Rehab exercises should form the cornerstone of the treatment of hamstring tendinopathy. In this blog, we cover some exercise options.
Isometrics
For irritable tendons, isometric exercises can be useful to reduce pain.
Some options here include:
Prone hamstring curl
Supine isometrics
Standing heel drive
Bench bridge isometric
30-degree bridge isometric (double leg or single leg)
Glute ham raise holds
Nordic curl holds
🙋🏼♀️Which one to chose? Quite simply the one that feels best for you, and relieves your pain the greatest!
🙋Sets & reps? Aim to hold for 30-45 seconds, pushing around 70% of your maximal effort for this duration. Repeat 3-5 times with 1 min rest in between each effort. These can be done as a warm-up before exercise to help reduce the initial pain.
Early exercises for hamstring tendinopathy
Early exercises for hamstring tendinopathy include exercises that involve only small amounts of hip flexion. These include:
🔹Prone superman
🔸Prone hamstring curl (either with a band or machine)
🔹Standing banded hip extension
🔸30-degree bridge
🔹Hip thruster
🔸Sliding bridge
🔹Step up (low)
🔸Nordics
Strength progressions for hamstring tendinopathy
Further to our previous video, as the tendon becomes less irritable, it can be further challenged with movements that require a higher degree of hip flexion. Suitable exercises here include:
🔹90-degree bridge
🔸Arabesque (single leg deadlift): gradually increase range
🔹Glider
🔸Standing banded knee flexion
🔹Lunge: start shallow & progress depth
🔸Rear leg elevated split squat
🔹Deadlift: start shallow with rack pulls & progress to lifting off the floor
🔸Step up: increasing height
🔹Glute ham raise
🔸Roman chair extension
Ballistic & plyometric exercises for hamstring tendinopathy
Once tolerated, more ballistic & plyometric exercises can also be introduced including:
🔸Half kneeling slider
🔹Kettlebell swings
🔸Countermovement jumps
🔹Hamstring tantrums on Swiss ball or Band
🔸Step jumps: progressing to high box jumps with hip in higher degrees of flexion
🔹Broad jump
🔸Bounding
🔹Jumping lunges