![nordic hamstring curl nordic hamstring curl](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/9okm0qEywAI/maxresdefault.jpg)
![nordic hamstring curl nordic hamstring curl](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51rhyKd-atL._SL160_.jpg)
The coach holds the band from behind providing assistance as the athlete executes the NHC.The athlete places the elastic band beneath their arms and across the top of their chest (some athletes may feel more comfortable attaching the band to the back of a chest harness).An assistant holds the athlete's ankles firmly to the mat (alternatively, the athlete can hook their ankles under a suitable support).Athlete kneels on a soft surface with the knee, hip, and ankle aligned and ankles in a plantar-flexed position (thereby removing the ability of gastrocnemius to contribute to restricting knee extension).COACHING POINTS-ASSISTED NORDIC HAMSTRING CURL The reduction of training load associated with the use of the elastic bands allows the athlete to complete a greater number of repetitions allowing the metabolic adaptations associated with muscular endurance training. The assistive force from the band allows the athlete to delay the break point and progress lower into the exercise.įurthermore, because of the greater fatigability of the hamstrings compared with the quadriceps ( 16,34), and the higher incidence of injuries observed toward the later stages of athletic activities ( 40), the development of muscular endurance alongside strength may be beneficial as part of injury prevention efforts. This allows the break point to be delayed and the athlete to train at increased hamstring muscle length positions, shifting the length-tension relationship toward a longer optimal length.
![nordic hamstring curl nordic hamstring curl](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/CXcCkCZtcoI/maxresdefault.jpg)
As the exercise progresses, the band tension increases and provides more assistance as the athlete approaches the more difficult final phases ( Figure 2). Assisted NHC normally involve the use of an elastic band (wrapped under the arms and across the top of the chest) that is held behind the athlete ( Figure 1). To allow a greater level of assistance within these more extended knee joint angles and longer muscle lengths, many coaches use a form of assisted NHC. It is likely that, for those athletes, NHC are less effective.
Nordic hamstring curl full#
This delayed break point then stresses the muscles within a target range that is more specific to the extended knee angles and longer muscle lengths at which the hamstrings get injured.Īlthough NHC are effective in reducing the incidence of hamstring strain injuries ( 1,3,29), there are a number of athletes who do not have the strength to perform the exercise through its full range, reaching the break point well before the angles at which hamstrings get injured. Nordic hamstring curls (NHC) have previously been shown to reduce the incidence of hamstring tears ( 1,3,29) and are widely used in conditioning and injury prevention programs for this purpose ( 6,13,27).Īthletes typically adapt to NHC training by increasing eccentric muscle strength ( 28), which allows them to maintain control for longer and achieve a greater angle of knee extension before they break. The increase in the optimal muscle length after eccentric training, as observed in an increase in the peak eccentric torque angle toward a more extended knee position, therefore seems beneficial by increasing the muscle's safe operating range and replicating the extended knee angles and longer muscle lengths at which the hamstrings get injured ( 10,26,36). ( 10) propose that a shorter optimal muscle length (the length at which the muscle produces peak torque) decreases a muscle's safe operating range, leaving a muscle more vulnerable to injury. Nonmodifiable factors include previous injury ( 18,20,38), muscle architecture ( 4,32), muscle fiber type distribution ( 2), age ( 21,22), and ethnicity ( 40) modifiable risk factors include fatigue ( 17,19,30,31,37), insufficient flexibility ( 5,15,39), core stability ( 11,35), inadequate warm-up ( 33), strength imbalances ( 3,14,34), and the angle of peak eccentric hamstring torque ( 7,8,12,24).Įxercises that target the hamstrings eccentrically can alter their length-tension relationship ( 10), increasing both the magnitude of eccentric peak torque (the resistive force that decelerates knee extension) about the knee joint ( 23,28) and the knee angle and muscle length at which peak torque occurs ( 7–10,12,24) and are associated with a reduction in hamstring strains ( 1,3,29).īrughelli et al.
![nordic hamstring curl nordic hamstring curl](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/ce3470_0f37fcfca64d4b5a964e10959e1871a3~mv2.png)
A number of variables have been identified as predisposing an athlete to hamstring injuries including both modifiable and nonmodifiable risk factors. Hamstring strain injuries are one of the most common injuries in sports requiring bouts of high-speed running and so present a particular problem for track and team sport athletes ( 9,25,40).