EOD - Stability Ball Hamstring Curls

Today's exercise of the day comes as a request from my mom of all people. She has some knee problems and her doctor (and her son/trainer) told her she needs to work her quads and hamstrings. So I told her to do the hamstring curl machine. However, for someone who is not used to using machines or someone who does not need to use more then bodyweight, those machines can be pretty uncomfortable. So she asked me for a different way to work the hamstrings and so here I am now about to explain the Stability Ball Hamstring Curl.

 

One of our group fitness instructors at the gym, Megan, does a great job explaining the exercise in this video so I won't go into much detail in words.

I will say that this exercise forces you to use a little bit of balance which in turn uses stabilizer muscles that machines just can't get. For anyone with knee issues, using stabilizer muscles is critical because it can stabilize the knee joint causing less pain for use in every day activities.

The hamstring is one of the most underworked muscles in the human body. Most of our power comes from the hamstring, yet we tend to only focus on the quad. A strong hamstring, means a strong knee and a strong, healthy leg.

Hamstrings also can tighten up and are the cause of most lower back pain. So take the time before and after everyone of your workouts to stretch the hamstrings by sitting on the ground, lifting one leg straight in the air and pulling the leg towards your face with your hands, keeping your leg as straight as possible the entire time. Here is another stretch for your hamstrings you can do anytime at your desk.

As always, let me know if there is a certain exercise or muscle group you want to be on the exercise of the day. Enjoy the video and thanks to Megan for her great explination.

Exercize of the Day (EOD)

Too many times in the gym I see people workout without stretching first. Stretching is a huge part of workout out, getting stronger, losing weight and just being a healthier person.

Now most people think stretching is getting into a certain position and holding it for a few seconds. This is called static stretching and is great, but it doesn't prepare you for a workout. Static stretching is great AFTER your workout.

Prework stretches should be ACTIVE, meaning your muscles are moving, not sitting still. These are called active or dynamic stretches. The reason for this in simple terms is that if you warm up by being still, your muscles will be still and it will be harder to activate them when you lift a weight or start running. When you use active stretches you are actually preparing each muscle to lengthen and then contract which is exactly was is done with resistence training. (Sports Fitness Advisor)

Here is a video of some active/dynamic preworkout stretches. Obviusly you don't need to go as far as the man in the example, but attempting a slower variation is recommended before your workout no matter if you are about to get on a cardio machine or about to do resistence training.