Comparing Two Types of Programs That Can Help Athletes Who Have Injured Hamstrings

When an athlete’s hamstring becomes injured, the individual will experience tightness that significantly restricts the person’s movements and severe pain that occurs while the muscles contract.

The person may choose a rehabilitation program that requires eccentric training, or the athlete can participate in a program that strengthens the muscles of the core and enhances the person’s agility.

Factors That May Affect Injuries and Rehabilitation Programs

Each leg contains three hamstring muscles, yet the upper sections of the muscles are much more prone to injuries than the lower portion of each muscle.

Typically, the risk of hamstring injuries can increase if a person participates in sports that involve frequent sprinting and numerous jumps. Once an individual experiences a hamstring injury, the risk of future strains can rise by more than 30 percent.

Improving Agility and Strengthening the Athlete’s Core

This program will allow an athlete to maintain a better balance during the routines.

• The person could perform grapevines, and these aerobic exercises can augment blood flow, decrease the risk of future injuries and reduce the tightness of an injured hamstring.
• Once the muscle has partially healed, the individual will complete numerous lunges that cause the hamstring to support more than 50 percent of the athlete’s body weight. These exercises can also stretch the hamstring and strengthen the quadriceps, and various tests have shown that lunges may improve an individual’s speed and augment the amount of weight that a person can squat.
• The patient will perform short sprints that allow the person to decelerate swiftly. When the athlete slows down, the hamstring will contract, and consequently, the drills may substantially enhance the person’s control of the muscle and reduce the tightness of the hamstring during contractions. Additionally, the gradual deceleration will strengthen the quadriceps and the calves.
• During several exercises, the athlete should rotate the to slightly flex. Several reports suggested that rotational exercises can reduce the future risk of hamstring injuries by at least 8 percent.

Choosing Eccentric Training

Throughout the first sessions that involve eccentric movements, each athlete can jog slowly and utilize relatively compact strides. The individuals may also perform various exercises.

According to various reports, most hamstring injuries occur when a person’s leg is fully extended. Once an individual is sprinting, the hamstring stabilizes the upper part of the leg and prevents the athlete from falling forward. During eccentric training, the patient will generally perform stretches while the hamstring is completely extended. This type of therapy can substantially loosen the muscles and may reduce the risk of future injuries by more than 15 percent.

Subsequently, the individual may complete drills that help the person to the lower part of the leg.

Throughout the last phase, a patient will sprint as rapidly as possible, and these drills can strengthen the hamstring, increase blood flow to the muscle and enhance the size of fast-twitch muscle fibers. The patient may also perform short jumps, hip extensions, Norwegian leg curls and bridge exercises. Moreover, the athlete can use light weights or medicine balls while completing some of the exercises.

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