I need to do some hamstring exercises according to the physio and have been doing the curl things on the machine at the gym however I find the gym so monotonous that I want to try and find another way of doing it. Doing one leg raise things doesn’t really cut it from a difficulty perspective.

I’m also tempted to look into getting some weights so I can do squats at home as part of the other bit of leg work but without a squat rack thing to put the bar down on how do you go about doing it? Kettle bells?

Thoughts appreciated.

last night we were doing “nordic curls” at training. see you tube.
bastard horrible things. But you could do them at home with your feet under the sofa.

Nordic curl you say

Tried a couple of those last night as it happens. Sofa kept lifting up 😳 Although I may have just found a useful task for my four year old 😀

if youre getting some weights for home, can i suggest RDL (romanian deadlifts)?

squat rack would be good for leg work but theres plenty of other decent exercises for legyywegs, walking lunges holding dumbells for instance.

A full nordic curl is unnecessary IMO and puts too much load on your knee ligaments, so you could do shorter curls leaning into 2 o’clock and back again which wont lift the sofa.

Also lunge drops paying attention to keeping your knee directly over your Achilles.

Sumo squats, nice and slow.

Tried a couple of those last night as it happens. Sofa kept lifting up Although I may have just found a useful task for my four year old

You really need someone to hold your ankles down, I can lift up my coach (85kg) doing them….

Get some TRX straps, great for hamstring curls and a hundred other exercises.

Not sure what they’re called but on your back, knees up feet flat on the floor. Lift your pelvis up into the air. Exercises the back and puts load on your hamstrings. If you want to make it tougher do it one-legged.

Also spinning – when up out of the saddle, lean forward and you can really concentrate on pulling up on the pedals behind you focussing pressure on the hamstrings. Also good for concentrating your pedalling technique and getting a much smoother pedal technique which will benefit your cycling.

Ankle weights, gentle jogging on the spot, lifting your feet to your buttocks.

Lie on your front on the floor, get one of those big inflatable exercise/crunch balls and someone to hold it on your back by leaning in on it, then kick up your legs back so you hit the ball with your heels. Position the ball far enough up your back to the best position to make sure you get full range of hamstring movement. One minute of vigorous and fast kicking of the ball and you’ll definitely feel it in your hamstrings.

Not sure what they’re called but on your back, knees up feet flat on the floor. Lift your pelvis up into the air. Exercises the back and puts load on your hamstrings. If you want to make it tougher do it one-legged

Its called a gluteal bridge, can also be done weighted with a barbell across the pelvis, I would start with these before progressing to Nordics if you have been told to strengthen. As someone already mentioned an incorrectly performed ‘full’ nordic performed on a weak hamstring can lead knee to issues.

Do the weeding in the garden, or good alternative in the gym are deadlifts

Spade and a pile of sand? Any digging destroys my hamstrings.

wobbliscott – Member
Not sure what they’re called but on your back, knees up feet flat on the floor. Lift your pelvis up into the air. Exercises the back and puts load on your hamstrings

Pyramids of this are good for your hamstrings.
Lay on floor with feet down and knees bent.
Push hips off floor into a bridge pose.
Lift one foot off and extend straight out. Aim to keep your hip/pelvis level, rather than dropping on the side of the lifted foot.
Hold for 10 and then swap legs.
Then 9,8,7…down to 1 and back to 10.

You can repeat with your heels on a dining chair or foot stool etc., lifting your body off the floor from feet to shoulder blades. Then lift one foot from the chair and do the same; hold for 10 and then swap sides, 9,8,7….

Some possibilities here