Improved Deadlift And Squat Technique: When strength imbalances exist between the quads and hamstrings, you’ll have difficultly lowering into a squat and deadlift and problems locking out. This goes a long way in keeping your knees healthy. When your running, performing exercises involving the hamstrings, when you need to slow down, stop or lower down into a squat, your hamstring strength makes this happen. What does this mean? Think of your hamstrings like the brakes on your car. Knee Health: Hamstrings play the important role of knee stabilizers. If the quads overpower the hamstrings this will increase the injury risks to your knee and hamstrings. When you don’t isolate the hamstrings, you may develop imbalances between your quadriceps and hamstrings.
When you slow down the eccentric on the exercises below you will reduce the risk of hamstring strains because of improvements in eccentric strength and the length of your hamstrings. Injury Prevention: Hamstring strains happen when the muscle extends eccentrically. Here are some important benefits of training the hamstrings. Vanity is a great reason for training hamstrings, but your hamstrings play a vital role in your performance in and out of the gym. Let’s face it, you can tell how much a lifter values leg training by the size and definition of their hamstrings. squats & deadlifts), but isolating the muscles with joint specific exercises, such as leg curls, can help you to really hone in on the hamstrings.īENEFITS OF TRAINING HAMSTRINGS & LEG CURLS Note: Hip extension and knee flexion occur in so many lower body compound movements (i.e. Example of hip extension exercises are glute bridges, hip thrusts, stiff-leg deadlifts. Knee Flexion (which occurs during leg curls)Īlthough leg curls make a big part in strengthening and building your hamstrings, it pays to train the other main function (hip extension) for better muscle development.The exception is the biceps femoris short head which originates on the lower femur. The hamstrings are made up of three muscles on the back of the thigh:Īll originate on the posterior of the lower pelvis, and they all insert medially and laterally just below the knee on the tibia and fibula. Here’s a breakdown of the hamstring muscles. Understanding what they are and what they do is important in getting the most out of your hamstring training. Some lifters think the hamstrings are just one muscle, so let's just be clear, your hamstrings consist of three muscles. Without further ado, let’s get into it and build some impressive hammies. Note: While there are many compound exercises to target your hamstrings, we label the 9 exercises below as "leg curl alternatives" because they isolate the hamstrings in the same or very similar manner, biomechanically speaking, as a leg curl machine.
In this article, we will go into the anatomy and function of the hamstrings, the benefits of training hamstrings, 9 great leg curl machine alternatives, and the best way to program these exercises into your routine. When you do it well, you will definitely reap the benefits.īut, if your gym doesn’t have a leg curl machine, it’s taken, or you’re looking for more variety with your hamstring isolation exercises, look no further than here. The leg curl machine, whether it’s the one where you are lying prone or sitting upright, is a great exercise to isolate and strengthen your hamstrings.
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