Free-weights vs Body-weight vs Machines

First things first! If you want to get stronger you have to do resistance training, that is, you need to make your body work against the gravity. So which is better? Going to the gym stacking up your dumbbells and barbells or just walk up to the first easy to use machine you spot OR doing certain body-weight exercises. We'll discuss all these approaches here.

Machine is an apparatus using mechanical power and having several parts, each with a definite function and together performing a particular task (says google). The point here to be noted is that you perform a particular task or in other words, when working on a machine you activate only one muscle group (you isolate that muscle group). Though one must remember that cable machines are exceptions. 

Free-weights are anything you have to pickup and hold against the gravity. Weighted exercises target more than one muscle group(most of the times). Though weighted exercises like squat, dead-lift, bench press, overhead press, etc, can be dangerous but still are the most basic and effective exercises once you master the form.

Body-weight exercises are strength training exercises that utilizes simple abilities such as pushing, pulling, squatting, bending, twisting abilities against the gravity. These exercises also target more than one muscle group, though less effective than weighted exercises. But these are suitable for beginners to develop a basic strength before they start off with weightlifting to prevent chances of injuries.

Machine Workouts are easier to learn and execute

Very often we get to hear newbies complaining that they've been hitting the gym everyday for 2 hours but they don't see any gains. Why? Because hitting the regularly and working out for two hours doing the same exercise with improper form is as good as sitting home and watching Netflix and chilling. 

So, before you stack up the barbell and start off with barbell curls with completely rubbish form and most probably get injured, its better you start off with machine workouts. If necessary, start without any weight. Because when you workout on a machine, for example the peg-deck, your range of motion is full and in a perfect pathway, with constant tension in the activated muscles. so when working on a machine you're in good form throughout. In other words, a machine does not let you cheat.

Weighted Workouts- Pros and Cons

Whenever you workout with a dumbbell or barbell, you need to have proper form to hit the desired muscle group because leaning forward slightly more than desired with a dumbbell while doing lateral raise for your middle deltoids may result in a workout of your rear deltoids. So, you need to be completely focused while working out to prevent injury as well as hit the desired muscle.

Moreover, weighted workouts never target one single muscle group. Suppose you are doing weighted squat for targeting your quads, but you'll see that you actually have fatigued your hams, glutes, inner thighs, and even your arms depending on the way hold the bar. This is because, while you squat, though the main focus is in your quads, but your inner and outer thighs muscle have to engage to keep balance, your glutes, hams and core helps in keeping the body steady and stable during the range of motion. That means, you can get almost a full body workout of around 30 minutes gym session doing just 5 sets of squats.

Now imagine, doing 5 sets of squats at the end of your leg session. Just not possible, Right? But you still have just enough energy left to perform another isolation exercise(targeting one muscle group). This is the reason, some bodybuilders perform the leg extension exercise at the end of the gym session targeting the quads(only) which is an excellent workout to finish off the session.
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Body-weight Workouts- Pros and Cons

Body-weight workouts are excellent for beginners who want to develop their basic strength before moving on to weightlifting or machine workout. They allow for a more natural range of motion and improve your athleticism quite effectively. It also increases your flexibility and improve your posture and reduce exercise-related injuries. Besides, they don't beat up your joints as much as traditional weight exercises do. 

But, they are good for muscle building only up to a certain time. After that, your body gets used to the same movements and muscle growth gradually decreases. Moreover, movements become much harder for you if you are heavier. 
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The Verdict

Free weights, Machines and Body-weight each have their pros and cons, but we are going to declare this a narrow win for the weights. Weights are also more versatile than machines because they allow for wider range of motions and variations in a workout. You can do full body workouts with a pair of dumbbells and a barbell. 

You'll notice that you can do only a few chin-ups per day, but a ton of lat pull-downs, an easier exercise that works almost the same muscles. The best workout afterall, is the one you actually do. So, if combining all the three modalities gives you the best results, why restrict yourself to only one?