According to personal trainer Michael Behnken, hamstrings help to flex the knee and extend the hips. Behnken says that hamstrings should be at least 75 percent as strong as your quadriceps so that your muscles are balanced. Many leg exercises give the hamstrings some work, but there are some moves you can do to isolate and really work the hamstring muscles.
Deadlifts
According to personal trainer Michael Behnken, deadlifts are one of the best hamstring exercises. Deadlifts can be done with either barbells or dumbbells and you perform them by standing with your legs a few feet apart. Then, reach down to grab a weight while keeping your legs straight and bending only at the waist. Finish by straightening your body to lift the weight, then return to the starting position without bending your knees again. Behnken, says that deadlifts are the best hamstring exercise to correct muscle imbalance.
Leg Curls
Leg curls are performed on a machine to isolate the hamstrings. Some leg curl machines require you to lay on your stomach, while others require you to exercise standing up. The action is the same, though, as you curl your foot toward your butt and then back to the starting position. If you get too strong and the movement becomes too easy you can add resistance by only curling one leg at a time.
Lunges
Lunges can be performed with either a barbell or with dumbbells. Start by taking a long stride with one leg in front and bending on that leg until your thigh is parallel to the floor. At the same time, your back leg should flatten out and your knee will nearly touch or can touch the floor briefly. Lunges are a compound exercise that focus on all of the upper leg muscles, but lunges are much more effective on hamstrings than squats are.
Hamstring Kicks
There are a number of variations of hamstring kicks, which are also known as hip extensions or donkey kicks. One variation starts with you laying on your stomach while the another has you begin standing upright. The movement is the same in both as you will kick back to fully extend your leg out. According to Bella Online, kick extensions are one of the best compound exercises for hamstrings.
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