Hamstrings are the most “finicky” and troublesome muscle on the human bodies. Almost to the point where I wish I didn’t have them attached to the back of my leg. Those athletes who are involved in running and jumping sports have the most problems with hamstring pulls, strains and tears.
There is no more humbling hamstring exercise than the Glute-Ham Raise (GSR).
Strengthening the hamstrings may be one way of improving the stability and endurance of the hamstrings. Even though many approaches to hamstring training have been tried, there seems not to be one method that ensures hamstring invincibility. Highly-trained athletes inevitably pull hamstrings. It’s a matter of trying to minimize the occurrences and severity. I suggest you give the GSR a chance, if you haven’t tried them yet already, its favoured by many strength training experts.
INSTRUCTIONS
- Find a Secure Bar. What you need to do is find a very secure bar that you can place your feet underneath or if you have a partner with you, they can hold your feet. But this can become very difficult if the person is heavy and when they are raising back up. So the best bet is either a glute-ham machine, or a sturdy padded bar to place your feet under (like the one I use in the video below). A barbell loaded with weights is also another great option.
- Secure Your Feet. Place your feed under the bar or pad, making sure the bar or pad it is pinned to the ground. The GSR is performed face down, so wedge your feet under your heels to hold you down.
- Lower Down. Slowly begin lowering yourself down to the bench or mat. You should be completely flat on the bench. The most important part is this phase and controlling your descent, the slower you lower, the more difficult it can be. It’s also important to keep your hands out in front of you to catch yourself in case your muscles give out on you.
- Raise Back Up. You can give yourself a little “boost” push with your hands to get you going. Then using your hamstrings and glutes, lift yourself back up to the starting position. A good tip is using the bar or pad on your feet. Push against them or your partners hands to help contract those muscles and fire you back up.
Remember, this is not one of the easiest exercises to do. Go easy when you first begin until you start developing some strength and proficiency. A possibility is saving this exercise until the end of your workout to be sure your hamstrings are warmed up and ready. (Even though your strength will be at its lowest)
Check Out Our 4 GSR Levels Below:
(original image by aeraperformance)
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi guys, I absolutely love your blog, I check it everyday. I’ve been struggling with a hamstring injury for about 2 years and a half now and I’ve tried everything from, physio, ART, Graston, Chiro, massage. I was just wondering when you guys had that hamstring injuries what was your procedure to recover and put it back to 100% and then prevent it from happening again.
Thanks in advance!
Hey Pierre! Glad you like it! With your hamstring injury you’ve tried everything…and I mean everything that we’ve done too! That’s good the last piece in the puzzle is strengthening the muscle back up and keeping it strong. That’s why I did this post because that’s a key exercise for strong hamstrings.
The other thing you can try is Laser, because that helps break up the scar tissue that you might have. If this has been ongoing, you might have a lot of scar tissue preventing the muscle from gliding and moving together properly.
If you need more help, shoot me an email in the contact us section
Thanks for the comment!
Hey . . I wanted to know it this the best way to get faster?.
It will sure help by working on the posterior chain!