Hamstring Injury Prevention

The hamstring is located on the back of the upper leg. Muscles that make up the hamstring are the biceps femoris, semitendinosus and the semimembranosus. Your hamstring is responsible for bending the knee and moving the thigh backward toward the hip. Our hamstring muscles are at risk for injury when walking and performing physical activity in sports.

  1. Risk Factors

    • Certain factors make a hamstring injury more likely. Age, weight, flexibility and bad running stride can all cause a hamstring injury. Previous hamstring injuries make another occurrence highly likely as well. Performing explosive movements when your muscles are not prepared can rupture the muscle fibers and cause a major hamstring injury.

    Warm-Up and Stretching

    • Warm up your muscles before participating in any physical activity. A proper warm-up will take at least five minutes. Slowly begin moving your major muscles groups and work toward running in place and jumping jacks. The goal is to prepare your muscles for powerful movements gradually. You never want to go from a sitting position to sprinting. If you are exercising in cold weather, be sure to wear clothing over all extremities, including your legs. You can also use heating pads on your hamstring for a few minutes to warm up the muscle.

      Stretch your muscles before and after physical activity. After performing a warm-up, stretch your hamstring muscles. After finishing your activity, stretch the hamstrings again. The sit-and-reach is a great stretch for your hamstring muscles. Sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of your body. Reach for your feet while bending at your waist. Go as far as you can and hold for 10 seconds. Never bounce when performing this stretch.

    Strength Training

    • Strengthening the hamstring muscles will decrease the risk of injury. Perform hamstring-strengthening exercises 2-3 days week. Do 1-3 sets of 8-12 repetitions during each session. Perform squats, lunges, leg curls and bridges to improve muscle function.