The hamstrings, which are a group of muscles in the back of your thighs, work with other muscles in your hips and legs to move your knee and hip joints in various directions. They also assist in decelerating your movement patterns to avoid joint injury, such as slowing down from a run or walking down a flight of stairs. Therefore, you should perform functional exercises that incorporate your hamstrings with other muscles to reduce your risk of injury and improve movement patterns, says physical therapist Gray Cook, author of "Movement."
Functional Training
Functional training refers to exercises and exercise strategies that incorporate multiple body parts to move together rather than in isolation. These exercises focus more on movement patterns, such as squatting and turning, rather than muscles. For example, training your hamstrings with a leg curl machine will physically strengthen the muscles and joints and increase the size of the hamstrings; however, the exercise does not train the body and the mind how to incorporate the hamstrings with other muscles to move in real-life patterns, such as walking, squatting and climbing stairs. Therefore, most functional exercises should be in a standing or lunging position, since most daily activities are performed in these two positions, says Cook.
Squats
In a squat, your hamstrings assist your hips in lowering your body toward the ground by bending your hip joints and knees. You can feel the hamstrings, calves and buttocks working together when you squat slowly down as low as you can. This prevents joint injuries and maintains your balance. You can perform squats with your arms in front of you or over your head, with a dumbbell in each hand, or with a barbell held in front of your body near your collarbone with both hands. Keep your knees and feet pointing forward and your torso upright as you squat.
Lunges
Like squats, your hamstrings work with your hips to decelerate your body as you lunge, which prevents you from losing your balance or straining your joints. They also assist your hips to produce force when you push your foot against the ground to stand straight up. You can also perform lunges by stepping to one side or stepping back. Regardless of direction, keep your torso upright and do not hunch your shoulders.
Stair Climbing
Your hamstrings work with your buttocks and hip flexors to extend the hip and knee joint when you climb stairs. They also work with the inner thighs and calves to keep your knees and feet pointing forward to prevent your knees from collapsing inward or your ankles and feet rolling inward. You can use any flight of stairs for this exercise, such as at a stadium, college campus or apartment complex.
References
- "NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training"; Michael Clark; 2007
- "Movement"; Gray Cook; 2010
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