This one is a little more equipment-heavy, in that you need a GHD (Glute Ham Developer) to replicate the movement. Pause, then slowly return the legs to the start position.
Curl the heels from an almost-straight position to fully bent. Wrap the band around the ankles and roll onto your front. Secure the band to a suitable anchor point, such as a squat rack. Anchor point – squat rack or bench is fine. Resistance band – thickness depends on your strength. This makes the exercise different to a normal hamstring curl where the force curve is similar along the exercise.Įquipment needed for a banded hamstring curl: As well as being a functional exercise, it’s really easy to set up and requires no technique to learn.Ī hamstring curl done this way has an interesting strength curve – it gets harder the further along the rep you go, so as the elastic becomes tighter, the exercise gets harder. 
It replicates the prone hamstring curl machine that used to be popular in gyms in the 90s. The banded hamstring curl is a staple for a lot of home gym users. Swiss ball hamstring curl muscles worked:
NORDIC HAMSTRING CURL FULL
Once the legs are at full extension, roll the ball back towards you until the legs are fully bent again. Ensure the glutes stay off the floor the entire time. Roll the ball away from you, keeping the feet on top of the ball and extending your legs. Lift the glutes from the floor, keeping your back straight and shoulders in contact with the floor. Lie on your back, feet on top of the swiss ball. The slow and controlled element of it makes for a real challenge.Įquipment needed for Swiss ball hamstring curls: There’s also a time under tension element at play, because you can’t rush this movement. This version of a hamstring curl gives the glutes, spinal erectors and calf muscles a good workout too, so offers a more generalized benefit than the hamstring curl machine. This inherent instability forces the body to work extra hard to keep balance and form in control. The Swiss ball provides a good challenge for all kinds of exercises because it’s unstable. When your torso reaches the floor push yourself back to the starting position. From a kneeling position, lower your torso towards the floor, using your hamstrings to control the speed of descent. Anchor your feet so you can lead forward with control. Foot anchor point – this can be a weighted barbell, a friend or under a chair. They improve knee stability and hamstring strength better than most exercises.Įquipment needed for Nordic hamstring curls: Nordics are a go-to for many people because they contain little risk but huge rewards. It’s a very challenging exercise because it forces the hamstrings to control the descent of the torso, but research shows it’s a very effective way of training the hamstrings. The Nordic hamstring curl is a fantastic exercise because it’s incredibly effective, easy to set up and there is little technique to learn. Whilst there are exercises that train the hamstrings very well, I’m going to limit the advice here to exercises that contract the hamstring during flexion, extension or both. To replicate the hamstring curl we have to make sure the hamstring is under contraction through the same movement pattern. The knee is a ‘hinge joint’, which means it only moves in one plane of movement – it flexes and extends. Research shows that back squats don’t activate the hamstrings anywhere near as well as direct hamstring work.Īll things being equal, a strong muscle is more powerful, injury-resistant and robust than a weak one and the hamstrings are no exception. If you’re a CrossFitter or weightlifter, strong hamstrings are especially important because they’re so heavily used in both sports.Īlthough some coaches believe you don’t need direct hamstring work, I’m a proponent of it based on the data. If your hamstrings aren’t strong enough to cope with the lift, you risk injury to both the hamstring and the knee. When squatting, the hamstrings play an important role in stabilizing the knees. People who weight train also need strong hamstrings. Anyone participating in a sport where running or sprinting is a feature benefit from strong hamstrings. They allow the leg to bend at the knee, so they are muscles that are used constantly. Leg curls train the hamstrings directly, which has important injury prevention and athletic development benefits.Ī lot of people don’t appreciate how important the hamstring muscles are. Leg curl alternatives – the bottom line. Hamstring training – injury prevention and athletic improvement.
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