Name: Playbook - Sarah Herse - FAQ: Best Exercises For Building Hamstrings
Uploaded: 2023-08-15T21:29:05.505Z
Duration: 5 min
Description: FAQ: Best Exercises For Building Hamstrings

Strong hamstrings can give shape & definition to your legs and can also help prevent injury! Here are some tips for targeting your hamstrings muscles (back of the thighs). 
The hamstring muscles are biarticular: they cross both the hip joint and knee joint. This means you should include both hip flexion and knee flexion exercises in your training to optimize hamstring development. 

Examples of hip flexion exercises:
- Barbell Romanian deadlift
- Single leg landmine Romanian deadlift
- 45 Degree hyper extensions
- Reverse hyper extensions

Knee Flexion Exercises:
- Machine hamstring curls
- Stability ball hamstring curls
- Glute hamstring raises
- Hamstring walkouts

The hamstring muscles are biarticular: they cross both the hip joint and knee joint. This means you should include both hip flexion and knee flexion exercises in your training to optimize hamstring development. 

Examples of hip flexion exercises:
- Barbell Romanian deadlift
- Single leg landmine Romanian deadlift
- 45 Degree hyper extensions
- Reverse hyper extensions

Knee Flexion Exercises:
- Machine hamstring curls
- Stability ball hamstring curls
- Glute hamstring raises
- Hamstring walkouts

- Hold a bar at hip level with a pronated (palms facing down) grip. Your shoulders should be back, your back arched, and your knees slightly bent. This will be your starting position.
- Lower the bar by moving your butt back as far as you can. Keep the bar close to your body, your head looking forward, and your shoulders back. Done correctly, you should reach the maximum range of your hamstring flexibility just below the knee. Any further movement will be compensation and should be avoided for this movement.
- At the bottom of your range of motion, return the starting position by driving the hips forward to stand up tall.

Barbell RDL

- Hold a dumbbells at hip level with a pronated (palms facing down) grip. Your shoulders should be back, your back arched, and your knees slightly bent. This will be your starting position.
- Lower the dumbbells by moving your butt back as far as you can. Keep them close to your body, your head looking forward, and your shoulders back. Done correctly, you should reach the maximum range of your hamstring flexibility just below the knee. Any further movement will be compensation and should be avoided for this movement.
- At the bottom of your range of motion, return the starting position by driving the hips forward to stand up tall.

Dumbbell RDL

- Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and knees slightly bent and raise one leg off the floor
- Hinge at your hips, and lower your torso until it’s almost parallel to the floor as your lifted leg extends behind you
- Tap the floor with your hand (same hand that the leg is in back) and lift back up engaging your hamstrings and glutes
- Complete desired reps then repeat on the opposite side

Single Leg RDL (Bodyweight)

- Start by planting your weight into one leg and gripping the end of the barbell with the opposite hand. 
- Grip with the arm closest to the bar and ground into the outside leg. 
- Lift the free leg off the floor behind you and squeeze your glute as you pull the barbell up your body. 
- Keep your hips square during the lift (no twisting out to the side) and your back toes pointed toward the floor. Be sure to tuck your pelvis and maintain a flat back. 
- Drive your foot through the floor when going back up to full extension.

Landmine single leg RDL

- Begin with your upper body aligned with your lower body and your arms crossed over your chest. In other words, your torso should form a straight line from head to toe, with your spine in a neutral position.
- Bend at the waist to lower your torso toward the floor. When your waist reaches roughly a 90-degree angle, contract your lower-back muscles to lift your torso back to the start position.

45 Degree Hyper

- Assume a prone position either in a hyperextension machine or on the glute-ham raise developer. Your hips should be set at the end of the pads so that they can flex freely without the lower back extending and flexing excessively.
- engage your core and straighten your legs. Flex the muscles in your hamstrings, glutes, and lower back to raise your legs from below your hip line to above the hips. - Hold the top position of the movement for one second, and then lower your legs back down with control.

Reverse Hyper

Can sub with lying banded/dumbbell hamstring curls,  or slider/stability ball leg curls

Lie face down on the leg curl machine, stretching your legs out fully. The roller pad should rest a few inches over your calves, just above the heels. Grasp the support handles on each side of the machine.

Exhale and flex your knees, pulling your ankles as close to your buttocks as you can. Keep your hips firmly on the bench.
Hold briefly.
Inhale as you return your feet to the starting position in a slow and controlled movement.

Lying hamstring curl

- Adjust the machine lever to fit your height and sit on the machine with your back against the back support pad.
- Place the back of lower leg on top of padded lever (just a few inches under the calves) and secure the lap pad against your thighs, just above the knees. Then grasp the side handles on the machine as you point your toes straight (or you can also use any of the other two stances) and ensure that the legs are fully straight right in front of you. This will be your starting position.
- As you exhale, pull the machine lever as far as possible to the back of your thighs by flexing at the knees. Keep your torso stationary at all times. Hold the contracted position for a second.
- Slowly return to the starting position as you breathe in.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

Machine seated hamstring curls

- Lie supine on floor with lower legs on exercise ball. Extended arms out to sides. Straighten low back, knees, and hips, raising back and hips off of floor.
- Keeping hips and low back straight, bend knees, pulling heels toward rear end. Allow feet to rollup on to ball. Lower to original position by straightening knees.

Med ball hamstring curl

- Laying face up with legs fully extended
- Grab a towel, or something that will slide against floor easily
- Keeping one leg extended (on heel) and one leg bent on the towel
- Raise hips, back, and legs off ground and take the foot on the towel and slide it out until fully extended (or as far as comfortable) *Should slide easily*
- Slide it back in and that completes one rep
- Repeat on other side

Single leg slider hamstring curl

- Lie on your back with your heels in the TRX foot cradles; legs are extended, and the TRX straps are set to about a foot above the ground.
- Engage your posterior chain (ie: glutes, lower back, hamstrings) to raise the hips and lower back off the floor.
- Maintain this raised position and proceed to pull your heels towards your buttocks.
- The shoulder blades remain in contact with the floor, and your arms are by your side pressing into the floor to help stabilize your torso. As you are lifting your hips, squeeze your glutes and pull in your abdominals to avoid overusing the lower back muscles.
- Keep your hips raised as you return as you extend your legs back out, in a controlled manner.

TRX Hamstring Curls

Stability Ball Hamstring Curls

Exercises to build & strengthen hamstrings

FAQ: Best Exercises For Building Hamstrings

Sarah, I’m trying to decide what program to start with. I’m  46 but have gotten in pretty good shape lifting heavy 5 days a week (2 lower/3 upper). I want to lean out more without sacrificing muscle. My end goal would be to have defined muscle. I’m not afraid of having some muscle- wider back, quads, etc. Where should I start?

Amy Yeary

Appreciate the quick summarized info to know where one should begin. 🖤

Christina

Start Here!

Join the Facebook group!

Alic

Crystal

Anke Schneider

FAQ: How Many Reps Should You Do To Build Muscle?

Haven’t done a workout yet. Just viewed your video on how many reps and how much weight you use

Heidie

3 sets to start, 4 to progress, 5 sets is where champions are MADE!! Rawr!!

Paula

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I love being able to pick my weights… and to see the PROGRESS!! Yaaaaaasssss!!

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Thanks for sharing. Currently doing the 6-week beginner gym with a friend and we are loving the workout.

Celissa

FAQ: How Much Time Should You Be Spending In The Gym?

I am literally binge reading all this interesting info 😅 Thank you so much for sharing all of this!

FAQ: Best Exercises For Building Hamstrings

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