Hamstrings are fundamental to a strong posterior chain and integral to a great squat or deadlift. They are also important for activities such as running and climbing stairs.
Cultivating well-developed hamstrings can be somewhat difficult due to the thickness and structure of the muscle. For this reason, a more rigorous approach is always necessary to improve underdeveloped hamstrings.
Four ways to fix underdeveloped hamstrings are:
- Hinge exercises
- Isolation exercises
- Balanced exercise selection
- Equipment-specific cardio
In this article I will explain what the hamstrings are composed of, what it means to have underdeveloped hamstrings, and the best approach in both exercise selection and program design to enhance the hamstrings.
Table of Contents
What Are the Hamstring Muscles?
The hamstring muscles are:
- Biceps Femoris Short Head
- Biceps Femoris Long Head
- Semitendinosus
- Semimembranosus
The hamstrings are responsible for bending the knee or knee stabilization when straightening the knee. When you run, they also help slow down your front leg when it hits the ground.
What Does It Mean to Have Underdeveloped Hamstrings?
Having underdeveloped shoulders can mean one of three things:
- Weak hamstring muscles
- High susceptibility to injury due to hamstring tightness
- Hamstrings that look visibly smaller than the rest of the muscles in the body
Hamstrings are paramount to building a strong posterior chain, and when they are weak, it can be extremely detrimental to performance and daily life.
Letโs unpack this a bit further!
Reasons Why You Have Underdeveloped Hamstrings
Four main reasons why you have underdeveloped hamstrings are:
- Lack of effort
- Anterior chain focus
- Lack of hinge exercises
- Imbalanced programming
1. Lack of Effort
Lack of effort is one of the biggest reasons why your hamstrings are underdeveloped. Finding ways to increase the fun component of lifting can subsequently promote longevity and hamstring progression.
Ways to increase focus and effort are to set short-term goals. This could involve weight lifted or repetitions with a certain amount of weight. Gamifying hamstring exercises such as deadlifts or glute-ham raises can lead to increased development in the hamstrings.
Gamifying an activity is the process of adding elements that would be similar to playing a game. When it comes to lifting, this would look like aiming to beat your previous best, whether thatโs through more reps or sets completed or more weight lifted.
To gamify your hamstring workouts, I would recommend downloading a workout app like Hevy to track your data so you can refer back to it and try to do better than you did the last time. If you donโt have or donโt want to use an app, you can manually track loads/reps each week in a notebook and aim to beat your previous best.
2. Anterior Chain Focus
The anterior chain is composed of the muscles that are in the front of the body (chest, quads, abdomen, biceps), while the posterior chain is composed of muscles that are in the back of the body (lats, triceps, glutes, hamstrings, calves).
Doing too many lunges or squats can lead to an increased focus on quads rather than hamstrings. Having dominant quads can lead to excessive tightness in the hamstrings and subsequent knee instability.
For every quad-focused exercise, you should implement some sort of hamstring exercise to balance the leg muscles.
3. Lack of Hinge Exercises
Knee-dominant movements include exercises such as the squat and lunge, while hinge movements include exercises such as the deadlifts and good mornings.
You should implement a hinge-focused day within your training, where you are focusing on progressing a deadlift activity.
Otherwise, if you have limited time, at the bare minimum, you should add a hinge activity such as Romanian deadlifts or glute ham raises to the day on which you primarily do knee-dominant movements.
Learn more about how to hip hinge properly and the importance of hip hinge movements in Learning How To Hip Hinge Properly: 11 Hip Hinge Cues.
4. Imbalanced Programming
Balanced programming requires you to be mindful of the ratios of quad and hamstring exercises and compound and isolation movements that are implemented.
In an ideal setting, I would implement a 1:1 ratio of knee-dominant and hinge exercises.
Compound Exercise Example Program
Monday | Tuesday | Friday |
---|---|---|
Squat: 3 x 3 | Conventional Deadlifts: 3 x 3 | Front Squat: 3 x 6 |
Good Mornings: 3 x 10 | Dumbbell Lunges: 3 x 10ea | Stiff-Legged Deadlifts: 3 x 6 |
In the compound exercise example program, we can see an equal distribution of volume, intensity, and exercises that target both the anterior and posterior chain and provide an equal focus on hamstrings and quads.
We need to be mindful of the effort expenditure for each of the movements and ensure that they equal out correctly.
Isolation Exercise Example Program
When it comes to isolation work, it is way more simple to implement different variations.
