J Life | April-June 2019 apr-may-19-jlife | Page 6

TO STRETCH
OR TO
STRENGTHEN?
WHAT WOULD YOUR HAMSTRINGS
BENEFIT FROM THE MOST?
Written by: Jaimie Perkunas DPT, e-RYT, C-IAYT
Tucson J Specialty Yoga Instructor
When to stretch your hamstrings vs when to
strengthen your hamstrings.
If you have low back pain or poor posture, you will likely
be encouraged to stretch your hamstrings. Although I
mostly agree with this statement, I believe there is a point
when stretching your hamstrings is no longer helpful, and
strengthening your hamstrings is key.
The hamstring muscles are made up of three muscles
located on the back of each thigh. These muscles connect
from the bottom of your pelvis (the bones that you sit on)
to the back of your lower leg just below your knee.
When the hamstring muscles are tight, functional activities
like tying shoes or picking a pen off the floor can be
challenging. Tight hamstrings can also affect one’s standing
posture and balance. Standing upright with knees straight
will result in the pelvis being tucked under leading to a
hunched posture, and can pull a person’s center of gravity
backwards.
WHEN TO STRETCH YOUR HAMSTRINGS
If you can relate to the challenges above, then I
would recommend stretching your
hamstrings. Another way to
determine if your hamstrings
need stretched is to position
yourself on your back with one
leg straight in the air and one
leg bent (see picture). While in
this position, if you are unable
to lift your top leg to make an
80-degree angle between your torso
and thigh while keeping your top knee straight, then
continue to stretch your hamstrings.
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I recommend a lying down hamstring
stretch using a doorway to help
you maintain a sustained stretch.
In the beginning, find a position
where you feel just a small stretch
as the stretch may increase as you
maintain/sustain the stretch. Make
sure your top knee is straight and keep
your bottom knee bent with your foot on the floor.
Make sure this is a position you can breathe deeply in.
You can increase your stretch by moving closer to the
wall and decrease your stretch by moving away from
the wall. Keep your top knee straight
throughout the stretch. You may
find flexing and pointing your
foot during the stretch helpful to
release pulling behind your knee.
I would recommend working
up to a sustained 2 to 3-minute
stretch on each side.
WHEN TO STRENGTHEN YOUR
HAMSTRINGS
When hamstring muscles are too flexible or
overstretched, there is potential for pain in the
low back or hips. It is also quite possible that you
have no pain and are not aware of the strength
you may be missing on the back of your thigh. I
recommend strengthening your hamstrings to avoid
overstretching and bring a balance of strength and
flexibility to your hamstrings.
If you are able to bring your thigh beyond 80 degrees
between your torso and thigh before your feel a
stretch or you don’t really ever feel a stretch in back
of thigh then I recommend not stretching your
hamstrings. Instead, I recommend
strengthening your hamstrings.
Here are few of my favorite
ways to strengthen hamstrings
in flexible people.