Will my hamstrings EVER open up?

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

Hi everyone,
I started doing yoga almost exactly a year ago in order to manage pretty horrible chronic low back pain. I had an episode about 1.5 years ago in which I could hardly walk, sit or stand for about 4 days. I had similar episodes about 3 times but that was by far the worst. My doctor never had me get an MRI but said it was almost certainly a herniated disk (L4 or L5 I think). Physical therapy and muscle relaxants did not help me at all, so I turned to yoga as a ?last resort? and it has been a complete godsend!! I?ve fallen in love with yoga, books about yoga (such as the structural yoga therapy book?an excellent reference), and learning about its history. I started in therapeutic and basic level 1 yoga classes at a local studio, and now take all levels or level 1/level 2 flow classes. I have been fortunate to find some excellent teachers. For the past year, I have practiced on average 5 times a week (sometimes 7 days a week, never less than twice a week). Since beginning yoga, my lower back pain has ?flared up? on several occasions but as of right now I have virtually no pain. I believe the flare ups were due to overstretching in forward bends but I have learned that as long as I sit on the edge of a blanket, I have no back pain.

Although I am extremely pleased with my progress in yoga in that I have regained control of my back pain (and thus control of my life), I am quite frustrated with my progress in one particular area: my hamstrings! They remain extremely tight. I still do not have the normal 90 degree range of motion in dandasana unless I sit on a blanket. Heck, I can?t even do legs up the wall pose. I have noticed improvement in my hamstrings once I am warmed up (about 20 minutes into class), but the cold, ?resting? length of my hamstrings seems to be as tight as ever. I would like to be able to continue to progress in yoga and take more advanced classes, but I feel that my hamstrings keep me from advancing doing many poses properly. As an example, I have the back and abdominal strength to do Warrior III easily, but have trouble balancing in it because there is such a stretch in the hamstring of my standing leg. In short, I feel ?stuck.? I am a tall 27 year old female?almost 6 feet tall, 148 pounds, in pretty good shape. But my legs are very long (35 or 36 inch inseam)?a yoga teacher once remarked that it is almost as if my legs are simply too long for my hamstrings. Even when I go back to a basic beginner class, my hamstrings are by far the tightest in the class?even compared to some senior citizens in the class! (I know, I know?I shouldn?t compare myself to others)

My question is— will my hamstrings ever open up? Is there anything else I can be doing to coax them along? Is it possible that they are truly stuck at this length forever due to genetics? I know that one year of yoga isn?t all that much, but I have been very consistent and have worked really hard?I?m seen so much progress in other areas but virtually none in my hamstrings. I’m not asking to be the most flexibile person in class (I know that will never happen)–I just want to achieve at least a normal range of motion. Any tips or thoughts would be appreciated!

#2

I can give only my humble opinion. I have practiced for about 15 years and teach as well. I am a certified personal trainer and avid cyclist. I too have very tight hams. I have worked diligently on that area for a long time. I have seen improvement, but it is in small increments over a long time. Keep at it. If you focus on long deep stretching with focused breath, it will help. I regularly do standing forward bends, downdogs and seated forward bends for as much as 5 minutes at a time. You need to hold the poses long enough to feel the muscle “release”. You might also researching PNF, which is not really yoga per se, but is a valid technique used by trainers and PT`s to lengthen muscle groups. Anyway, just my 2 cents and maybe only worth one!

#3

Yes they will open up, assuming the five requisites of a yoga student are present in your living. I’m sure your current teacher has shared them with you but perhaps they bear repeating since we have many readers here.

They are:
• Urge to grow
• Willingness to change
• Sound guidance
• Tapas (ardor or effort)
• Patience

Some students confuse poses that require an opening with poses that provide an opening. Further, some contend that fascia or connective tissue doesn’t release until about 90 seconds into an eccentric contraction. If that is the case, then one can see that a rapid-paced asana practice would not facilitate such release - though it would likely facilitate some muscle warmth due to the two obvious factors of external heat and rapid movement.

While each of the five I’ve listed above could warrant further exploration on your part, it seems like 3-5 are the ones to focus on, based on your text. Since I’m not seeing/teaching you I can’t speak to them directly in YOUR practice. But know that thoughts, emotions, fears, nutrition, rest, environment…these things are all part of the equation.

gordon

#4

As Gordon alluded to above, there can be many variables in the equation. Another that I find is many people confuse tight hamstrings with actual muscular imbalance. For example, have you ever seen those huge guys at the gym who have such enormous biceps that they can’t even straighten their arms? The same thing happens with hamstrings. You can stretch all day long but if there’s a muscular imbalance, you’re not going to see much, if any improvement.

