Training your legs is extremely important, as it can help you get stronger, increase muscle mass and be less prone to injuries. The squat is one of the best exercises for training your legs, and is usually performed in a squat rack with an Olympic barbell. However, many gyms also have squat machines, which simulate a squatting movement, while supporting you through a fixed range of motion. While these may seem like a better option, it isn't necessarily the case.
Technique
To perform a free-weight squat, place a bar in a power rack at chest height, and grasp it with your hands shoulder-width apart. Duck under the bar, and squeeze your shoulder blades together so that it rests across your upper back. Step out of the rack, and stand with your feet hip-width apart. Squat down by pushing your hips back and knees out, until your thighs are at least parallel to the floor, then forcefully push back up. A machine squat is performed in the same manner, but the barbell is set between vertical runners, so it travels in a fixed plane.
Strength and Functionality
When you squat with a free bar, you use your quadriceps, hamstrings, calves and glutes to move the weight, but other muscles, such as the abductors, adductors, and abdominals also play a large role in stabilizing your joints. Squatting in a machine takes away the stabilzation aspect of the lift, turning into a very quad-dominant exercise. This means that squatting with a barbell causes much more overall leg muscle growth, and is better at increasing strength. If you compete in a sport, then the free squat is also more functional, as you need all your stabilzing muscles to be strong for the demands of competition.
Injury Prevention
A machine squat forces your body to lift the weight in a fixed motion. The trouble with this is that your body may not be designed to work effectively in that range of motion, and so machine squats can put extra stress onto your joints. There is also a risk of pattern overload, which occurs when you consistently perform an exercise in the same linear fashion over a sustained period of time. This can cause injuries to joints, and fatigue the nervous system. With free-weight squats, you can vary the path of resistance to suit your body mechanics, and vastly reduce the chances of pattern overload.
Rehabilitation
Knee, hip and ankle pain can often be attributed to muscular imbalances. Often, these muscular imbalances occur in the supporting muscles of the lower body, as they are seldom trained, so they become tight and inactive. As free-weight squats train these supporting muscles more than machine squats do, you should learn to squat properly as part of any injury rehabilitation program. Master body-weight squats first, before adding weight. Avoid machine squats as much as possible, as they could exacerbate the injury. You should always consult a medical professional before starting on a rehabilitation program.
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