Exercises for Hamstring Tightness

Abstract

Hamstring tightness is a feeling that is often felt by futsal players, which can interfere with performance during playing. Previous studies suggest that stretching can solve it. However, feeling hamstring tightness is associated with weakness, so strengthening exercises are required to treat it. Strengthening exercises consist of concentric and eccentric exercises, which differ in the direction of muscle contraction. This study aimed to observe the effect of concentric, eccentric, and stretching exercises on muscle length, endurance, and power following hamstring tightness. 49 futsal players who experienced hamstring tightness participated in this study. Participants were divided into three groups consisting of Nordic Hamstring Exercise (NHE), Leg Curl Exercise (LCE), and control group (CTRL) - which only did stretching exercises. The exercises were carried out for 6 weeks, three times per week. The sit and reach test, Passive Knee extension test, Single leg bridge test, and Leg dynamometer tests were used to determine the changes in hamstring muscle before and after the exercises. One-way ANOVA was performed to compare changes between groups. All participants were found to be in the good category (28.78±5.53 cm) in sit and reach test and had low performance (39.13±16.77) in the leg dynamometer test before the intervention series. However, sit and reach test was shown not to be significantly different between groups (p>0.05) as well as ROM. Single-leg bridging test and leg dynamometer significantly differed between groups (p<0.05).This study suggests that feeling tight in the hamstring muscle is not correlated with muscle length. Concentric exercise increased strength more than eccentric and stretching. While concentric exercise increased the endurance of the hamstring muscle.
 Keywords: Hamstring, Stretching, Strengthening, Eccentric, Concentric