Effective Hamstring Stretches

One of the more common conditions seen in chiropractic offices is low back pain and subluxations of the pelvis. This is often accompanied by tightness of one or both hamstring muscle groups. The most efficient treatment approach needs to include stretching of the hamstring muscles in addition to pelvic and spinal adjustments.

Hamstring flexibility is required for good postural alignment, proper gait, and excellent athletic performances. Unfortunately, most traditional techniques for stretching the hamstrings are tedious and improvements are slow. Several stretches are currently in use, with some benefit seen from all of them. The problem with all of these stretching methods for the hamstring muscles is the relatively poor compliance, and therefore the frequent lack of progress seen. Even when patients do perform the stretches, it’s difficult to detect much improvement in flexibility.

A recent study showed quite conclusively that there is a better, more effective way to stretch the hamstring muscles. Not only is the new procedure easy to learn, but it can be done anywhere and at anytime. It does not require an assistant or any special equipment to achieve significant improvement in flexibility.

The new stretch is termed a "stance phase" stretch for the hamstring. The person starts in the standing position and then takes a short step forward with the leg to be stretched. Both hands are placed on the forward knee, both knees are bent slightly, and the pelvis is tilted forward while the lumbar spine extends. (This places the hamstring in a position of "pre-stretch"). While maintaining lumbar extension, the person bends forward at the hip until the hamstring muscle tightens. The stretch is accentuated further by slightly extending the forward knee.

The stretch is held for 30 seconds, then the leg positions are reversed. Each leg is stretched five times. One set of these stretches was done five days a week for a period of two weeks (a total of ten stretching sessions). The investigators reported that "evaluation of the data indicated that the stance phase stretch was significantly more effective at increasing hamstring flexibility than the traditional stretches were."

The beauty of this method for stretching the hamstrings (besides the rapid improvement in flexibility experienced), is that the joints, muscles, and connective tissues all are bearing weight during the exercise. This provides a more specific retraining of neurological proprioceptive (how well your brain responds to different limb/joint positions) patterns, thereby preparing all involved structures for daily activities. 

Another benefit of this type of exercising is the ease with which the exercises can be performed every day. It takes no more than 10 minutes to do a total of ten 30-second stretches (five for each leg), and you don’t need to get down onto the floor or drive somewhere to perform these recommended exercises. However, if orthotics are usually worn, the stretches should be performed with them in place.

Stretching exercises that are performed in a position of function (weight bearing) are more likely to train and condition the involved structures to work together smoothly. Particularly when dealing with the lower extremity. Whenever a person has problems with recurring lower back problems, the hamstrings should be checked for flexibility. Athletes should be checked for hamstring flexibility in order to identify potential sites of injuries before they occur.

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