Ski Muscle of the Week #5: The Hamstrings

Ski Muscle of the Week #5:  The Hamstrings

Three muscles make up the hamstrings:  The Semitendinosus, Semimembraneosus, and the Biceps femoris.  These three are found on the back of your thigh.  You can feel the tendons of these muscles behind your knee.

 

As a group, they flex or bend the thigh at the knee, and extend the hip.  You can feel these muscle actions when you walk, as the hamstrings play a principal role in that activity.

How do they influence your skiing?  A skier who effectively uses their hamstrings will be able to keep their upper body stable while their legs do the up-and-down pumping action required in bumps.  Don’t do bumps?  That’s okay, you’ll still use the hamstrings when you carve because they will help you keep that inside leg the appropriate length to glide over the snow.  Remember the Rectus Femoris from last week?  The hamstrings act in conjunction with that muscle to keep the inside leg as short as it needs to be. 

Exercises for the hamstrings:

Knee curl.

Hamstring curl.

Flutter kick.  Do this one lying on your back.  Keep your legs locked and toes pointed away from your body.

One-leg kneel.

Bridge.