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Hamstring
You don't often see your own hamstrings, but if they are weak or inflexible, you will eventually be reminded of them in a most painful way.
Hamstring is the name usually given to the large muscle at the back of your upper leg. Strictly speaking this area has four different muscles, but from a functional perspective (e.g. strengthening and stretching) if can be treated as one muscle.
The hamstring muscles perform a number of different functions. They help move the hip and the trunk against each other, they flex the knee, and they also inwardly rotate the lower leg when the knee is bent.
We use these muscles in a whole host of daily activities, such as:
- Walking
- Running
- Jumping
- Controlling movement of the trunk
As you would expect of a muscle involved in such a range of basic movements, it is essential to keep this area both strong and flexible. All cardio exercises use this muscle to a greater or lesser extent, while there are also a range of resistance exercises designed to strengthen it. These include:
- Leg curls (seated, lying, standing)
- Squats
- Lunges
- Leg press
In addition, this is an area that is prone to tightness, and it is thus vital to include stretches as a part of your regular workouts.
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