Monday | Tuesday | Friday |
---|---|---|
Sissy Squats: 5 x 5 | Nordic Curls: 5 x 5 | Leg Extensions: 3 x 20 |
Leg Extensions: 3 x 12 | Lying Hamstring Curl: 3 x 12 | Hamstring Curls: 3 x 20 |
On Monday, there is a greater focus on quad isolation. On Tuesday, there is a greater focus on implementing an equal amount of volume and intensity on the hamstrings.
Furthermore, implementing a combination of compound and isolation movements that complement each other is most important when bringing up underdeveloped hamstrings.
Issues That Are Caused by Having Weak Hamstrings
Issues that are caused by weak hamstrings are:
- Lower back pain
- Increased risk of knee injuries
- Increased risk of hamstring injuries
- Uneven physique from front to back
Lower Back Pain
Tight hamstring muscles cross the hip bone, which can pull the hip out of position and consequently produce lower back pain.
Lengthening, mobilizing, and strengthening the hamstrings is fundamental to a strong and healthy lower back.
Increased Risk of Knee Injuries
Hamstrings are responsible for the stabilization of the knee during extension. Weak hamstrings can pull on the knee joint and consequently lead to knee instability.
When in compromised positions, stronger hamstrings can promote greater stability, allowing for more rigorous movements to act on the knee.
Furthermore, stronger knees allow you to participate in more intensive recreational activities like soccer, flag football, and snowboarding.
Strengthening the hamstrings can also help if you experience knee pain when squatting.
Increased Risk of Hamstring Injuries
Hamstrings are responsible for the braking forces during running, which makes hamstring injuries extremely common during running activities.
Hamstring injuries can be diminished by implementing warm-up techniques (glute bridges, single-leg Romanian deadlifts, and a hamstring stretch such as a forward fold). Mobilizing and strengthening the hamstring prior to running activities and resistance training can decrease hamstring injury risk.
Foam rolling and dynamic stretching of the hamstrings are also essential parts of a good deadlift warm-up.
Uneven Physique From Front to Back
Having a well-balanced physique can lead to an increase in strength, cardiovascular health, improved athleticism, and help reduce pain.
Often, if we focus on developing knee-dominant movements (squats, lunges, and leg press), the front of our physique can become disproportionate to the back.
4 Ways to Fix Underdeveloped Hamstrings
1. Hinge Exercises
As mentioned earlier, implementing a hinge-focused day can take your hamstrings to the next level.
Deadlifts are primarily hamstring focused and can be loaded to a high degree. In this article, I have provided plenty of other choices for hinge exercises you can implement into your program.
2. Hamstring Isolation
Compound movements such as deadlifts and good mornings target more than just the hamstrings and can be less effective at targeting the hamstrings.
For this reason, implementing hamstring isolation movements, such as yoga ball leg curls, Nordic curls, or lying hamstring curls, can be fundamental to fixing underdeveloped hamstrings.
If you canโt do lying hamstring curls, try one of these leg curl alternatives in addition to the hamstring exercises Iโve listed below.
Burnout Sets
Lack of knowledge of proximity to failure is one of the most common reasons why people have difficulty progressing.
Having a couple of burnout sets in which you perform additional reps with a lighter weight can help you get extremely close to failure within a set to stimulate growth in underdeveloped hamstrings.
Exercise Variation
When training the same movements year-round, plateaus can become inevitable. Lack of exercise variation can make training lackluster while not mitigating the imbalances that occur due to training stagnation.
Having a variety of isolation and compound hamstring movements can keep training fun while allowing for many ways to progress.
15 Best Exercises for Underdeveloped Hamstrings
1. Conventional Deadlifts
Conventional deadlifts are fundamental to my personal programming, effectively targeting all of the back muscles, glutes, and hamstrings.
How To
- Ensure that the bar is atop your midfoot or just over your laces.
- Build tension by โreverse shruggingโ or pulling your traps down while opening up the chest and letting the arms hang in front of you.
- Initiate the setup by sitting back with your hips until the hands reach the bar.
- Pull tension or โslackโ out of the bar as though you are peeling the weight off the ground.
- While maintaining the โslack pull,โ sit back with the weight in hand to wedge yourself into the bar.
- Upon sitting back, push through the midfoot to stand up until the hips are completely extended.
Pro Tip
Conventional deadlifts are a compound exercise that is primarily implemented for the goal of strength and power development, which makes them most effective in the 3-6 rep range for multiple sets.
A common mistake for deadlifts is to program too many sets and reps. In most circumstances, I would recommend staying out of the 10-20 rep range with deadlifts.
2. Good Mornings
Just like the deadlifts, good mornings target the hamstrings and upper back muscles and are perfect for improving underdeveloped hamstrings.
