What Is a Good Hamstring Workout?
The hamstring muscles are located on the back of the upper leg. This muscle group is called into play when the knee is flexing or bending. There are various workouts that are good at targeting this area.
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Lunges
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Lunges are performed by taking long steps forward and bending down until the back knee is about 2 inches off the ground and the front thigh is parallel to the floor.
Deadlifts
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Stiff legged deadlifts are performed by holding a weighted barbell in front of you with a shoulder-width grip, then bending over at the hips until the weights almost touch the floor. Your knees are slightly bent throughout the movement.
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Hamstring Curls
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Lying hamstring curls are done on a hamstring curl machine. You lie down on your stomach and place the backs of your legs under a padded support. You then bend your knees and curl the support toward your glutes (see Resources for a video on how to perform hamstring curls).
Swiss Ball
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Swiss ball rollouts are done from a lying position with your feet up on a Swiss ball. From this position, you lift your hips up in the air and roll the ball back toward your glutes using your hamstring muscles.
Steps
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Stair stepping is another good hamstring workout. You can either run up actual stairs or use a Stairmaster. To put more emphasis on the hamstrings, you can step up two or more steps at a time.
Hills
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Running up steep hills takes a lot of strength, and it really targets the glutes and hamstrings. The intensity can be increased by wearing resistance such as a weighted vest.
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