Hamstrings

gbs

After a year of riding (progressively harder) I have a managed a slight tear in the L hamstring.

The physio (in whom I have every confidence)says that my L side is very tight. The recommended stretching exercies have had good effect.

He say hamstring injury is typical for cyclists. Comment please.

I am inclined to think that whilst my quads have developed considerably that may not be the case for the hamstrings. Should I commence a programme of leg curls ASAP?

doyler78

Can't comment on whether it is typical however I suffer from extremely tight hamstrings. What exercises were you given as I've tried quite a few (those given in physio myself and others I found online) but none seem to have made any difference. If I bend at the waist a stretch out along my leg I still don't get any further down that I did 6 months ago. I persist anyway.

gbs

doyler78 wrote:

What exercises were you given

A
lay on back
lift leg with bent knee so that upper leg is vertical and lower leg is horizontal
stretch lower leg into vertical position, flexing and pointing the toe.

B
feet together, legs straight
bend forward at waist over a high counter (higher than regular table),
thrust backside back
twist hips to create greater stretch in one leg and alternate direction of twist

Hope this helps.

huuregeil

doyler78 wrote:

Can't comment on whether it is typical however I suffer from extremely tight hamstrings. What exercises were you given as I've tried quite a few (those given in physio myself and others I found online) but none seem to have made any difference. If I bend at the waist a stretch out along my leg I still don't get any further down that I did 6 months ago. I persist anyway.

Then you're stretching "wrong". You might want to look at isometric stretching. It's quite a tough workout, and certainly not recommended if injured or recovering from injury, but it's an effective way of gaining static flexibility. I'm generally quite stiff but need flexibility for my other sport so I deploy these strategically!

doyler78

huuregeil wrote:

doyler78 wrote:

Can't comment on whether it is typical however I suffer from extremely tight hamstrings. What exercises were you given as I've tried quite a few (those given in physio myself and others I found online) but none seem to have made any difference. If I bend at the waist a stretch out along my leg I still don't get any further down that I did 6 months ago. I persist anyway.

Then you're stretching "wrong". You might want to look at isometric stretching. It's quite a tough workout, and certainly not recommended if injured or recovering from injury, but it's an effective way of gaining static flexibility. I'm generally quite stiff but need flexibility for my other sport so I deploy these strategically!

I done them under the guidance of my physio and each time I went back to physio she checked out how I was carrying them out and she confirmed that I was doing them right. She too was puzzled as to my lack of progress as was I.

I'll have a look at those stretches. Thanks

doyler78

Thanks gbs - (a) is a staple and has been for years. (b) only did part of that - no twist so will try that with it. Thanks

huuregeil

"Wrong" was maybe the wrong way of expressing what I meant! I'm sure what you're doing is "right", in that it's stretching the muscle and being done safely. However, it might not be the most effective way of gaining flexibility for you. (For some people, yes. For us "stiffies" maybe not!).

Here's an excellent overview:

http://people.bath.ac.uk/masrjb/Stretch ... ing_4.html

I've also have the Kurz book he refers to.

huuregeil

Had two more thoughts on the ride into work...

gbs - Actually I think that hamstring tears are, or at least should be, pretty rare on the bike. That said, I picked up an injury a couple of years back from jumping on a bike with a too-high saddle (my mistake for not checking) - this will certainly do it, because tight hip angles and high saddles put the hamstring under a lot of strain. And this is also a function of flexibility. The only other time I can imagine injuring a hamstring is during a really honking sprint when not warmed up or adequately prepared. But this doesn't sound like what you've done.

As for strengthing exercises, your physio should be able to give guidance on the relative strength of hams/quads. Don't forget your glutes either. Gut instinct is to get injury free first (which should involve some rehab gym work anyway) and work on flexibility, then see what you might need.

doyler78 - The other aspect to flexibility, which does tend to be overlooked, is that people both carry around differing amounts of muscle tone and differ in their stretch response (i.e. the muscle tightens up in response to being stretched). In order to get an effective stretch, the muscle must be relaxed so that it can reach full length. This can be achieved in a number of different ways:

- holding a static stretch for a duration.
- direct pressure to the muscle, either during or before a stretch (e.g. massage, foam roller, massage balls)
- isometric stretching

If you're very tight during static stretching, you might need to hold the stretch for longer. Or use the other two methods to relax the muscle. Sports massage is excellent too!

But that's not all. You also have to bear in mind that you can't consider hamstring flexibility in isolation. Hamstrings work as part of a chain involving glutes and calves. It's worth working on calf flexibility. But the glutes are the interesting ones - if your glutes are underdeveloped (and there might be many reasons why - one big one being sitting at a desk all day!), your hamstrings work harder to compensate, and this can lead to tightness and excessive tone. So, also consider working on glutes - you can find activation and strengthing exercises on the web. And also on hip flexor flexibility, cos tight hip flexors cause underactivation of the glutes.

Bear in mind that I learned all this through dealing with various injuries over the years - I'm not a physio or medically trained, so do your own research!

huuregeil

http://www.sbcoachescollege.com/article ... nance.html

Relevant to both.

gbs

huuregeil wrote:

Had two more thoughts on the ride into work...

gbs - Actually I think that hamstring tears are, or at least should be, pretty rare on the bike. /quote]

Thinking back what he said was that tight hamstrings are common for cyclists not hamstring injury.

Many thanks for the comments and website reference

Headhuunter

Cycling defintely tightens and shortens hamstrings, I think that's pretty wel known. Something to do with the fact that as you cycle you don't use your legs at full stretch. It's always a good idea to do regular stretches, before and after rides as well as other times during the week to prevent injury