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Interviewed by Human Window on Dealing with Tight Hamstrings

Causes of Tight Hamstrings and How to Fix Them (Expert Tips) | Martin Caparrotta

There are lots of stretches that can be performed to help with hamstring flexibility. Here are two simple ones to get started with, as recommended by Peter Donahoe.

Hamstring Stretch One

This stretch (show above) demonstrates a hamstring stretch you can do anytime and in any place. This position creates length in your straight leg while maintaining good alignment in your spine as you ‘pull’ or gently draw your heel towards you.

Hamstring Stretch Two

While lying on your back with spinal support from the ground, grab your straightened leg until you feel a stretch in your hamstrings. Hold for 30 seconds. Do this three times for each leg. Hamstrings can be stretched daily.

Meanwhile, exercise physiologist and personal trainer Bianca Grover recommends three main hamstring stretches.

Seated Toe Touches

“This is a great stretch to start with,” explains Bianca. “To execute it, you simply sit on the floor with your legs stretched in front of you, maintaining a neutral spine and reach forward in order to touch your toes. Make sure you keep your legs straight through the stretch.”

The Sumo Squat

“Another good stretch is a sumo squat. To begin, you simply start in a squat position, spreading your legs slightly wider than shoulder-width apart with your toes pointed out. With your back remaining straight, lower your torso like you’re performing a squat trying to go as deep as permitted without pain. You want to get your legs into a position where your thighs are parallel to the floor.”

Supine Hamstring Stretch

“A supine hamstring stretch is also a solid choice for tight hamstrings. For this, you simply lay on your back bringing one foot close to your butt, flat on the ground for support. You can then grab your opposite leg, holding just above your ankle and bring it in, close to your chest.”

There are also lots of weightlifting exercises that can help to improve hamstring flexibility.

As flexibility expert Tom Merrick explains: “Not all flexibility work needs to be stretching. Doing weightlifting in a specific way can increase flexibility.

“Things like split-squats will increase your flexibility, and things like Romanian deadlifts will increase your hamstring flexibility.”

Additional Expert Comments

Tom Merrick: “[Tight hamstrings and calves are] super common. To be honest, it’s a good measure of general postural chain flexibility. For an adult, if you can touch your toes, lift your arms pretty comfortably overhead and sit in a squat – that, for me, all the flexibility you need in your day-to-day life.

“Hamstrings get commonly tight mainly because we don’t use that range much.

“If you actually you think about it, until you start doing stretching, you don’t realise how much it’s lacking because in reality, you don’t use that range all the time. Running is super common and part of increasing running efficiency and economy… if you do any running then your hamstrings and calves will tighten up, because it improves your efficiency, so that’s another reason.

“The last reason is that usually [hamstrings and calves] are weak. Sometimes it’s not that your hamstrings are tight, it’s that your body doesn’t know if it’s actually strong enough to be in that position and so it won’t let you go there to make sure that you don’t hurt yourself.”

Bianca Grover: “Although tight hamstrings are not a cause for concern, it is good to know that unchecked tightness can cause the hips and pelvis to rotate back, flattening the lower back and causing back pain, knee pain or foot pain.

Making sure that one’s workout is balanced and targets different muscles in the body equally is very important in preventing muscular imbalances, such as tight hamstrings.”

Marian Barnick: “How you move throughout the day, whether sitting, standing, or walking will directly influence the tightness of your hamstrings.

“Not maintaining a neutral spine while sitting will increase your hamstring tightness. Standing with one knee bent, hip pushed out to the side or leaning will tighten your hamstrings.

“Walking without a proper heel-toe gait pattern will tighten your hamstrings.”

Nick Occhipinti: “Most people with tight hamstrings immediately think they just need to stretch, stretch, stretch. But a tight muscle is also weak and needs to be strengthened.

“Hamstring strengthening exercises like leg curls, straight leg or Romanian deadlifts, nordic hamstring curls, and glute ham raises are great ways to put some length into the muscle but, more importantly, strengthen the muscle.”