The antagonist of the hamstring is the rectus femoris. And during leg extension, the rectus femoris will get help from the psoas, tensor fasciae latae, other hip flexors, and the iliacus. You may want to look at all of them and evaluate if there is weakness present.

#5

Following Inner Athletes advise given two or three weeks ago, I started practicing supta padanghustasana using a strap, did it religiously every morning and every evening, 9 breaths each side, and I already gained at least a full inch in mobility. I test it by trying to touch the floor with my fingertips in a forward bend. When i started, I could only reach the floor, and that only after a minute or two, relaxing with every breath. Now I can bend my fingers and still reach the floor. It feels good to see that I am advancing this fast. I am optimistic and aim for touching the ground with my palm in a few months. I do not perform any other posture, but I do take 2 Pilates classes a week. My increased mobility already helped there tremendously.

To perform the pose in lack of an experienced teacher, I used the description found on the Yoga Journal site.

I had some difficulties as the site says the back of my thigh should touch the floor. Well, it does not. No matter what, even with fully extended knee, my lower leg rests on my buttocks and my calf. I guess this is a minor thing though.

Another thing I found that if I do the pose a la carte, raising my leg fully extended, than I get a stretch of my calf, but not of my hamstrings. So, being inventive, in lack of sound guidance - unadvisable but sometimes you just had to do things yourself - I chose to bend slightly my raised leg. This way, I am able to stretch the hamstrings directly, and given the nature of this pose, it is a safe, isolated stretch. No tension in either the hip, or the knee joints this way, but you need to work for it, as you need the active strenght of your quads to perform the stretching. I found this to work for me the best, it transforms it into isometric stretching, and uses the greater strenght of the quads to soften up the antagonist muscle. So I did the pose as it should be done, than I worked it again after doing the other side, this time with my knee slightly bent, This way I can actually take my mind into the hamstrings, and I can consciously work against the contracting reflex.

After a dozen days, I am now able to raise my leg in supta padanghusthasana and actually feel my hamstrings being stretched.
One word as many, I think challenged people benefit less from the average class, and more from a personal build and guidance. You should carefully read the signs of your body and adapt to them.

PS. Twice every day, morning and evening, 9 breaths each side, supta padanghusthasana, suing a strap. It works.

#6

Thanks for all the advice!!! Hubert-- do you also do the reclining leg stretch on both sides? I find that doing the stretch to the opposite side (e.g., pulling the right leg to the left side, holding strap in left hand) is by far the hardest. I think that indicates that my outer hamstring must be the tightest. I wonder whether that means that I should concentrate on doing that stretch. With any hamstring stretch, I also find that it is much, much harder for me to do poses that stretch both legs at once rather than one leg at a time. For example, I find paschimottanasana inifinitely more challenging than janu sirasana.

In general, would you all reccomend concentrating on stretches where you feel the greatest amount of tightness in order to get the most benefit? I know that ideally there should be a series of stretches, but given Herbert’s advice I would like to add one or two additional focused hamstring strectches to my daily routine (morning and night), which usually includes a full yoga class. I am wondering if I should do the ones that are hardest for me in order to get the most benefit.

#7

@ Hubert
When you do Supta Padangusthasana please keep all three limbs straight even if it means NOT drawing the leg back as far. There are a variety of “reasons” which are not particularly important at this point in this medium.

In placing the strap in the arch of the raised leg, please place it toward the heel portion of the arch rather than the toe mound portion. This will target the hamstrings.

@ Penelope
The pose you refer to is Parsva Supta Padangusthasana. The movement of the leg across the body (technically Horizontal Adduction, I believe) is to lengthen the ilio-tibial band which runs down the outer thigh. This band is also a hip stabilizer and therefore it is not appropriate to over stretch it (obviously). That cross-body movement doesn’t particular alter the work in the hamstrings. Only three breaths in this pose, on each side, and only with the ankle bone aligned with the opposite pelvic bone (ASIS or Anterior Superior Iliac Spine).

