Intense workout to blast the hamstrings with the minimal amount of equipment. Excellent to do at home or in the gym!
For this workout you will either need a gymnastic ball or a slider (towel or any type of slider). Everyone has towels which makes this workout convenient to do at home.
Both using a slider (towel) or a gym ball work amazingly well. Gym balls are useful and cheap in case you want to use one. They can also be used for yoga and stability work.
Many hamstring machines are great but you may even get better results with bodyweight hamstring exercises like these ones.
Hamstring exercises demonstrated in this hamstring workout will train both functions of the hamstrings: 1. hip extension and 2. knee flexion. This means you will very thoroughly activate and work the hamstrings.
In the previous hamstring video we covered the knee flexion which is easily one of the best hamstring curl exercises you can do. If these hamstring exercises are too difficult to do, then focus on building strength and mobility with the knee flexion first.
You can expect to see gains in strength, size and mobility of your hamstrings. You can also improve your athletic ability in anything you do (martial arts, sports or movement).
You will get the best results when you focus on slow tempo, controlled execution and mind-muscle connection.
Beginner Workout |
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2-Leg Hamstring Curl: 2 x 15 repetitions |
Squeezing Hamstring Curl: 2 x 15 reps |
Toes Out Hamstring Curl: 2 x 5-15 reps |
Advanced Workout |
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2-Leg Hamstring Curl: 2 x 10 reps |
Hip Extension - Curl: 2 x 5-10 reps |
Negative Single Leg Curl: 2 x 5-10 reps |
Single Leg Curl: 2 x 5-10 reps |
See the video for the exercises. Rest 1-2 minutes between sets and exercises. You can use either a slider (towel) or a gym ball or both!
Conventional Hamstring Curl
Conventional two-leg hamstring curl is the best variation to start with although it will work for everyone regardless of their level of fitness.
Raise your hips up (hip extension) to properly engage the hamstrings and then do slow & controlled curls to further work the hamstrings.
You will also work the glutes, but with mind-muscle connection and right execution, you should primarily keep the tension on your hamstrings.
The common mistakes include lack of control and not fully extending the hips. If you have trouble fully extending the hips, work on different hip thrust variations.
Single Leg Hamstring Curl
Single leg hamstring curl is an advanced variation which will put enormous stress on your hamstrings. It's a great exercise but make sure you have first mastered the conventional hamstring curl.
It's highly recommended to spend serious time on the conventional two-leg hamstring curl before trying the single leg variation. If the form is not right, the results will be a lot worse.
Once you are seriously strong with the two leg hamstring curl, you can start doing single leg negatives: begin the curl with two legs but lower yourself with just one leg.
Toes In/Out Hamstring Curl
You can change the emphasis of the exercise by varying the rotation of your hips.
Rotating the leg inwards (internal rotation of the hip) will allow you to target the inner parts of the hamstrings.
Rotating the leg outwards (external rotation of the hip) emphasizes more the outer parts of the hamstrings.
It's great to do different variations to work all parts of the hamstrings (there are 4 different hamstring muscles!).
In the beginning the conventional hamstring curls are enough but eventually you need special variations to train all parts and to ensure structural balance of the hamstrings.
