Eccentric Exercises For Hamstrings

Your hamstrings are composed of three long, slender muscles in the back of your thigh. As a group, they constantly work with and against your quadriceps, the four muscles in the front of your thigh, allowing you to stand up, balance, walk, squat, jump and run. As your speed or effort increases, your hamstrings encounter greater strain, so keeping your hamstrings flexible and strong is crucial to avoiding injury. Eccentric exercise can help.

Eccentric And Effective

Eccentric exercise is a movement during which a muscle contracts while lengthening. You engage your hamstrings in eccentric movements while walking downstairs, squatting, running and almost any normal activity during which you use your hamstrings while your leg is simultaneously straightening. However, competitive athletes and advanced fitness enthusiasts need to go beyond normal activity if they want resilient hamstrings, and several exercises can help.

Get Into the Swing Of Things

An eccentric hamstring exercise particularly befitting runners is bicycle leg swings. This exercise mimics the running stride and emphasizes hamstring power and flexibility, according to sports medicine researcher Owen Anderson, Ph.D., writing for Educated Runner. Begin by standing on one leg and swinging your non-supporting leg forward, knee leading, as if you were running. Continue the circular stride: Swing your foot down and back, extend your leg rearward, bring your heel toward your butt and swing your knee forward again. Your hamstrings are eccentrically stressed when your knee swings down and forward to begin the next stride.

Leaning Forward With Anchored Ankles

Another of Dr. Anderson's favorites can be performed on one's own or with a partner. It involves kneeling on the ground, having your ankles held by your partner or tucking your feet under an immovable object for an anchor, and slowly leaning forward from the knees while maintaining a straight line through your hips and back. This taxes the hamstrings to an extraordinary degree thanks to the strong contraction, simultaneous stretching and requirement for complete control as your body leans forward. It is one of the most effective of all eccentric hamstring exercises.

Hamstrings' Top Squat

Running Research News provides a third exercise, the pistol squat, which requires a chair. Stand on one leg with the chair behind you and very slowly lower yourself until you are sitting on the chair seat. Sounds easy, but lowering yourself using only one leg can be a very difficult maneuver, especially under complete control; your hamstrings are contracting and stretching like crazy, not only to support your body weight during the descent but also to maintain balance. Standing back up demands additional hamstring coordination. RRN recommends a set of five repetitions for each leg. As your legs strengthen, try working up to 12 repetitions.

Preparation Pays Off

These three eccentric exercises will enhance your hamstring power and flexibility, but before you begin any new and strenuous physical fitness routine, get clearance from your health or fitness professional. Success depends on a sensible approach.