As for the method of the working, it is not a matter of what is “harder”, it is a matter of what is needed for balance IF balance is what you are seeking. The hip series (6 postures) is designed to reveal where one is needing additional work AND that additional work (in Purna Yoga™) comes in the form of additional breaths where more opening is warranted, thus the need for an assessment-capable teacher.

gordon

#8

[QUOTE=Penelope;67889]
… Although I am extremely pleased with my progress in yoga… I am quite frustrated with my progress in one particular area: my hamstrings! They remain extremely tight. I have …trouble balancing… because there is such a stretch in the hamstring of my standing leg.
[/QUOTE]

First off it has been argued that there is no stretch to the hamstrings in any standing yoga efforts, since the muscle tends to be loaded, or contracting to resist gravity, they can not relax, no sliding elongation can occur, and therefore there is no stretch. There are efforts that require two people that may work, and you may find your medical/physio team has some suggestions for you.

Penelope, congratulations on your progress I may have a great source for you.

Penelope I would highly recommend Dr Steven D. Stark’s: Stark Reality of Stretching. The DVD is a clear, concise, and precise treatment on stretching the lower body with a particular emphasis and a clear demonstration of an approach to hamstring stretches, like Janu Sirsasana, that may be exactly what you are looking for.

I am not affiliated with Dr. Stark and have no issues with you checking to see if your local library has a copy to preview but I’ll also post a link. The book is a great resource too, but I think the video really will speak to you.

http://drstevenstark.com/stretching-book-dvd

Do not despair from his objection, and outright dismissal of many classical yoga poses, there are many sides to a story, and there are other efforts that address these. I suggest you simply take what you need for the now.

Strength and blessings

#9

My hamstrings are also my biggest physical setback. I cannot reach my ankles without bending my knees. I’ve asked the instructor at the Hatha yoga that I attend for advice, and she told me that I’m already on the right track - that with time and patience, it will come. :slight_smile:

#10

I can attest that Supta Padangusthasana has been very beneficial for opening up my hamstrings and hips. Viparita Karani (Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose) is also really good.

#11

Thanks everyone for all the tips! I am encouraged to know that you think that I will eventually make progress, and am not destined to have bent knees in my down-dog forever!

#12

[QUOTE=InnerAthlete;67933]@ Hubert
When you do Supta Padangusthasana please keep all three limbs straight even if it means NOT drawing the leg back as far. There are a variety of “reasons” which are not particularly important at this point in this medium.

In placing the strap in the arch of the raised leg, please place it toward the heel portion of the arch rather than the toe mound portion. This will target the hamstrings.

gordon[/QUOTE]

Thank you, makes sense, I was gravitating toward this, and your response just made it fully conscious.
Your students are truly blessed.

#13

Thank you.

gordon

#14

[QUOTE=David;67906]

The antagonist of the hamstring is the rectus femoris. And during leg extension, the rectus femoris will get help from the psoas, tensor fasciae latae, other hip flexors, and the iliacus. You may want to look at all of them and evaluate if there is weakness present.[/QUOTE]

Sorry, where is your evidence of this? I do not see a link anywhere.

#15

Penelope,

I suggest that you speak with a trusted and skilled teacher to develop a daily asana practice for your hamstrings. Increasing the frequency will help. I suggest a private session, so that the teacher can observe the strengths and weaknesses in your practice and then cater a practice specifically for you.

#16

Penelope - I too have incredibly tight hamstrings. All my life I have had it and it did get me down whenever I was asked, whilst in downward facing dog, to straighten my legs - THEY WONT lol.

However, bizarrely, what changed for me is running. Running got my hammies really nicely warmed up so that post run I could go for a deep stretch in a nicely warmed muscle area. The worst bit is the holding, but focus on the breath, the flow of energy up and down as you breath and go deeper into the stretch. So I would suggest stretching at the end of a good flowing yoga practice, as well as after any other cardio work you do.
Also, that it could be the calf as well that needs work too, so my teacher recommended that I stand the edge of a step and let my heels drop down in the air, giving a strong stretch in my calves and back of my knees. At first this felt horrible, but I had a huge relief as all that tension was stretching out and being released. I can imagine this is part of downward dog that I dont get at the moment as I am a heels up kinda girl lol.

And of course Supta Padangusthasana is great for stretching out my hammies. Remember to push through the heel and that really stretches muscles and tendons you didnt even know you had. I used to really HATE this in class, but at home I can breath and let it flow at my own pace and I marvel at how in a few breaths my range of movement can change so dramatically :slight_smile:

It does take time, but I’ve noticed in 3 weeks such a HUGE improvement in my hammies. They are becoming flexible, but also strong and so I just let my body work at its own pace.

Plus I love dropping my heels on the step now, so so relaxing as I feel the muscles just stretch and release - sort of euphoric in a way :wink: