Exercise ball hamstring curl is an effective exercise to target the hamstring muscles. However, its performance requires extreme focus and balance in order to be carried out successfully.
Start out with a double leg version, and once you can execute multiple sets of 8-10 reps per set with ease, progress to the more challenging single leg version.
How to Perform
Exercise ball hamstring curl is an effective bodyweight exercise to add more strength training into your routine. Focusing on both the hamstring muscles and hip and core stability, this movement targets not only your hamstrings but also helps improve hip and core stability – perfect for anyone training for running or other sports requiring strong leg strength and balance. Doing it on a stability ball provides additional challenge by forcing your legs to stabilize during curling; its instability increases balance demands and can help avoid injury while simultaneously building stronger legs.
Start this exercise off right by lying on the floor with your feet placed atop an exercise ball, resting them with backs of lower legs and heels on it while knees remain slightly dorsiflexed (pointing toward ceiling). Gently contract abdominal and core muscles to lift hips off ground onto ball while gradually contracting hamstrings to pull heels towards hips as you extend legs back out into starting position and return ball back home.
Lower body exercises such as squats, lunges and deadlifts do an amazing job at strengthening glutes and quads; however, they don’t focus as heavily on training the knee flexion function of hamstrings. Therefore, exercise ball hamstring curls offer a fantastic solution to anyone wanting to train their hamstrings but don’t want to use weights or equipment that requires additional space to set up and break down.
Beginners should begin with a double-leg version of this exercise before gradually transitioning to single leg reps once you have mastered its proper form and can perform multiple sets of 8-10 reps on each leg. Implementing this into your workout routine will build strong, powerful legs which will help you run faster, jump higher and play harder. Brett Williams is a senior editor at Men’s Health as well as an NASM-CPT certified personal trainer; in his prior lives he served as professional athlete, college football player and tech reporter before becoming fitness writer/writer / author (he published several books such as “The Complete Guide to Getting Stronger”).
Variations
The hamstrings are a group of muscles on the back of each thigh that play an essential role in everyday activities, such as walking, climbing stairs and lifting objects. Exercising such as the exercise ball hamstring curl can help build strength and endurance in these muscles for improved performance in daily tasks such as carrying groceries, picking something off of the floor or moving furniture. Furthermore, this exercise also challenges core stability during its performance – increasing difficulty or challenging more of its range of motion can increase performance substantially.
Foam rollers or blocks placed between your knees to elevate them while performing a curl will add more of a hip extension element and encourage the hamstrings to fully engage their full range of motion. An alternative variation involves performing exercise ball hamstring curls standing, which requires much greater balance and core control as it doesn’t self-limit and requires your hands as support in maintaining stability.
Resistant bands provide another way of increasing the challenge of this exercise, by increasing load on your hamstrings when performing full eccentric contractions and broadening range of motion. To perform resistance band hamstring curl, attach one end of a resistance band to an anchor at lower height and the other end around ankles; lie on your stomach facing away from anchor while raising legs and hips into an elevated bridge position with calves and heels resting on Swiss ball; this allows a straight line from heels to shoulders while challenging both hamstrings and core to brace the body for stability.
Start this exercise by squeezing your glutes and placing both hands on the ground alongside you for additional stability. Lift both legs and hips into an elevated bridge position with your calves and heels securely resting on a Swiss ball in a straight line from knees to shoulders, and slowly curl one leg toward your chest using a flexed foot until the ball comes within several inches of butt, pausing briefly before returning back into starting position – repeat this movement as many times as needed on each side.
Precautions
Exercise ball leg curl, also known as supine hip extensions with leg curls (SHELC), is a challenging lower body exercise requiring balance and stability to complete successfully. While it’s an excellent choice for building lower body strength, a few precautions must be taken for its successful execution and safety.
Performance of this exercise incorrectly or with too much weight can result in various injuries. In particular, keeping your core engaged during movement to prevent losing balance and maintain a neutral spine position. Also important is being conscious of where your foot placement falls – having it too far back can place unnecessary strain on knees while placing too close will tilt hips upward and put pressure on lower back muscles.
Another potential risk is repeated contraction and muscle growth leading to shortening of the hamstrings, leading to tightness and limited mobility. Therefore, it is wise to perform stretching after each workout session and progress slowly with more challenging exercises.
The hamstrings are an integral group of muscles located on the back of each thigh that play a pivotal role in hip extension and knee flexion – essential functions in many everyday activities, including walking and climbing stairs. Exercise ball hamstring curl is an efficient and effective way of strengthening this critical group of muscles. Not only will this exercise target hamstrings but also other hip, leg, and core muscles. Popliteus and gastrocnemius in the knee, abs and core muscles as well as the erector spinae of the upper back are strengthened through supporting movement on an exercise ball hamstring curl, making this exercise an invaluable addition to any fitness regime. Just take time and care in performing it correctly and safely if this is your first experience strength training!
Conclusions
Exercise ball hamstring curl is a challenging bodyweight exercise designed to strengthen the hamstrings. Additionally, this exercise benefits other muscle groups including popliteus (in knee), gastrocnemius and sartorius (calf muscles) due to balancing on an unstable surface such as an exercise ball. Furthermore, its instability engages your erector spinae (in back) and abs as you work to maintain your balance on it.
Research has also demonstrated that eccentric contractions strengthen muscles better than concentric ones when used for traditional leg extensions, helping increase hamstring strength in various knee angular positions. This finding is key given that research indicates an eccentric contraction can increase strength at different knee angular positions.
This movement works the biceps femoris and semitendinosus muscles, which are involved in knee flexion as well as hip extension, as well as working the Iliotibial Band (ITB), which acts as a stabilizing muscle of the lower leg to keep shin bones from moving too far frontally when running or jumping; additionally it contributes to hip stability by supporting knee stability.
Therefore, the ITB is an indispensable muscle for runners, cyclists and athletes who regularly engage in dynamic movements like sprinting or jumping. Utilizing exercises that target both ITB and hamstrings simultaneously can ensure your hamstrings have enough strength to withstand high intensity activities without becoming fatigued during physical exertion.
Studies have also demonstrated how using an exercise ball can enhance both the kinetic and neuromuscular characteristics of hamstring eccentric exercises like Nordic Curl or Ball Leg Curl (NC/BLC) exercise routines, with similar levels of muscle activation at open knee positions between both exercises; suggesting they could both aid in increasing eccentric strength as well as promote injury prevention (Clark et al. 2005).
Exercise ball hamstring curls provide a versatile addition to leg day workouts, whether as an upper/lower-body split warmup exercise or standalone finisher. They’re great options for increasing variety in leg day workouts such as the deadlift.
