When it comes to the hamstrings, most bodybuilders aren’t all that creative in the movements they select. Most of the time, it is leg curls, plain and simple. Trainers might vary the repetitions and sets they use, but the movement is typically the only one used by many bodybuilders in their pursuit of muscle building greatness of the rear thigh variety. The problem occurs, however, when the legs become used to this machine and they stop responding. When this happens, it is time to discover some new movements for hitting your hamstrings.

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Leg day is perhaps the most important day of your training week. Not only are the legs nearly a complete half of your body squeezed into a single training day, but they contain the two largest sets of muscle groups in the body, the glutes and quadriceps. Properly training muscle groups such as biceps and shoulders are easy – you show up in a tank top and knock out your exercises. Adequately stimulating the legs requires a fair deal of preparation before the workout begins. Here are some tips for showing up better prepared in the gym the next time leg day rolls around!

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If you have reached the level of elite bodybuilder, you probably already possess a fairly firm grasp of what works, and what doesn’t, when it comes to building muscle. You know how to add mass to your frame. You know how to get in peak shape for competition. And you know how to target lagging body parts. There are times, however, when even your years of experience and learning can’t help you address a lagging body part as you reach the upper echelon of your sport. Usually, it’s a body part that went unnoticed in the early years of your career, and then became a major weakness that was hard to correct as a more elite bodybuilder. For many bodybuilders, this lagging muscle group is the hamstrings, or the leg biceps. Located on the back of the legs, they work as an antagonist muscle group to the quadriceps, a showpiece stage and performance muscle group. The hamstrings are the forgotten brother of the quadriceps that completes most of their work behind the scenes.

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Many bodybuilders frequently notice that their back workouts hamper their ability to perform as well as needed on leg day. It’s true that some back exercises do require the hamstrings remain fully flexed while supporting a great deal of weight. Deadlifts are an extremely heavy compound movement which forces the trainer to keep the hamstrings fully flexed throughout. Hyperextensions are another movement which results in the hamstrings briefly receiving the brunt of your body weight (along with any plate you are holding as well), which can leave the hamstrings very pumped at the end of back day. Your initial reaction might be one of optimistic surprise. After all, who wouldn’t want to add a quick pump to their hamstrings to see some new progress? Training them twice a week means they’ll grow twice as fast, right?

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If you made a list of muscle groups and asked bodybuilders to rank them based upon their training intensity, what do you think their answers would reveal? Very likely, if they were completely honest, arms and chest would rank near the very top. Abdominals would be up there too, as everyone digs a sexy six pack. As the list descended, you’d see muscle groups like shoulders, quadriceps, lats, traps, forearms, and calves. Then, most likely at the absolute bottom of this list, you’d probably find hamstrings. Ah yes, hamstrings – the muscle group we rarely see and even more rarely train. Hamstrings aren’t a wildly popular muscle group, even among bodybuilders who are judged upon complete development. Bodybuilders tend to toss in a few sets of leg curls at the conclusion of their quadriceps training day, and then move right on to the ever-showing calves. As a result, most bodybuilders have sub-par hamstrings.

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Are you an intermediate bodybuilder who just can’t seem to break the 200-pound mark? You eat everything in sight and take an hour nap each day, but something just seems to be lacking? Chances are, your body has become accustomed to your training patterns. You might be using the ever-popular 5-day training split (Chest, back, Shoulder, Arm, and Leg days). Or you might be using another. Whatever system you’ve been choosing, your body may no longer be responding. Without that need for response, the muscles stay their current size. Here are five routines that you should try for stunning the muscles into growing.

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When it comes to training the hamstrings, the muscles in the back of the upper legs, most bodybuilders don’t put a lot of thought into it. It’s not all that complicated, right? Train you thighs with complete insanity for 40 minutes, then limp over to the lying leg curl machine and knock out six sets in 10 minutes, right? After all, you still have calf training, and you know how important those are!

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Q: I have had low back and left leg pain for the past week and a half after feeling something give during a leg and back workout. Someone said that I may have sciatica. What is it and how can I find relief?

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Maybe you just got your clock cleaned at a show by a guy with sensational hamstrings. Maybe you just saw a picture of Tom Prince in his competitive heyday, with hanging hamstrings that looked bigger and thicker than your thighs even look. Maybe your own thighs have been showing marked improvement, but your hamstrings just look the same as they always have. And maybe you’ve just come to the realization that a set of thick, powerful, bulging hamstrings is something you want – and something you will no longer be denied. Whatever your reasoning, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s examine a few techniques to help make those hammies the best they can be!

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Let’s face it. Most bodybuilders train the muscles they can show off. For this reason, it’s very frequently chest and arms that bodybuilders will train with such a passion, after that, they’ll often train the muscles they can see. Front thighs, shoulders, calves, and forearms begin to get some attention. It’s only after a bodybuilder trains for some time and develops a true overall awareness of his physique that he comes to realize the true importance of fully developing his hamstrings and lower back – those areas he just cannot see. The first time a bodybuilder steps onstage, any weakness in his lower back or hamstrings will quickly come to his attention. From there, training them will be a very big priority.

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