How To
- Position the bar on top of your upper traps.
- Pull down on the bar to build as much tension as possible in the upper back.
- Stand up with the bar.
- Take 2-3 steps back to set up a stance width of about shoulder-width apart.
- While maintaining a neutral spine, initiate the rep by pushing the hips back until the upper torso is almost parallel with the floor.
- Lift the torso to return back to the starting position.
Pro Tip
Good mornings can be supplementary to any primary knee-dominant movement such as the squat or front squat. A variety of rep ranges can be programmed for good mornings from 5-20 reps. This makes good mornings a versatile movement that can be implemented for building strength or size.
3. Stiff-Legged Deadlifts
Unlike conventional deadlifts, stiff-legged deadlifts promote a greater focus on targeting the hamstrings but donโt allow you to lift as much weight.
Implement stiff-legged deadlifts if your goal is primarily to improve underdeveloped hamstrings rather than the amount of weight lifted.
How To
- Ensure that the bar is atop your midfoot or just over your laces.
- Build tension by โreverse shruggingโ or pulling your traps down while opening up the chest and letting the arms hang in front of you.
- Initiate the setup by sitting back with your hips higher than they would be with conventional deadlifts until the hands reach the bar.
- Pull tension or โslackโ out of the bar as though you are peeling the weight off the ground.
- While maintaining the โslack pull,โ sit back with the weight in hand to wedge yourself into the bar.
- Upon sitting back, push through the midfoot to stand up until the hips are completely extended.
Pro Tip
Stiff-legged deadlifts are considered a lower-intensity exercise when compared to compound exercises that can endure heavier loading, such as sumo or conventional deadlifts.
Consequently, these can be implemented as a way to moderately increase training frequency or weekly volume. For example, you could implement something like this:
- Day 1: Conventional deadlifts
- Day 2: Paused deadlifts
- Day 3: Stiff-legged deadlifts (with light intensity @ 40-60%).
4. Single-Leg Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift
Single-leg dumbbell Romanian deadlifts isolate the strength of a single hamstring while increasing knee stability and one's ability to balance.
How To
- Hold a dumbbell in one hand.
- Let the arm hang in front of the opposite balancing leg.
- Initiate by pushing the hips back and letting the non-balancing leg kick back.
- Sit back until the dumbbell is just below the knee.
- Extend at the hips and return to a standing position to complete the rep.
Pro Tip
Just like stiff-legged deadlifts, single-leg RDLs are lower in intensity than regular deadlifts. Implementing single leg RDLs can provide a slight increase in training frequency or training volume.
For example, within a training session, you could program conventional deadlifts for 3 sets of 3 @ 75%, then single-legged RDLs for 2 sets of 12 @ 50%.
5. Glute Ham Raises
When compared to movements such as the squat or deadlift, glute ham raises have been demonstrated by the literature to isolate and bring up underdeveloped hamstrings to a greater degree.
If you have a glute ham developer at your disposal, glute ham raises are a great addition to any program with the goal of isolating the hamstrings. However, Nordic curls are a strong alternative if you do not have one.
How To
- Securely fasten your feet in the leg lock with your knees firmly planted into the pad.
- Start with your knees bent at 90 degrees and your torso perpendicular to the ground.
- While maintaining hip extension, lower your torso until your legs are completely extended.
- Pull yourself back by pulling your heels through the leg locks and bending the knees back to return to the starting position.
Pro Tip
Glute ham raises are inherently difficult, which allows you to program lower reps ranging from 4-6 for multiple sets.
Here are several ways you could program the glute ham raise for developing muscle in the hamstrings:
- 3 count lowering: 4 x 4
- Regular reps: 4 x 6
I provide glute ham raise alternatives if you donโt have access to a GHD machine in my article 12 Glute Ham Raise Alternatives (At Home, Dumbbells, Bands).
6. Nordic Curls
Similar to the glute ham raise, the Nordic curl is a superior exercise for hamstring isolation and development.
Unlike the glute ham raise, the Nordic curl can be done almost anywhere and is very good for on the road or at a home gym.
How To
- To make this exercise more comfortable, rest both your knees on an airex pad or foam pad.
- Have a partner hold down both your heels firmly as a secure anchor point.
- If you don't have a partner, you can utilize leg locks on a lat pulldown machine or a barbell from a power rack set to a comfortable height above your heels.
- Have an upright posture with your torso perpendicular to the ground and your knees bent at 90 degrees.
- While maintaining proper posture, allow your knees to extend to lower yourself to the ground.
- Push yourself up to return to the starting position.
