Hamstring Exercises For The Equestrian Athlete

The equestrian athlete uses all the muscles in her legs to maintain control of her horse while sitting relaxed and safe in the saddle. The hamstring muscle complex, consisting of the biceps femoris, the semitendinosus and semimembranosus muscles, spans the hip and knee joints down the back of the leg, and both extends the thigh and flexes the leg. Weak or inflexible hamstrings can cause a rider to lose balance, grip the saddle too tightly to compensate for feeling insecure, and eventually come off the horse.

Benefits

Stretching and strengthening your hamstring muscles allows you to elongate and mold your legs around your horse's barrel, change your leg position when needed and apply consistent and effective leg aids. You can also learn to relax and soften your lower back and pelvis while protecting your legs and lower torso against injury. Hamstring injuries occur most frequently in athletes who don't properly warm up, who show muscle fatigue, have become less flexible with increasing age and don't train consistently prior to competition, says radiologist Dr. Derek Armfield and colleagues in an article in the Clinics in Sports Medicine journal. Because a healed hamstring injury predisposes the equestrian athlete to further damage in those muscles, training becomes essential to continued good health.

Hamstrings Stretch and Flexibility Test

Just as you did in gym class, stand with your feet together, bend from your waist and try to touch your toes without bending your knees. Stop reaching when you feel your hamstrings ache and hold the stretch for 15 to 20 seconds. As you become more flexible, your fingertips will drop lower and lower to the floor. Test your flexibility by crossing your right foot over your left, bending at the waist and attempting to touch your toes. Slowly return to a standing position, and repeat the test crossing your left foot over your right. This stretch and test shows your flexibility levels; you have good flexibility if you can touch your palms to the ground. If you can't touch your toes, you need to continue stretching exercises until you reach that goal.

Hamstring Calf Stretch

Stand in front of a fence or countertop and, breathing deeply, relax your body. As you exhale, swing your right leg to the top of the fence and point your toe in a direct line with your hip. Continue to breathe and, on the next exhale, extend your torso and lean slowly forward at the hips until you feel a stretch. Keep your hips parallel to the fence and hold the stretch for five beats. Repeat this stretch on the right leg three times. To work the inside of the hamstrings, point your toe out, rotating your hips to the outside. Bend forward slowly at your hips, hold for five counts and repeat this stretch four times. Switch legs and perform the inner and outer rotation stretches on your left leg. This exercise relieves the occasional soreness caused by horseback riding and equalizes the muscle strength in the front and back of your legs.

Straight-Knee Dead Lift

For this exercise, you will need a weight bar or a set of dumbbells. Pick a weight in which you feel challenged but are comfortable carrying. Stand erect with your legs at a width that approximates your position in the saddle with your toes pointing forward. If you are using dumbbells, drop your arms naturally to your sides. Hold the weight bar in front of you with your hands positioned at the width of your hips. With a straight back, lower the weights toward the floor and push your hips backwards, bending forward from your hips. Keep your weight centered over your feet without shifting onto your toes or the balls of your feet. Continue pushing your hips out until you can no longer do so. Straighten slowly, and repeat this exercise seven to 10 times. This exercise strengthens the extensor portions of your hamstrings, enabling you to maintain control of your seat while galloping or in a half-seat position in the saddle.