When working with clients, I commonly hear that their hamstrings are “tight.” But are the muscles that make up the hamstrings really tight? Most likely not. When there is restriction in ranges of motion, it is rarely caused by the actual length of the muscle and most of the time caused by the position of the joints relative to the muscle. Imagine I took a garden hose and stretch it out, attaching it to a post on either side. If I take one post and bring it farther back, the tension on the hose will be higher, but the actual length of the hose does not change. That’s what happens with your “tight” hamstrings.
The hamstring attaches to the bottom of your pelvis. When the hip flexors are active due to a compensatory breathing pattern, the pelvis will rotate forward. When the pelvis rotates forward this tensions the hamstrings (see picture above).
Now that we know how the hamstrings get out of position, how do you get the hamstrings back into the correct position so that you can train them? In the video, I run you through a simple exercise to reposition the pelvis in order to train them more affectively. Sometimes you have to turn them down before you can turn them up!
If you have tight hamstrings, I’m here to help! Click the link below to get started today!