution, no redistribution as a dataset or API. All credits.

    This is general information, not medical advice. It does not diagnose anything or tell you whether an exercise is right for you. Adjust to your comfort and ability.