How familiar are you with hamstring exercises? Hamstring muscles or posterior thigh muscles have a significant role when it comes to lower limb mobility.
These muscles primarily act at knee flexion and bending. These muscles are, however, very prone to injury, and therefore they have to be handled with caution and special care in the form of strengthening.
In this article, we’ll first introduce the hamstring muscles and explain their importance, followed by a series of exercises designed to strengthen and shape this key muscle group.
Table of contents
Hamstring and Posterior Thigh Muscle Anatomy
The back of the thigh has several groups of muscles, but above all the hamstrings which have three main muscles: semitendinosus, semimembranosus, and biceps femoris. These muscles have bending and flexing actions over the knee joint.
They originate from the lower half of the pelvis and attach to the back of the shin bone, below the knee, via the hamstring tendons. In simple words, your hamstrings are the muscles at the back of your thigh which enables you to bend and straighten your knee. You must strengthen these muscles with hamstring exercises to improve their function and prevent injuries.
In short, the hamstring muscles are made up of:
- Semitendinosus
- Semimembranosus
- Biceps Femoris
Why to strengthen the muscles in the back of the leg
Including the hamstrings in your exercise program and back leg movements is very important because the hamstrings are an active yet injured muscle. This muscle plays a special role in runners and bodybuilders.
If a runner doesn’t include time in their training schedule for back-leg exercises, they’ll get common injuries like hamstring strains and will have to sit out of competition for a long time.
Benefits of strengthening the hamstrings or back of the leg
Taking care of your hamstrings is very important and plays a big role in your health. For example, if your hamstrings are not flexible enough, they can stretch your hip bones. This can cause a curve in your back and stiffness, spasms and pain in your lower back.
How to prevent knee injuries by building back leg muscles?
As you know the knee is prone to many injuries and damages. One of the things that causes knee damage is weak hamstring muscles. Weakness in this area can damage your knee and cause knee pain. To prevent this do back leg movements and stretching exercises regularly. Also observing other things like wearing the right shoes and losing weight is also important for knee health.
If you feel pain or problem in your knee, be sure to see a doctor. Knee pain has many causes and main cause must be found. If your knee pain is due to weak hamstring muscles, start your exercises and movements as directed by your doctor.
Effective Exercises to Strengthen Your Hamstrings
In this section, we introduce the best and most effective back leg exercises. With these exercises, you can strengthen and shape your thigh muscles. We suggest you join us and do these exercises and help your health and agility. Also, if you have knee problems, it is better to consult your doctor or specialist before doing back leg exercises.
No-Equipment Leg Workouts to Target the Hamstrings and Glutes
You can easily do these movements without any equipment, at home or anywhere you want, and enjoy their benefits.
| Exercise | Number of sets and repetitions |
|---|---|
| Lying Leg Curl (Feet Together) | 3 sets of 15 |
| Seated Single-Leg Hamstring & Lower Back Stretch | 3 sets of 12 for each leg |
| Kneeling Leg Curl | 4 sets of 15 |
Lying Leg Curl (Feet Together)
Seated Single-Leg Hamstring & Lower Back Stretch
Kneeling Leg Curl
Strengthening the Hamstrings with a Resistance Band
Stretching exercises can be done more effectively using a resistance band. It is easy to use and you can do the exercises at home very easily. We suggest that you start doing back leg exercises with a resistance band in the following order.
| Exercise | Number of sets and repetitions |
|---|---|
| Standing Hamstring Curl with Resistance Band | 3 sets of 12 |
| Lying Hamstring Curl with Resistance Band | 3 sets of 15 |
| Half-Kneeling Hamstring Curl with Resistance Band | 3 sets of 12 |
Standing Hamstring Curl with Resistance Band
Lying Hamstring Curl with Resistance Band
Half-Kneeling Hamstring Curl with Resistance Band
Hamstring exercise with dumbbells
As you know, dumbbells are an accessible and useful tool that has many uses in sports and bodybuilding. Using this tool is effective for strengthening the hamstring and back of the leg muscles. Prepare your dumbbells and proceed according to the exercise below.
| Exercise | Number of sets and repetitions |
|---|---|
| Dumbbell deadlift | 4 sets of 12 |
| Dumbbell Reverse Lunge with Hamstring Focus | 3 sets of 10 |
| Dumbbell Hamstring Lift (Romanian Deadlift) | 3 sets of 15 |
| Dumbbell Wide-Stance Romanian Deadlift | 3 sets of 15 |
| Dumbbell Swinging Hamstring Lift | 3 sets of 10 |
| Half-Kneeling Dumbbell Hamstring Curl | 4 sets of 12 |
| Lying Dumbbell Hamstring Curl on Bench | 3 sets of 15 |
Dumbbell deadlift
Dumbbell Reverse Lunge with Hamstring Focus
Dumbbell Hamstring Lift (Romanian Deadlift)
Dumbbell Wide-Stance Romanian Deadlift
Dumbbell Swinging Hamstring Lift
Half-Kneeling Dumbbell Hamstring Curl
Lying Dumbbell Hamstring Curl on Bench
Effective Gym Machines for Hamstring and Glute Strength
To do back leg exercises, you can go to the gym and do these exercises with a machine.
| Exercise | Number of sets and repetitions |
|---|---|
| Single-Leg Standing Hamstring Curl | 3 sets of 12 for each leg |
| Lying Leg Curl Machine | 3 sets of 20 |
| Alternating Lying Leg Curl | 3 sets of 20 |
| Partial Lying Leg Curl (Top Half Range) | 3 sets of 15 |
| Lying Leg Curl Machine (1 and ¼ Reps) | 3 sets of 12 |
Single-Leg Standing Hamstring Curl
Lying Leg Curl Machine
Alternating Lying Leg Curl
Partial Lying Leg Curl (Top Half Range)
Lying Leg Curl Machine (1 and ¼ Reps)
Final words
The hamstring is an important and frequently used muscle, but it is also prone to injury. In this article, we introduced the hamstring and hamstring muscle groups.
We also taught exercises for the back of the leg to strengthen and shape this area. You should also take care of these muscles and do the exercises above.
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