Pro Tip
Novices and elite lifters can implement a 3 count slow descent to then subsequently push themselves back to the starting position to get the most hamstring muscle activation.
For example, within a training session, you could program Nordic curls for 4 x 5 with a 3 count lowering.
7. Band-Assisted Nordic Curls
Nordic curls can be extremely difficult for all levels of gym goers. Adding a band can provide the necessary assistance to do the movement.
How To
- To make this exercise more comfortable, rest both your knees on an airex pad or foam pad.
- Set up a high anchor point for a heavy band just behind you.
- Hold the band and let the band wrap around your upper torso.
- Have a partner hold down both your heels firmly as a secure anchor point.
- If you don't have a partner, you can utilize leg locks on a lat pulldown machine or a barbell from a power rack set to a comfortable height above your heels.
- Have an upright posture with your torso perpendicular to the ground and your knees bent at 90 degrees.
- While maintaining proper posture, allow your knees to extend to lower yourself to the ground.
- Push yourself up to return to the starting position.
Pro Tip
Similar to the unassisted Nordic curl, utilizing a slow lower can help produce greater time under tension, which will lead to greater muscle activation and robust muscle growth.
8. Hip Thrusts
The hip thrust is a great single joint exercise that targets the glutes and hamstrings, allowing for higher loads to be lifted. Itโs a solid choice for bringing up underdeveloped hamstrings.
Being able to lift a lot of weight is a great way to stimulate growth in muscles. The hip thrust allows you to safely place higher stress on the glutes and hamstrings for hypertrophy and strength gains.
How To
- Lay under a loaded barbell with either a hip thrust pad or an airex pad underneath it.
- Dig your traps on the side of the bench and maintain an upright chest to build tension.
- Have your feet out directly under your knees with your feet planted and knees bent.
- Elevate the bar with your hips at 90 degrees to maintain the starting position.
- Drive your hips up into complete extension while squeezing your glutes and hamstrings.
- Return to the starting position by bending the hips back to 90 degrees.
Pro Tip
Hip thrusts are a single joint isolation movement of the muscles that cross the hip, which allows for greater loading or reps to strengthen or condition those muscles.
You could program them in several ways depending on your goals:
- For strength: 5 x 5 @ 75-85%
- For hypertrophy: 3 x 10 @ 50-60%
9. Single-Leg Glute Bridge
Single-leg glute bridges don't require equipment, which makes them a good at-home or on-the-road option. They are great for developing single-legged hamstring strength and size.
How To
- Lay down on the floor with one foot planted and knee bent at 90 degrees and the opposite foot straightened out on the floor.
- Push through the planted foot while extending at the hips and pointing the opposite foot at the ceiling.
- At the top, squeeze the glutes as hard as you can.
- Flex at the hips and knee to return to the starting position to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
Single-leg glute bridges are one of my favorite warm-up activities for any lower body day in the gym. Utilizing just 1 set of 10 reps on each side is a sufficient addition to your warm-up protocol.
10. Glute Bridge Walkouts
Glute bridge walkouts promote time under tension, which is great for glute and hamstring hypertrophy while specifically increasing knee stability and hamstring strength.
How To
- Lay on your back with the knees bent at 90 degrees and your heels planted into the floor with your toes up.
- Extend at the hip and squeeze the glutes.
- Alternating between each foot, take steps out until the knees are completely extended.
- The hips and knee should remain aligned similar to a board as you walk out to the end position.
- Walk back to the starting position to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
Glute bridge walkouts are a low-stress exercise that is perfect for strengthening the core, glutes, and hamstrings. Additionally, they work great as a therapeutic activity for those who have lower back or hip pain.
Implement 1 to 3 sets of 10 total reps to sufficiently target your glutes and hamstrings.
11. Cable Pull-Through
The cable pull-through is a simple and effective cable machine variation that strengthens the glutes and hamstrings.
It is similar to the deadlift, except the cable pull-through isolates the hamstrings and glutes to a greater degree.
How To
- Use the rope attachment with the cable pull set at the very bottom.
- Grab each end of the rope with the palms facing in.
- Stand facing away from the cable stack with the feet hip-width apart.
- Stand with enough distance from the cable stack that there is complete tension on the pulley system.
- Ensure you maintain a neutral spine and complete tension throughout the upper back.
- Initiate the movement by sitting back with the hips and letting the held rope handle go between the legs.
- To complete the repetition, extend at the hips completely while squeezing as hard as possible at the glutes and hamstrings.
Pro Tip
Cable pull-throughs are a fairly low-intensity stimulus that you can add onto the end of a workout for a couple of all-out sets to failure.
