Biomechanics of Sprinting: Are Hamstring Curls useless/harmful hamstring work for sprinters?

I would like to know as well...

Hamstring curls are very helpful.

They balance out the strength in the leg.

Many muscle pulls in the hammy are due to weak hammies and over trained quads.

Bro - Mama wrote:

Hamstring curls are very helpful.

They balance out the strength in the leg.

Many muscle pulls in the hammy are due to weak hammies and over trained quads.

This did not address at all the question at hand, which referred to running/sprinting biomechanics.

Extra Private School wrote:

Bro - Mama wrote:

Hamstring curls are very helpful.

They balance out the strength in the leg.

Many muscle pulls in the hammy are due to weak hammies and over trained quads.

This did not address at all the question at hand, which referred to running/sprinting biomechanics.

He did address the question of whether hamstring curls are useless for sprinters. If hamstring curls prevent pulling a hamstring then they are certainly useful.

The hamstrings are both a knee flexor and hip extender. Hamstring curls work as a knee flexor. Also the hamstring muscles are pennate shaped which act explosively through a short range of motion.Those particular muscles do not need the range of muscle people employ when doing the open kinetic chain leg curl exercise. Think about what the hamstrings are doing when you are speinting and ask if the leg curl is practical. There are better ways to work the hamstrings, the leg curl should only be used for rehab and or correcting imbalances.

Gary Winckler of USTFCCCA and others taught me this. Anyone interested in strength training for track athletes should take their certification courses.

Coach is basically right and makes some good points. But at the same time, it's important to remember that one of the underlying reasons for runners of any type to do strength training is for injury prevention.

Bottom line -- nothing else matters if you're injured and can't run.

Or put another way -- how are your sprint mechanics if you're sitting on your rear end in the training room or going to PT instead of running?

Train the hamstring as a hip extensor

I get so tired or people saying curls aren't for sprinters!

Hamstring curls are a very good exercise for sprinters if done in conjunction with some hip hinge type exercises

Doing curls allows for spindle filament movement and any adhesions to be worked out.

Plus concentric strength does cross over to isometric and quasi isometric strength

lunges.

Coach wrote:

The hamstrings are both a knee flexor and hip extender. Hamstring curls work as a knee flexor. Also the hamstring muscles are pennate shaped which act explosively through a short range of motion.Those particular muscles do not need the range of muscle people employ when doing the open kinetic chain leg curl exercise. Think about what the hamstrings are doing when you are speinting and ask if the leg curl is practical. There are better ways to work the hamstrings, the leg curl should only be used for rehab and or correcting imbalances.

Gary Winckler of USTFCCCA and others taught me this. Anyone interested in strength training for track athletes should take their certification courses.

I tried making a comeback in my early 30s back three or so years ago but every time I would get in race shape and my hamstring would go, so I gave up on racing 800m and 1500m again and just focus on 3-5k (unsuccessfully) and public fun runs. But in the last 6 months I've worked out that every 2-3 days if I do a set of 12 reps of the Nordic hamstring curls on AthlenX (see youtube) with an exercise ball, I found that this exercise was a relatively easy way to put some 'meat' into my hamstrings. I then do a set of about 10 reps of standard Nordic drops (but no more as it tends to over do it) my hamstring tends to hold up, I've even raced 1k and 1500m again and doing speed work, I'm now even looking at 800m again.

I have found that doing hamstring curls makes the muscle stiff for 3-4 days afterwards but then they are good for 2-3 weeks, so once a month it might be a good idea to incorporate it into your system. Middle & longer distance runners have the advantage of doing aerobic running while the hamstring is tight while sprinters don't have that luxury, who put daily pressure on your hamstrings.

I also found that the standing one legged superman pose to be useful.

Glut timing is also key.

Weight training never replicates the biomechanics of sprinting. To use any exercise on the grounds that it does do is stupid as running and lifting are two completely different skills. Train muscles in the weight room, and sprinting biomechanics on the track. From a strengthening standpoint, the hamstrings are indifferent to whether they are being used as knee flexors or hip extensors, with the exception of the short head of the b. femoris, which only flexes the knee. While compound exercises offer the best bang for the buck to train everything, there is nothing "wrong" with leg curls.

Vern Gambetta has written several times that his experience and research suggests that hamstring curls contribute to cramp and tear issues.

Do both you idiots

Everything in this thread except for the above post, including the original post, is total bull.

As a general policy I never respond to posts framed as a question and ending with a question mark. They are overwhelmingly clickbait rubbish.

This one is a complete waste of time.

Sorry, AJ2000’s post is also NOT bull.

Do Russian hamstring curls. Start with bodyweight going as far down as you can and return. Once you can do that for 3 sets of 8 reps, then add weight. This will bulletproof your hamstrings (with proper warmup and post workout cool down and static stretch). Also do RDL (Romanian Deadlifts) to work your posterior chain.

Bodybuilding website Gaddour is choosing exercises to give you size. Is that what you want?

Find me a powerlifter with weak hamstrings… yet to meet one that does curls.

Sprinters’ hamstrings work when the hip and knee are in an extended position. That is where they need to be strong.