Hamstring-lengthening exercise boosts mobility, lessens pain

Tight hamstrings are a problem not only for athletes but also for those who just walk or engage in everyday activities. Tight hamstrings can cause pain in the low back, hips and quad muscles in front of the legs because, like a pair of tight cables, they pull the pelvic structure off kilter. When people experience low back or hip pain, they usually try and stretch those areas. While some short-term gains are found, success is short lived, as the problem may not originate there, but in the hamstrings. Only by working out the muscle spasm and tightness in the hamstrings can the other areas off-set by them, be reduced of their pain, too.

In today’s video Dennis Angelina will show you how to use the common lacrosse ball to create more mobility and lengthen your hamstrings.

The ball and the chair

All you need to do these lengthening exercises is a standard lacrosse ball. You can get them at almost every sporting goods stores or online. A tennis ball will work in a pinch, but it is not really as stable or sturdy as you’ll need for this exercise.

You want to place the ball on a firm and flat surface. In the video Dennis uses a training platform, but you can just as easily and effectively use a wooden or metal chair. Place the ball on the chair and sit down on the ball, making sure it is under the belly of the hamstring, which is basically the midpoint of the muscle.

Compressing and flossing the hamstring

You want the ball to press into the belly of the tight muscle, into the trigger point, and act as acupressure to lengthen the muscle. Then we move our hamstring over the ball, to act like a massage, flossing the muscle.

When the ball compresses the muscle, it loosens the tissues and squeezes out the old, stale blood. And when the pressure is relieved, fresh blood, nutrients and oxygen flood back into the tissues. This combination allows the muscle to heal, and return to normal resting length and proper action.

How to do it

Once you are seated on the chair and the ball is firmly in place under one hamstring, you will want to adjust the weight you have on it. You can gage the weight by the pressure you feel. If there is pain, then take some weight off by slightly raising the leg by tilting to one side. If there is not enough pressure, then press your leg down into the ball. This is compression and is the first part.

From here, you want to extend your leg by contracting your quadriceps. This is called flossing the muscle, as the movement of the leg extension and contraction is like flossing the tissue over the ball.

You want to do about 10 repetitions in total. You can do 3 sets in the belly of the muscle, then 3 sets above it and 3 to the side or below it. This variation will add value to the exercise and the muscle workout. With each repetition things will feel better, and less painful, and you can begin to apply more and more pressure on the ball.

One set of 10 is enough on each leg per day. You can do more if you want, though. A few days or weeks of doing this can make all the difference.