Here is an example workout with cable pull-throughs at the end:
- Conventional deadlifts: 3 x 3
- Barbell hip thrusts: 3 x 8
- Cable pull throughs: 3 x as many reps as possible
12. Stability Ball Leg Curls
Stability ball leg curls are similar to the commonly used machine leg curls and are a simple exercise that isolates the glutes and hamstrings.
How To
- Lay down on a yoga mat, floor, or turf with a yoga ball just under your heels.
- Curl the ball back until the knees are bent 90 degrees.
- Extend out at the knees until the legs are completely straight to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
Stability leg curls are a great finisher and can be paired with lying hamstring curls to really target the hamstrings.
Below is an example superset that can be done for 1-3 sets. Complete all reps of the lying hamstring curl and then move immediately to the stability ball leg curl without resting:
- Lying hamstring curls: x 10
- Stability ball leg curls: x 10
13. Slider Leg Curls
Slider leg curls are similar to the stability ball leg curls but more closely target the hamstrings. Furniture sliders are used instead of the stability ball.
How To
- Lay down on the floor with each heel placed on a furniture slider.
- While maintaining hip extension, slide your heels back until your knees are at 90 degrees.
- Slide out with your feet until the knees are completely extended.
- Drive back until the knees are back at 90 degrees to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
Slider leg curls are great for isolating the hamstrings over the glutes. They are extremely effective when programmed for timed sets or as many reps as possible.
Here's how you could program slider curls:
- 3 x 15 seconds
OR
- 3 x As many reps as possible
14. Machine Seated Leg Curls
Machine seated leg curls are one of my go-to exercises for isolating the hamstrings and are perfect for placing at the end of your hamstring routine.
How To
- Adjust the back pad more forward so there is clearance between the knees and the seat.
- Adjust the leg pad so it sits right behind your ankle.
- Sit upright on the leg curl machine while maintaining a neutral spine.
- Fasten the support just above your lower thighs so you are locked into the machine.
- Grab the handles on top of the machine to ensure stability throughout.
- From here, simply drive your heels back until your knees are fully flexed.
- To complete the repetition, guide the load back into knee extension.
Pro Tip
Seated machine curls can be extremely effective in the higher rep ranges. Usually, I would program these at the end of a leg or squat workout for 3-4 sets of 12-20 reps.
Leg curl variations can also be used to improve your deadlift. Learn more in Do Leg Curls Help Deadlifts? Yes, Hereโs How.
15. Lying Banded Leg Curls
Lying banded leg curls are effective when done at higher repetitions to isolate the hamstrings.
How To
- Lay down on your belly with a band placed behind your ankles.
- Start with your knees completely extended at the bottom.
- Bend at the knees until you feel maximal tension.
- Emphasize the squeeze throughout your glutes and hamstrings.
- Extend at the knees to return to the starting position.
Pro Tip
During my bodybuilding prep, I paired lying banded leg curls with furniture slider leg curls, and I attribute their implementation to the development of my hamstrings.
Lying banded leg curls are very low stress on the hamstrings and can be implemented for as many reps as possible or for 12-20 reps.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do You Know Your Hamstrings Are Underdeveloped?
Simple ways to determine if your hamstrings are underdeveloped are to do a flexibility test and compare your hinge strength to your squat strength. If you canโt bend down and touch your toes or if your squat strength supersedes your deadlift strength, your hamstrings might be underdeveloped.
What Happens When Hamstrings Are Weak?
When your hamstrings are tight, they can pull the hip out of alignment, which can create a higher incidence of lower back pain. Underdeveloped hamstrings are also more susceptible to muscle strains and can contribute to knee pain.
Final Thoughts
Underdeveloped hamstrings can be caused by imbalanced programming and a lack of focus on hinge exercises. Lower back pain, knee pain, and excessive weakness are just some of the problems that can result from underdeveloped hamstrings.
I highly recommend incorporating a balance of isolation and compound movements to balance out the lower extremities. Deadlifts and Romanian deadlifts are two of my favorite compound exercises, while glute ham raises, Nordic curls, and machine seated leg curls are my favorite isolation exercises to develop the hamstrings.
About The Author
Javad Bakhshinejad was born and raised in the Washington Area. Currently, he is a student at Seattle University where heโs been pursuing an MS in Kinesiology, and has been a Strength Coach in the athletic department. He was a competitive bodybuilder for 8 years where he later transitioned to competitive powerlifting for 4 years. Currently, He has his own personal coaching business, where he works with powerlifters and bodybuilders.