The hamstrings are a group of four muscles that cross your hip and your knee, and these muscles are commonly injured in sprinters, kickers and athletes who perform high speed movements. The muscles involved are the long and short heads of the biceps femoris, semitendinosus and semimembranosus muscles. Together, these muscles act to extend the hip and bend the knee. Symptoms of hamstring strains include pain, tenderness, loss of motion, or decreased strength, and strains can be classified as grade 1 (mild) to grade 3 (severe).
Acute hamstring strains often result in significant recovery time, and approximately one third of hamstring injuries will recur within the first 2 weeks of return to sport. This is why proper rehabilitation is key! We have some exercises to help you with your acute hamstring strains, to get you back to doing what you love. As always, there should be no increase in pain with these exercises, and if you are experiencing any pain then send us a message and we can help you out!
The first exercise to try is called hamstring flossing, and this exercise is to create some mobility through the hamstrings. Start lying on your back and bring your knee towards your chest so that your hip and knee are bent to 90 degrees and loop your hands behind your thigh. From here slowly straighten your knee until you feel a stretch in the back of your thigh. Hold the stretch at the top for 5 seconds and repeat this movement for 30 seconds. This stretch should not cause any pain, and if it does then stop and give us a shout.
The next exercise is an isometric strengthening exercise to engage your hamstring muscles but not aggravate them. Laying on your back, bend your knee and place your heel on the floor (toes should be up), with your other leg extended. Gently push your heel into the floor, as if you are trying to bend your knee, and hold this for 15-30 seconds to engage your hamstrings. Be sure that there is no pain while performing this exercise and repeat this 3 times on both legs.
