A User’s Guide to Hamstrings

f you're interested in reading more on ideas presented in the article below, I suggest reading Alignment Matters.  If you'd like movement instruction via video, start with Alignment Snacks: Quads and Hams.

As promised (800 car-trip miles later), The Hamstring Blog.

Some quick hamstring tidbits:

1.The “hamstrings” are really three separate muscles: Biceps femoris, semimembranosis, and the semitendinosis.

2. The hamstring group passes over both the hip and the knee joint, which means it connects the pelvis to the shins. The thigh bone is held snug in the hip socket by this muscle group. Sometime too snug (see#8).

3. When at its correct length, the hamstring group allow the pelvis, thigh, and lower leg to be positioned in “neutral”, which means positioned optimally for force production and joint salvation. Like this:

4. The hamstrings are commonly listed as knee flexors (muscles that bend the knee) but this muscle group should ideally be used as a hip extensor (muscles that pull the thigh backward relative to the pelvis), when walking.

5. The backward motion of hip extension *should* be the primary motion used to propel the body forward when walking (think of an ice skater pushing back against the ice to move forward), but instead, modern living has reversed our natural gait pattern and now we just lift a leg out in front and fall forward. Ow.

6. Chronic sitting and/or chronic pelvis tucking move the hamstring muscles’ attachment sites toward each other, which requires the muscle to tighten. Why? Muscles are not allowed to slop around in the body -- if you postural habits put slack in the line, the muscles respond accordingly and reduce their length.

7. When the hamstrings are really (really) tight, they can prevent the knees from straightening or the pelvis from untucking. A tucked pelvis is the primary cause of pelvic floor disorders. For strong pelvic floors, lengthening the hamstrings is a requirement! You need a neutral pelvis to prevent organ prolapse!

8. When the hamstrings are really tight, joint space in the knees and hips is reduced and becomes asymmetrical front to back, which increases friction. Which makes heat. Which makes inflammation. Which prevents cells in the cartilage from regenerating. Boo.

**If you don’t have time to read all of the above points, they basically say that tight hamstrings are the root problem for knee, hip, low back, and pelvic floor issues and that muscles become tight by postural habits.

Why are my hamstrings so tight?

While it seems like there could be a hundred different situations that can affect human tissue, it is probably one of the four reasons listed here:

1. You sit a billion hours a day.

2. You tuck your pelvis because you think you should.

3. You wear shoes will a heel (any heel!) which causes your knees to bend or pelvis to tuck to balance the geometry, which causes the hamstrings to shorten.

4. Your psoas* tucks your pelvis, which causes the hamstrings to shorten (this is a result of high levels of psychological stress, lots of athletics or fitness, or certain postural habits).

5. You don’t have a natural gait pattern (and no one does any more, really) so these muscles are fairly inert and tighten due to underuse.

*Psoas tension is a common culprit in hamstring issues. The mechanics are a bit complicated, but if you are interested in the physics of the psoas, how it affects the spine, pelvis, and legs, and the exercise program to address it, check out this three-hour online course (click here).

And now, what you've all been waiting for...

How to Stretch Your Hamstrings.

There is basically just a couple guidelines to getting the hams to their optimal length (the one that allows the knee to straighten and the pelvis to rest in neutral on the thigh).

DON’T BEND YOUR KNEES while stretching.

DON’T TUCK THE PELVIS while stretching.

Here is a picture of my favorite hamstring Rx...erciseTM, the Strap Stretch with What To Look Out For (click on the picture to blow it up):Because the muscle passes over the knee and hip joint, moving the pelvis or changing the knee joint angle during Strap Stretch is a “cheat” and leaves the hamstrings the same old length as when you started.

If you ever go to a yoga class, there are always a ton of people with the leg all the way up, blocking the sun out of their eyes. Try this: place a hand towel under the mid-hamstring point, and make sure you can’t pull it out when doing this stretch. You may find that you need to lower the stretching leg almost all the way to the floor to find your true hamstring length.

Forward Bends - Flexibility vs. Mobility

Here’s a little anatomy tidbit: The term flexibility applies to muscle. The term mobility applies to joints.

The moving of the pelvis during the hamstring stretch means that you aren’t stretching your hamstrings at all but are distorting the lower back joints (lumbar vertebrae) instead. People who are “hypermobile” typically rearrange their body so they don’t stretch their muscles, but instead stress the joints above or below that muscle group.

In a nutshell: People who are hypermobile actually have poor muscle flexibility. And stretching is difficult because these folks don’t *feel* anything in a stretch because they open the joints -- not the muscles.

Example: The forward bend

Forward bends should help the user find the hamstrings, but most people bend from the spine, not from the hips or bend the knees to get to the floor. Here is my best attempt at drawing the difference...

Moral of the the forward-bend story is this; Once the pelvis stops moving on a forward bend, so should the rest of your torso. Especially if you have any issues in the hips, knees, of lower back.

Common question: Should I bend my knees to go farther then?

Common Katy Answer: If you bend your knees, then 1) you’re not stretching your hamstrings and 2) you are making your low back hold the load of your upper body. If you are using forward bends to improve muscle length and strength, then it is better to stay within your range of motion -- even if it means you lose the beautiful sweeping motions you used to do in class. Replace it while mindfully honoring your current muscular boundary. You will make much more progress and do a better service to your body.

Note: I am an excellent biomechanist. Really, I am. I am NOT a very good graphic artist. So let’s hear it for some lukewarm graphic artistry skills! {crowd responds with a loud cheer!} My favorite is the squiggly spinal column.

I am awesome.